Suaasat
Greenland's national dish, rooted in Inuit subsistence cooking and traditionally made with seal, whale, reindeer, or seabird meat depending on what was hunted. Since seal and whale meat aren't legally or practically sourceable for nearly any home cook outside the Arctic, this recipe honestly substitutes lamb or venison, the best-documented realistic alternatives, rather than silently passing off a different dish as the original. It's traditionally thickened with barley soaked overnight so its starch leaches into the broth, not with a roux, and kept deliberately simple and lightly seasoned, reflecting its roots as a subsistence meal rather than a showcase for spice.
⚠ Contains: Gluten. Always check your own ingredients — this isn't a guarantee for severe allergies.
Ingredients
- 1 kg lamb shoulder or venison, cubed
- 100g pearl barley, soaked overnight (or rice)
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 potatoes, diced
- 1 bay leaf
- Salt and black pepper
- 1.5 liters water or stock
Steps
- Brown the meat in a large pot.
- Add the water or stock and bay leaf, and simmer until the meat is tender.
- Add the soaked barley partway through, since it needs longer cooking.
- Add the diced onion and potato in the last 20-30 minutes.
- Season simply with salt and pepper before serving.