Kalops

The story

Kalops belongs to husmanskost, the plain everyday cooking that Swedes built on local ingredients. The word husmanskost comes from the German Hausmannskost, meaning simple fare, and according to the grocery chain ICA it was first used at inns around Sweden, where meals for the gentry were kept apart from meals for servants; by the early 1900s these dishes had reached even the poorest households. Kalops itself is a mild beef stew of cubed meat and onion, flavored with whole allspice berries and bay leaves and simmered slowly in water until the meat falls apart. Arla's recipe is typical: about 1 3/4 pounds of beef in generous cubes, browned in batches, covered with about a quart of water, and simmered for about two hours. It is served with boiled potatoes and pickled beets, whose sharp sweetness cuts the rich gravy. Stockholm food guides describe kalops as a Sunday-lunch kind of dish and note that the Sunday roast, whether kalops or roast pork, still holds in many households. Pick up a jar of sliced pickled beets with the meat, and boil the potatoes during the last half hour of simmering.