January 12, 2024
My paternal grandmother was from Norway. Some of my earliest memories are about her Scandinavian cooking. There were, of course, her famous Christmas cookies and the infamous fiskebollers which were pasty white fishballs that tasted as horrible as they looked.
Then there were the chuckcockers that, until recently, I hadn’t even realized were Norwegian. Chuckcockers are meatballs in gravy that made frequent appearances on Grandma’s table. I was only so-so about their taste, but my dad loved them. He convinced my non-Scandinavian mother to make them, so they are one of the tastes of my childhood that were repeated both at home and at Grandma’s.
My mother’s chuckcockers were blander than my grandmother’s, but both consisted of ground beef seasoned with a little salt and pepper, then mixed with breadcrumbs and a little milk. Grandma might have added a dash of nutmeg and some minced onions to her recipe, but I’m sure my mother didn’t. Mom used only salt and pepper in her recipes, and I know she could make one onion last all winter because she used so little in her meals.
Once the meat was mixed, my mother and grandmother formed it into large meatballs which were flattened into thick patties. These were fried in a little butter until both sides were browned, then removed from the pan, and a roux was made with flour and the drippings from the meat. Beef broth was added to the roux to make gravy. Once the gravy was thickened, the meat was returned to the pan to simmer until it was cooked through. Boiled potatoes, a steamed vegetable and lingonberry jam round
out the meal.
For many years I assumed that my grandmother had invented chuckcockers to make a filling meal out of a pound of ground beef. I guessed that the name chuckcocker came from the fact that Grandma used ground chuck for her meatballs. The cocker part, I believed, was Norwegian. I knew kaker was the Norwegian word for cakes or cookies.
It was only when I began to do genealogy that I learned the true story of the chuckcockers. As part of my study of my Scandinavian ancestors, I did a Rosetta Stone program on the Swedish language. There I learned that köttkakor was Swedish for meatballs. Its pronunciation is similar to my old friend chuckcockers. A quick check on Google Translate informed me that the Norwegian word for meatballs is kjøttkaker – meat cakes or cookies. Although they’re akin to Swedish meatballs, Norwegian meatballs differ from the Swedish version in several ways.Swedish meatballs are usually made from several types of ground meat, often including beef, pork, and veal. Traditional Norwegian meatballs are made only from ground beef. Norwegian meatballs are also larger than their Swedish cousins. The Norwegian balls are also flattened, not round; hence the name kaker. When I was a child, Norwegian meatballs seemed like fat hamburger patties to me. Grandma’s chuckcockers weren’t unique to her; they were a typical Norwegian recipe. The only difference was that her American children and grandchildren anglicized the name.I never cared enough to find out how my mother and grandmother made their chuckcockers. Now that I know they’re a traditional Norwegian dish, I want to reclaim my heritage by making them. Following is a recipe based on my memories of Grandma’s meatballs with a few additions from various online recipes. Grandma’s ChuckcockersMeatballs1 pound ground beef1 tbsp butter1 tsp salt¼ tsp pepper¼ tsp ground nutmeg½ cup milk(Some recipes call for grated onion and a ½ cup of dried breadcrumbs. I don’t think Grandma used them, but they might be a tasty addition) Gravy 2 tbsp butter2 tbsp flourSalt and pepper to taste2 cups beef broth Mix all the ingredients for the meatballs and form them into golf ball sized orbs. Flatten them slightly. Fry them in melted butter until both sides of the patties are browned. Place meatballs on a platter while you make gravy.Make gravy by adding flour to the butter and meat drippings to make a roux. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in two cups of beef broth. Stir until the gravy is thickened. Return meatballs to the gravy and simmer for about 20 minutes until the meatballs are cooked through. Carol StetserResearcher