Swedish Potato Sausage - Chicken Version

A very accurate chicken based replica of the traditional Swedish Potato Sausage (As sold by Ingebretson's ). No pork or beef here!
Originally published December 19, 2018, Updated on 10/3/20
Today’s recipe was a fun challenge to tackle - Chicken-Based Swedish Potato Sausage.
As I’ve mentioned before, my husband is no longer able to eat pork or beef, which has been ... interesting... to work around. It’s not a religious or ideological thing, his body just can’t handle either any more.
SO, for the most part, he just eats chicken, fish, or vegetarian dishes, and doesn’t normally miss the pork or beef - save for the odd cheeseburger craving.
For the few favourites that he didn’t want to give up, I’ve had great success with replicating the taste and texture, using non-pork ingredients. For instance, my Chicken and Mushroom Tourtiere, or my Vegan Donair “Meat”.
Early on in our marriage, my husband made mention of potato sausage he used to get as a kid. His extended family all went in on a bulk order of the stuff from some unnamed (to him) supplier, and they’d split it up, freeze it all, and eat it over the following month or two.
We bought a few different kinds over the years, all of which he found to be “meh” - they weren’t THE ONE. He knew.
Last year - our final Christmas in the US - I happened across a little Scandinavian store in Minneapolis, and picked up a bit of their sausage for the hell of it. As luck would have it, that was THE ONE.
Ingebretsen’s, for anyone in the Minneapolis area who may be interested!
Potatiskorv - Swedish Potato Sausage
Swedish Potato Sausage - or “ värmlandskorv” as it’s known in Sweden - is traditionally served at Christmastime. It’s made from beef, pork, potatoes, onions, and spices.
While my husband’s family isn’t Swedish, Minnesota has a lot of people of Scandinavian heritage, so it’s not surprising that it was a tradition in his family as well.
Unfortunately... it’s a pork and beef sausage.
He braved the consequences and had some anyway, just in the name of nostalgia, but I promised him I’d make a safe version. It felt like big shoes to fill, having seen how “meh” he was over everything that wasn’t IT.
I played around with chicken, mushrooms, potatoes, and spices, and came up with a recipe that was BANG ON, bringing him right back to his childhood on the first bite!
Even his father was shocked and in disbelief - He seemed to think we were pulling his leg when we told him that we’d made it at home, and it was chicken!
The only problem? When frozen and thawed, my sausage turned all kinds of ugly colours - like blue black, marbled in.
After making some calls, we learned that this was safe - if unappetizing - it was just the raw potato oxidizing. The solution? Cook the potatoes first.
I tweaked the recipe, tested it out, and here we are!
Once stuffed into casings, this sausage can be boiled right away, put in the fridge for a day or two if needed, or frozen - so do whatever makes the most sense for your needs, without worry about discolouration!
Making Sausage
We went the traditional route and stuffed sausage casings to make the sausage as you see it here.
Equipment
I have a Kitchenaid Stand Mixer, as well as the Grinder Attachment and Sausage Stuffer Kit for it.
If you don’t have a Kitchenaid, you can always buy a Manual Meat Grinder fairly cheaply - a fun thing to have on hand, as it’s key to making all kinds of homemade sausages.
You’ll also want a manual Sausage Stuffer kit - this one doesn’t require a KitchenAid stand mixer for use.
If you really don’t want to mess around with grinding meat, you can always buy some ground chicken - just be sure to have a mix of lean and .. Not lean ... so your sausage isn’t dry.
Technique
The sausage that my husband used to have as a kid was sold in coils, so that’s how we did it.
Alternatively, feel free to make individual sausages out of it.
A third option - the lazy option (NO judgement!) - is to use a burger patty press to make sausage patties.
Finally, you can also roll the sausage meat into wax paper chubs, freeze, and slice off patties of what you need from there. This would be the SUPER lazy option, but - again - no judgement! This is by far the easiest - and least messy - path to Tasty Sausage Goodness!
Serving Swedish Potato Sausage
It sounds like this sausage is traditionally served boiled (on Christmas), and either cold OR warm throughout the rest of the year.
Many people grill or pan fry the sausage whole, and serve it with pickled beets.
In my husband’s family, it was boiled, sliced in half lengthwise, and then pan fried - on both sides - in butter. This is how we’ve been serving it, since we started making it.
We love the flavour and texture that the browning gives to the sausage, and cutting it in half allows for more surface area to brown!
Note on Scaling
Sausage making can be a bit of an... undertaking. I created this recipe to make enough to make the effort and mess worth it.
However, this Chicken Sausage recipe can easily and successfully be halved, for a smaller batch!
Conversely, you can also multiple the batch to make much larger batches, should you need even MORE Swedish Potato Sausage.
More Holiday Recipes
Looking for more inspiration for your holiday spread? Whether Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, or any of the other holidays, here's a few ideas for you!
Bacon Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Brandied Apple Upside Down Cake
Cranberry Wine
Egg Nog Sticky Buns
Gluten-Free Chicken Mushroom Tortiere
Maple Bourbon Glazed Carrots
Mushroom Brie Turnovers
Noelles
Orange Ginger Cranberry Sauce
Pumpkin Mead
Pumpkin Spice Nanaimo Bars
Savoury Mushroom Chestnut Stuffing
Southern Comfort Glazed Ham
More Midwest Inspired Recipes
Looking for some more recipes inspired by my time living in Minnesota? Here's a few for ya! (Oh ya, you betcha?)
Beer Battered Corn on the Cob
Boozy Sparkling Cider Float
Candy Bar Salad
Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Hotdish
Jalapeno Artichoke "Backfire" Dip
Midwest Goes Southwest HotDish
Spinach Hand Pies
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Before you dig in, be sure to take some pics of your handiwork! If you Instagram it, be sure to tag me - @CelebrationGenerationCA - or post it to My Facebook Page - so I can cheer you on!
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Well, the published nonsense, anyway!
Now, on to that Swedish Potato Sausage recipe!
Swedish Potato Sausage Recipe, Chicken Version
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 lbs Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
- 4 lbs Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs
- 3 lbs Russet Potatoes
- 1 ½ lbs Yellow Onions
- 1 lb Baby Bella / Crimini Mushrooms
- 3 Tbsp Salt
- 2 Tbsp Ground Pepper
- 1 ½ tsp Allspice
- ¾ tsp Nutmeg
- ¼ Cup Milk
- Casings*
Instructions
- Peel potatoes, chop into 1″ cubes. Place in a large microwave safe dish and cook on high for 10-15 minutes, or until fork tender. Set aside
- Peel and chop your onions, chop mushrooms. Add both to a food processor, process until finely chopped / pureed. Add to bowl of cooked potatoes, mash until not quite smooth. Set aside.
- Set your food grinder with the coarse disk, and process the chicken down. In a large bowl, combine chicken with potato mushroom mixture. Add remaining ingredients, mix well.
- Following the instructions on your meat grinder / sausage stuffer, set it up with the appropriate nozzle to make sausages. Make the sausages whatever size you like – we usually aim for about the diameter and length of a kielbassa ring, but you can make them longer or shorter – a whole coil, as pictured, or individual sausages. Tie off ends, use a fork to poke a few holes in each sausage.
- To cook, place in a pot of boiling water, turn heat down to a simmer, and allow to cook for about 30 minutes.
- To serve: Pan fry cooked sausage in butter, either whole or sliced up.
This is thee BEST swedish potatoe sausage I have ever had! It has flavor!!!! Thank you so much for sharing!
This recipe is great; excellent flavor. I'll definitely be making another batch once I run out (I froze most of it).