Boerenkool is a classic Dutch comfort dish — mashed potatoes flecked with cooked kale and served with smoky sausages. It’s simple to prepare, often cooked in one pot, and in this traditional version it’s finished with sweet pear halves and a drizzle of their syrup for a surprising, delicious contrast.
This month, as part of the Eat the World recipe challenge, we’re visiting the Netherlands. Often called Holland in English, that name actually refers to just two of the country’s provinces — Noord-Holland and Zuid-Holland — but it’s commonly used to refer to the whole nation. The Netherlands sits in western Europe and also includes a small group of Caribbean islands.
I was eager to feature Dutch recipes because one of my family’s favorites is boerenkool: mashed potatoes and kale served with smoked sausages. In our home it became special because Marylene’s mother, a neighbor from a nearby Dutch farm community, served it with home-canned pear halves. The sweet pears and their syrup cut through the savory sausage and slightly bitter kale, creating a comforting, well-balanced plate.
I grew up on a sugar beet farm in southern Alberta, among a mix of German, Dutch, and Japanese farming families. Dutch farmyards stood out: neat gravel yards, tidy flowerbeds, freshly painted barns, lace curtains and sometimes wooden clogs lined up at the door. Their homes felt welcoming, and the neighbors were warm and hospitable. Marylene and I were close friends in junior high; I loved visiting her home for treats like oliebollen (fried dough dusted with icing sugar) and homemade chocolate spread on toast, and for meals like boerenkool.
What is Boerenkool and How Do You Eat It?
Boerenkool literally means “farmer’s cabbage,” and it is both the name for kale and the name of the comforting Dutch mash of potatoes and kale. Traditionally it’s paired with smoked sausages and, unexpectedly, pear halves in syrup. At Marylene’s house we made a mound of green-speckled mashed potatoes, arranged sausages and mustard on the side, then created a hollow in the mash to spoon in pear halves and syrup. The pear juice ran down the potatoes, adding a gentle sweetness that complemented the smoky and salty flavors and mellowed the kale’s edge.
This dish is a type of stamppot — a Dutch term meaning a hodgepodge or mash of potatoes combined with another vegetable such as sauerkraut, spinach, carrots, or kale. I got the recipe from Marylene’s mother, and it’s been part of our family’s rotation ever since. When I later researched variations I learned most recipes favor a one-pot method, cooking potatoes, kale, onions and sausages together. That’s the quicker version I share here, though you can cook the kale separately if you prefer a softer texture.
Delicious Comfort Food Boerenkool
As the weather cools, boerenkool fits perfectly with the urge for warming, comforting meals. If you have fresh kale from the garden, use it — the bright leaves add great color and texture. For this batch I used new potatoes, which are lighter and more watery than mature spuds and appear less white in photos, but they work very well.
The one-pot method is straightforward: potatoes and onions form the base, chopped kale goes on top, and smoked sausages rest on the kale while everything cooks together. It only takes a few simple ingredients and some time to bring this hearty meal to the table.
It’s an ideal family dish: filling, flavorful, and easy to scale up for guests.
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Kitchen Frau Notes: The version we first learned cooked the kale, onions, and sausages together until the kale was very soft, then combined with separately cooked potatoes. The one-pot approach saves time and simplifies the process but leaves the kale a little firmer. Either method works; you can also use canned kale (drained and mashed with potatoes) if fresh isn’t available.
Boerenkool Stamppot (Dutch Kale-Potato Mash)
- 8 medium potatoes (about 3 lbs / 1.4 kg)
- 1 large onion, diced (about 2 cups)
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 cups water
- 2 bunches kale (about 1 lb / 450 g, roughly 12–14 large leaves), stems removed, finely chopped (about 8 cups lightly packed)
- 1 lb (450 g) smoked sausage (rookworst, bratwurst, kielbasa, etc.)
- 1/4 cup (115 g) butter
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (optional)
- 3/4–1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cans (400 ml / 14 oz each) pear halves in light syrup, or home-canned pears
- Mustard, to serve
Peel and halve or quarter the potatoes and place them in a large pot. Add the diced onion and bay leaf, then pour in the water.
Remove the thick ribs from the kale leaves and chop the leaves finely. Gather several leaves into a bundle and slice into thin ribbons, then chop the ribbons to shorten them. Pile the chopped kale on top of the potatoes in the pot.
Cut the smoked sausages into 2–3 inch (5–7 cm) pieces and lay them over the kale. Cover the pot with a lid and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the potatoes are tender and the kale reaches your desired texture, about 25 minutes.
Drain the contents, reserving the cooking liquid. Remove the sausages, scraping off any clinging kale, and place them in the reserved hot liquid to keep warm.
Add the butter, pepper, nutmeg (if using), and 3/4 teaspoon salt to the potatoes and kale in the pot. Mash with a potato masher until well combined; the mash can be slightly rustic rather than completely smooth. Remove the bay leaf if you encounter it. If needed, add some reserved cooking liquid or a splash of milk to reach your preferred consistency. Taste and adjust salt.
Transfer the boerenkool to a serving bowl or platter and arrange the sausages around the edges. Serve the canned pears at room temperature in a separate bowl.
Each person piles boerenkool on their plate, tops it with two pear halves and a few spoonfuls of pear syrup, and eats the sausage on the side with a dab of mustard. Serves 4.
Eet Smakelijk!
If you enjoyed this recipe, explore other Dutch dishes made by members of the Eat the World group and consider joining the monthly culinary challenge to discover new flavors from around the globe.
Past ‘Eat the World’ Recipe Challenge Posts (selected)
Here are a few previous country features from the series.
- Argentina: Red Chimichurri Sauce
- Bangladesh: Chingri Masala (Shrimp Curry)
- Bulgaria: Patatnik (Savoury Potato and Cheese Pie)
- Cambodia: Noum Kong (Rice Flour Doughnuts)
- Colombia: Pan de Yuca (Warm Cheese Buns)
- Egypt: Fava Beans and Feta
- England: Gluten Free Fish and Chips with Mushy Peas
- Finland: Lohikeitto (Creamy Salmon, Potato, and Dill Soup)
- France: Axoa d’Espelette (Basque Stew)
- India: Kerala Upma
- Mexico: Cochinita Pibil Tacos
- Sweden: Swedish Meatballs with Cream Gravy
- United States (Soul Food): Smothered Pork Chops