This is the recipe for a traditional Danish roasted pork with a crisp rind. In Denmark this roast is called a Flæskesteg which translated simply means a pork roast and it is typically served during Christmas. However, many people also have it for dinner all year around. In many countries, a pork roast is normally prepared without the rind. In this Danish version the rind is always left on and then it is cooked into crisp and salty cracklings. In Denmark, you can get this piece of meat in every grocery stores. Outside Denmark, you properly need to contact you local butcher to get a cut where the rind is left on the meat.
See also: How to make Danish Sugar Browned Potatoes for Christmas
In the following we have collected three important tips how to get a very delicious Flæsesteg.
Tip 1; When preparing this pork roast you need to cut deep grooves in the rind about 5mm (1/5 inch) apart. In this step it is important that the grooves are deep but do not goes all the way down to the actual meat.
Tip 2; It is also important the you add plenty of salt on the rind and down in-between the grooves. If you do not add enough salt you risk that the rind do not get nice and crisp.
See also: The TOP 4 BEST Nordic Christmas recipes
Tip 3; finally, is important that the roast is lying in a horizontal position when cooking it in the oven. This makes sure that the rind is cooking evenly, so you do not risk that one end is burned and the other is under cooked.
If you are looking for other traditional Danish recipes you can take a look at our Danish archive section.
Ingredients
- 1 kg Boneless pork roast with rind
- coarse salt
- 5 dried bay leaves (can be omitted)
Instructions
- Use a sharp knife to cut long deep grooves in the rind of the pork roast. The grooves should be about 5 mm (1/5 inch) apart. Make sure to make deep grooves in the rind but do not cut into the actually meat.
- Rub the entire roast thoroughly with coarse salt. Especially, make sure that you get lots of salt in the grooves.
- Place 3-6 dried bay leaves in the grooves - this can be omitted if you do not have any.
- Place the roast on a rack with a roasting pan underneath. In the roasting pan; add 1/2 liter (2 cups) of water and some sliced carrots and onions. This water with the vegetables can later be used to make a nice gravy. Make sure that the roast is lying in a horizontal position. You can use a ball of aluminium foil under the roast to level it. If you do not do this you risk that the rind gets an uneven color or get burned.
- Preheat the oven to 225 C (440 F) and cook the roast for 15 minutes.
- Turn down the heat to 200 C (400 F) and continue cooking.
- When the core temperature is 57 C (135 F) turn on the grill function in the oven. This make sure that the rind gets nice and crisp. Keep an eye on the roast so that you don't burn it.
- The roast is done when the core temperature is 65 C (150 F). It takes about 1.5 hours to reach this temperature. If the water evaporates during the cooking, you should add some extra.
- When the roast is done; take it out of the oven. Let it rest for about 15 minutes or eat it right away. Cut the roast in slices at each groove.
- If you want to make a nice gravy; drain the vegetables form the water and pour it in a sauce pan. Add some heavy cream and some brown gravy coloring. Add salt to taste.
Hollie
Thank you so much for your wonderful Danish recipes. My husband is from Denmark and your site is a great source for our family tradional dinners. It is very helpful to have the US conversions. I will be using these this holiday season. Best!
Louise Dam
Hi Hollie
I'm just glad you can use the recipes! :-)
Annette Oltmans
Thank you for this recipe! I’m so excited to make it this weekend. Can you please give me the brand name for the gravy browning sauce you recommend?
Kim Nielsen
You are welcome. I hope that you will have success with the recipe. I use the gravy browning from Denmark called "Beauvais kuloer". I'm not sure if it is available in the US. Regards Kim (NordicFoodLiving.com)
Marie-Luise Maxwell
I am making my Flæskesteg to morrow. Tak for opskriften. 🇩🇰
Kim Nielsen
Selv tak. I hope that you will like it :-)
Marianne
In Canada we have graving brown
ing colour called Kitchen Bouquet
Jasoon
Thanks for the recipe.
Grandma made this for Christmas every year. I am first generation Canadian. Grandparents moved here in mid 1950s. Also Nielsen.
Ønske dem en glædelig jul og velsignelser for det nye år.
Mark
Louise, thank you so much for posting all of these recipes! You’ve no idea how much this means to me (and probably many others like me!) I was born & raised in the USA but my mother was Danish. Because she was Danish, Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without risegrød, æbleskiver, rødkål, flæskesteg, and all the other wonderful Danish recipes. Well, my mother passed away a couple of years ago and cooking the traditional Danish Christmas foods has fallen to me this year. I was in a bit of a panic trying to figure out how I was going to do it, but luckily I have your website! I actually got a little teary-eyed looking over the recipes and thinking of the love my mother put into her cooking. Food is so much more than just food. It’s family. I’ll be able to honor her memory this year with your help. And I want to keep the tradition alive so I can eventually share it with my children one day. Thank you!
Louise Dam
Hi Mark,
I love that you are going to let your mothers danish heritage live. I hope you can use our recipes and you get to make a lot of danish christmas food.
Inger Benedikte
Thank you for your website and recipes. My mother was born and raised in Denmark. All your recipes bring back many wonderful memories of a loving, special time in my life. Thanks.
Kim Nielsen
Hi Inger. Thanks for you comment. I happy that you enjoy the recipes and that they can bring back some good memories :-)
Mary
Thanks for sharing your recipes. I am doing my first attempt at re-creating the Flaeskesteg sandwiches I had while visiting my son in Copenhagen. He was great to introduce me to as many Danish specialties as he could; Thank goodness, because we needed to keep well fueled to manage the sightseeing he'd lined up, too! Thanks, Kim (and thanks, Aaron!)
Kim Nielsen
Hi Mary
Thanks for your comment. Yes the Flæsestegssandwich is a very popular Danish sandwich - and yes it's a great fuel if you are walking around on sightseeing :-) I hope you will stick around and try some of my other recipes.
Theresa Williams
I can not find a butcher who has a loin with the rind. Is their another cut of pork I can use?
They are suggesting the leg with skin on?
Thanks
Kim Nielsen
Hi. Yes, I'm aware of this problem. I've lived in the states for some time. Sometimes the butcher can get loin with the rind if you just order in due time. Actually, I think you can try with the leg but it's not going to be the exact same thing. Maybe a whole slab of belly with the rind - if you can get a hold of that?
catherine permin
try your local mexican butcher ask for espinaso thats how I get mine :)
Bo
The trick is to locate an old fashioned butcher that starts from whole animals and carves everything from scratch. It seems that many butcher shops start from industrially processed slabs of meat, which makes it impossible for them to control details such as the rind. The only solution is to call around and ask. I called one place that told me it is an impossible request, there is no way to get a pork loin with rind. The next place I called happened to have one sitting in the fridge, carved and ready -- but that's an unusual stroke of luck. Once you find a "real" butcher you will most likely need to special order it. They may need as much as a week advance notice, so you do have to plan ahead.
If you happen to be in Orange County, CA you can call Electric City Butchers in Santa Ana; they are excellent.
Hans Jorgen Bjarnoe
If you are around Maryland there is a big butcher called Wagner's or Mount Airy meat locker. this is where all Danes in the Washington DC area gets their cut from. I just picked mine up 15 pounds pork loin bone out and with rind on, it is gorgeous piece of meat totally flat
Suzanne Kristensen
You ca. also buy a boneless pork loin with the rind at Bullock’s Country Meats. I just picked mine up yesterday 😊
Hans Jørgen Bjarnø
another thing, i have always done the roast in an oven bag. when temp has been achieved i slice the top of the bag and turn on the grill function 3-5 minutes at most and the rind comes out perfect
Tom Mahler
Youcan order from scandinavian butik in Connecticut. Best product I have found.
Raj
Looks great... but would add some more spices n make it hot,,,
Kim Nielsen
You can do that and make your own version of this roast. Sounds nice :)
Maria Ericksen
Hi Raj, you can add extra spice by all means - it just won't be traditional Danish roast pork ;-)
Rosie
Hi Kim
Thank you so much for posting this recipe! I just made it and it was delicious!
I've tried to make flaeskesteg before, but it's never turned out as I'd hoped. Your recipe made everything clear!
Kim Nielsen
Hi Rosie. Thanks a lot for your nice comment. I'm happy that you like the recipe :-)
Paul
A pork loin is very long. Which part of it is the best to use?
JOnas
Hello, Kim. How do you COOK a HAKKEDRENG with CHEESE on top?
Kim Nielsen
That's simple! You take a HAKKEDRENG and put CHEESE on top.
Raj
Just 2 ingredients...!
Klaus Pedersen
Would love to use this, but I cannot print it
Kim Nielsen
Hi. I have started to convert all my recipes into a more nice presented recipe with a print button. However, it takes a lot of time. Should you maybe copy (ctrl+C) the recipe into a Word document and then print it?
Susanne
Hi,
3 comments as my granny & mum prepared this delight:
1) You should actually turn the roast upside down in the oven tray, boiling the rind in the mixed vegetable and chicken/porc stock for 20 minutes This adds wonderful flavor both to crackling and sauce.
2) Before tuning on the grill, you should transfer the stock into the saucepan, to help crisping up the rind.
3) Also add cloves with the laurel and salt after turning the roast “right side up”
Kim Nielsen
Those are all some really great ideas :-)
Susanne Tobler
Hello Kim
I have just found your nice blogg. My mother was from Danmark but I live in Switzerland. But I am still so in love with this country and the great food. Next weekend I will have som guests and I want to cook a real danish traditionel dinner and of course I have decided to do the fleskesteg with red cabbage. The only things which didn't work last time was the gravy and the "brune kartoffler". Could you not please let me know how I have to do the brune kartoffler? I guess it should be easy?!
Thank you so much and have a wonderful week.
Grettings from Switzerland, Susanne
Kim Nielsen
Hi Susanne. Thanks for your nice words. It sounds like a great idea with a Danish dinner. I have a recipe for Brunede Kartofler here on my blog. You can find it in the Traditional Danish Section
Anonymous
Did my first flæskesteg today using your guide, I didn't even need to grill the crackling at the end and the whole thing was just perfect and crispy. I'm English living in Denmark for the last 5 years and this certainly won't be the last flæsk I steg!
Kim Nielsen
I am happy that you can use my recipe for Flæskesteg :-) It is only of the most "Danish" dishes you can make :-) Regards Kim (NordicFoodLiving.com)
Dane
Love receipe. How long shouls I cook a 6-7lb porkloin with rind
Kim Nielsen
A 6-7lb pork loin should have about 2-2.5 hours. However, the most important thing is the core temperature. Use a thermometer and monitor the temperature. Regards Kim (NordicFoodLivng.com)
Fred Carmean
Thank you so much for your recipes. I made this for Christmas dinner and it turned out extremely well. Pork with rind isn't available at supermarkets, but my Chicago butcher shop was happy to provide. When I mentioned Danish pork roast--he asked me immediately if I wanted him to score (cut) the rind, too. Coupled with your red cabbage recipe (although I did add some cloves and apple) it was a hit! Keep up the good work.
Kim Nielsen
Thanks for your nice comment. I'm happy that your Christmas pork roast turned out good :-) Regards Kim (NordicFoodLiving.com)
Jan Andersen
Heh, rind is something I expect to find on the outside of cheese of root vegetables :-)
Living in UK, I've found it very difficult ro get crisd crackling on a pork roast, but here is a tip: Find a Chinese supermarket and buy the pork there. Not only is the quality superior to the typical British cuts, but you can also find the right cuts. Apparently it has something to do with the fact that British supermarkets process the meat in such a way that the skin is saturated with water, which the Chinese don't, 'cause they like crisp pork.
Grace
Hello,
Thank you for posting this recipe.
I was looking to make this wonderful roast I got to know while living in Denmark years ago.
I tried to make it but the salt stayed on top and was far too salty to eat as such. I had to scrape the top, which didn’t make it so nice looking.
I follow your recipe, but probably I did something wrong? ☹️
Kim Nielsen
Hello. The cracklings are supposed to taste of salt. Sort of like potato chips. Maybe try to reduce the amount of salt the next time.
Bennie veldscholte
ik heb het flæskesteg nu klaar uit de oven en het super en heerlijk op 65gr.heb mij 2 kilo meegenomen uit Denemarken en tevens de dænske marmelade sinaasappel voor over de appeltaart.ik wens u fijne feestdagen.
Alex
Wonderful recipe, we have something really similar here in Germany in the form of Krustenbraten, so, can confirm this tastes just heavenly.
As a small question, what would be a traditional aside for a flæskesteg? For Krustenbraten I mostly know of mashed potatoes.
Viggo Zing
In order to ensure that the crackling is crisp just like "pork rinds" I always turn the scored part of the roast down into 3/4 inch of boiling water in the roasting pan in the 400F oven for 30 minutes.
After the rind is boiled, the roast is removed from the 400F oven and I rub the rind with salt and place a few bay leaves into the rind and place the roast on a roasting rack and then back in the 400F oven for 75 minutes (4 pounds) to 90 (6pounds) minutes while checking the color of the rind periodically for a crisp golden brown appearance, but definitely not burnt black.
PS. I you have no luck finding a roast at the butcher with the rind for crackling, you can always cheat by using "Old Fashioned Style Chicharon, Fried pork rinds" from Walmart's international foods isle and sprinkle same on top of your roast some 3 minutes before taking the roast out of the oven.
Sandra
I have never been able to get crisy crackling just by adding salt.The rind comes out like leather, chewy and hard. I steam the pork by covering it fully with foil after placing the meat in a dish. This softens the rind. Then after at least an hour (more for larher joints), take the foil off and roast until the rind goes golden brown. This makes it crisoy and chewable.