Biksemad is Danish hash: cubes of potato, meat and onion fried together in butter until browned, then served with a fried egg on top. It is a way to turn leftover roast meat and boiled potatoes into dinner in one frying pan, in about 30 minutes.
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Recipe
Danish Biksemad
Ingredients
Method
- Cut the cooked potatoes into smaller pieces.
- Cut the meat into pieces of about the same size.
- Chop the onions roughly.
- Brown potatoes and onion on a pan, then add the meat.
- Add a little bit of butter and mix it well together.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Use between 5-10 g butter per egg.
- Bring the butter on a hot pan and turn to medium heat.
- Crack the eggs gently into the pan when the butter has melted.
- Lower the heat when the eggs have set to avoid overcooking.
- Serve the eggs on top of the biksemad.
Step by step, in pictures
The recipe card above in six stages, from cutting the potatoes to frying the eggs.
Cube the cooked potatoes- Cut the meat to the same size
- Chop the onions roughly
- Brown the potatoes and onion
- Add the meat and butter, then season
- Fry the eggs in butter
What is biksemad?
Biksemad is a Danish hash of potatoes, meat and onion, each cut into cubes and fried together in one pan, usually with a fried egg on top. It is commonly made from leftovers: roast pork, beef or lamb from an earlier meal, and potatoes boiled the day before.
Its closest relative is Swedish pyttipanna. The difference, as this site describes it, is size: pyttipanna is cut into small dice, while biksemad is cut into larger, coarser pieces.
Is biksemad spicy?
No. This recipe seasons it with salt and pepper only. Any sharpness comes from what goes on the table with it: Worcestershire or HP sauce, or the vinegar tang of pickled beetroot.
What to serve with biksemad
A fried egg on top is the usual way to serve it, one per person. Around it, put out:
- pickled beetroot
- HP sauce, Worcestershire sauce or ketchup
- rye bread
- a little chopped parsley or chives, mainly for colour
If you want wine with it, the right bottle depends on which meat went in. A Côtes-du-Rhône is a flexible choice that sits well with pork, beef or lamb.
Which leftovers work in biksemad?
Any roast or boiled beef, pork or lamb works, and so does raw meat cut into cubes, which simply needs longer in the pan. Leftover flæskesteg (Danish roast pork) is a good fit. Cut the meat to roughly the size of the potato cubes so everything browns at the same rate.
If extra people turn up, stretch the pan with more potatoes or other root vegetables rather than more meat.
How to make biksemad with raw potatoes
You do not have to boil the potatoes first. It takes longer, but it saves a pan. Fry the raw potato cubes in hot butter or fat on their own. Add the onion only once the potatoes start to brown, then add the meat and a knob of butter once the onion has coloured.
How to make biksemad in the oven
The oven is easier when you are cooking a large amount. Mix the boiled potato cubes, onion and meat in a roasting tin, dot with butter and season with salt and pepper. Bake in a hot oven for about 10 minutes, turning everything once or twice with a palette knife. Then crack the eggs on top and return the tin for 5 to 10 minutes, until the whites have set.
For more dishes like this one, see the site’s collection of Danish recipes.
