Plate 05 of 10

Reindeer Sausage Skillet

Name: Reindeer Sausage Skillet
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 4 to 6
Cuisine: Alaska
Ingredients: 700 g, 4 to 5 links Smoked Alaskan reindeer sausage, sliced on the bias into 1 cm coins; 30 ml Rendered bacon fat, lard or neutral oil; 600 g Small waxy red potatoes, scrubbed, unpeeled, in 2 cm cubes; 250 g Yellow onion, in 6 mm half-moons; 400 g Green cabbage, cored and cut into 1 cm ribbons; 15 g Garlic, thinly sliced; 250 ml Amber ale; 120 ml Beef stock; 30 g Whole-grain stone-ground mustard; 15 ml Apple cider vinegar; 5 g Dried thyme; 8 g Coarse sea salt; 3 g Black pepper, cracked; 15 g Flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Frontier one-pan cooking built for forty below. Smoked reindeer sausage seared in bacon fat until its edges blister, waxy red potatoes crisped in the drippings, onions and garlic, then an amber ale to lift the fond, shredded cabbage, stock, grainy mustard and cider vinegar, braised under a lid until the potatoes are tender and the liquid has reduced to a glaze.

Prep: 20 min
Cook: 30 min
Serves: 4 to 6
Difficulty: Medium

Researched · Kitchen testing pending

A cast-iron skillet of seared sausage coins, browned potato cubes, onion and strips of red and green pepper, on a weathered wooden table.

Domesticated Scandinavian reindeer were brought to Western Alaska in the late nineteenth century to support rural communities on the Seward Peninsula. Blended with pork fat and warm spices and smoked over birch or alder, reindeer sausage became a staple of hunting cabins, bush lodges and Anchorage breakfast counters.

Trappers and guides slice the links thick and fry them in seasoned cast iron with onions, red potatoes and cabbage, splash in an amber ale or a local cider, and serve the pan with stone-ground mustard. It is hearty cooking engineered for sub-zero weather.

Ingredients

700 g, 4 to 5 linksSmoked Alaskan reindeer sausage, sliced on the bias into 1 cm coinsor caribou or smoked pork sausage
30 mlRendered bacon fat, lard or neutral oil
600 gSmall waxy red potatoes, scrubbed, unpeeled, in 2 cm cubes
250 gYellow onion, in 6 mm half-moons
400 gGreen cabbage, cored and cut into 1 cm ribbons
15 gGarlic, thinly sliced
250 mlAmber aleor unfiltered apple cider
120 mlBeef stock
30 gWhole-grain stone-ground mustard
15 mlApple cider vinegar
5 gDried thyme
8 gCoarse sea saltdivided
3 gBlack pepper, cracked
15 gFlat-leaf parsley, chopped

Waxy potatoes hold

Red potatoes are high in moisture and low in amylose, so their cubes keep their edges through a braise. A russet would dissolve into the liquid.

The fond in the beer

Searing the sausage at about 175 °C leaves protein-rich browning on the pan floor. Amber ale dissolves it and adds malt sugars and melanoidins to the braise.

The five tastes on this plate

Salt is smoked sausage, bacon fat and sea salt. Fat is rendered sausage and bacon drippings. Acid is cider vinegar, mustard and the ale. Heat is cracked pepper, mustard seed and garlic. Umami is the smoked game meat, the browned edges and the stock fond.

Equipment

12-inch cast-iron skillet with a lid, or an enamelled braiser
Flat metal spatula
Wooden spoon

A lidded cast-iron skillet straight over the fire is the frontier tool. Any heavy 12-inch pan with a tight lid works. Brown the sausage first so the potatoes crisp in its fat before any liquid goes in.

Method

Brown the sausage7 min
Heat the fat in the skillet over medium-high. Lay the sausage coins in one layer and sear 3 to 4 minutes a side until blistered and dark at the edges. Lift to a plate, leaving the fat.
Heat the fat in the skillet over medium-high. Lay the sausage coins in one layer and sear 3 to 4 minutes a side until blistered and dark at the edges. Lift to a plate, leaving the fat.
Crisp the potatoes10 min
Add the potatoes in one layer, season with a teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon of pepper, and cook over medium 8 to 10 minutes, turning with the spatula, until golden and half tender.
Add the potatoes in one layer, season with a teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon of pepper, and cook over medium 8 to 10 minutes, turning with the spatula, until golden and half tender.
Onions and garlic5 min
Push the potatoes to the edges and sauté the onions in the centre 4 to 5 minutes until soft and browned at the edges. Stir in the garlic and thyme for 1 minute.
Push the potatoes to the edges and sauté the onions in the centre 4 to 5 minutes until soft and browned at the edges. Stir in the garlic and thyme for 1 minute.
Deglaze2 min
Pour in the ale and scrape up every browned bit. Boil hard 2 minutes to cook off the alcohol.
Pour in the ale, scrape up the browned bits and boil hard for 2 minutes.
Cabbage and stock1 min
Add the cabbage, stock, mustard, vinegar and the remaining salt and pepper. Stir well and nestle the sausage and its juices back in.
Add the cabbage, stock, mustard, vinegar and the remaining salt and pepper. Stir well and nestle the sausage and its juices back in.
Braise12 min
Lower the heat to medium-low, cover tightly, and braise 10 to 12 minutes until the potatoes are fork-tender and the cabbage has wilted into sweet ribbons.
Lower the heat to medium-low, cover tightly, and braise 10 to 12 minutes until the potatoes are fork-tender and the cabbage has wilted into sweet ribbons.
Reduce and serve3 min
Uncover, raise to medium and cook 2 to 3 minutes until the liquid becomes a glossy glaze. Scatter the parsley and serve from the pan with sourdough rolls and more mustard.
Uncover, raise to medium and cook 2 to 3 minutes until the liquid becomes a glossy glaze. Scatter the parsley and serve from the pan with sourdough rolls and more mustard.
08
Sensory cues of doneness
- Visual: mahogany-edged sausage, golden potato cubes with pale centres, cabbage soft and amber.
- Auditory: a hard sizzle as the sausage lands, settling into a steady bubble once the ale goes in.
- Olfactory: birch smoke, sizzling game and pork, caramelised onion, cider vinegar, cabbage.
Check for mahogany sausage edges, golden potatoes with pale centres and soft amber cabbage. Expect steady bubbling after the sear, with smoke, meat, caramelised onion, cider vinegar and cabbage aromas.

Troubleshooting

Potatoes fell apart.: Starchy russets. Use waxy red or Yukon Gold and cube them evenly.
A bitter, scorched pan base.: The fond was not lifted. Pour the ale in hot and scrape the pan clean before the cabbage.
Watery, bland cabbage.: Too much stock. Cabbage sheds its own water; 120 ml of stock is enough.

Substitutions

One-to-one swaps, with the technique change each one needs.

Ingredient substitutions

Ingredient	Replace with	Culinary impact and technique adjustment
Reindeer sausage	Smoked venison sausage, wild boar sausage or Polish kielbasa	Kielbasa is smokier and less gamy
Amber ale	Unfiltered apple cider, or chicken stock with 1 Tbsp cider vinegar	Sweet-tart moisture without the malt
Red potatoes	Yukon Gold or fingerlings	Hold their shape the same way

Scaling

Half

A 10-inch skillet, about 25 minutes.

Double

Two 12-inch skillets or a 7-quart Dutch oven, so the potatoes brown rather than steam.

What to serve it with

Warm sourdough rolls with butter and extra grainy mustard
Pickled beets and dill pickles
An amber ale or oatmeal stout, or a dry hard cider

Questions

What is in real reindeer sausage?

Alaskan reindeer blended with pork and beef for fat and binding, and smoked over alder. A quarter to a third of it is pork fat.

Kielbasa or andouille?

Yes. A good smoked garlic kielbasa, smoked bratwurst or venison sausage swaps in one-to-one.

Without beer?

Use 250 ml unfiltered cider, or chicken stock with an extra tablespoon of cider vinegar.