Martine Hartmans and her family of four have been living outside of their country, the Netherlands, for the past 20 years. In the Philippines and Indonesia, her house was far from shops and supermarkets. She started baking her own bread and preparing and selling Dutch dishes from home: appeltaart (apple pie), saucijzenbroodjes (sausage roll), broodje gehaktbal (meatball sandwich), bitterballen (spicy dumplings) and more.
Just before the pandemic, they moved to Ecuador, and they were confined for a long time, and that also increased the need for homemade food. “Since the pandemic is over,” says Martine, “we quickly found more Dutch people and organized a meeting regularly, and we do a day of family integration in August”. There are traditional games for children and a cooking contest. “The sausage roll won that day, and the bitterbal (Martine’s speciality) was number 2!”
Today, when they will see the match of their country of origin and their country of residence, in the World Cup Qatar 2022They promise to be together again. “Of course we’ll do it with orange clothes, a beer and a bitterbal!”
As they miss the taste of the Netherlands, they take advantage of their holidays to bring what they like: crackers, peanut butter, hollandaise mustard, cheeses and herbs. “Unfortunately, we can’t bring in haring (marinated herring) or gerookte paling (eel),” laments Martine.
She makes Dutch food 2-3 times a week. “Potatoes, cauliflower with meat, mashed potatoes with sauerkraut or kale. Pancakes for the children. “And there’s always bitterballen in the freezer.”
The Hartmans like living in Ecuador, despite a few culture shocks such as the difficulty of riding a bicycle on the street and the need to have a sentry box to control the entry and exit of neighbors and visitors. “One lives behind the walls.” But The fact that in this country you can go from the snow to the beach in one day seems special to them.
Martine shares here the bitterballen recipe and a recommendation: Take your time!
- On the first day, boil a broth made with vegetables for a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 6 hours (with a liter of water). Leave it overnight in the refrigerator.
- The second day make the ragù, with 500 gr of minced meat. Melt 60g of butter in a pan, add 560g of flour and stir for 3 minutes.
- Add the cold stock while stirring, until a smooth creamy ragù is created. It should be cooked over low heat for 4 minutes.
- Season to taste with salt, pepper, nutmeg, parsley, and Worcester sauce.
- Pour the ragù into a deep plate and let it rest in the fridge for at least 4 hours. Better one night.
- Sprinkle 150g of breadcrumbs on a flat plate. Beat two eggs. Shape the ragù into balls and roll them in the breadcrumbs, then in the beaten egg and again in the breadcrumbs or panko.
- Put the bitterballen in the fridge for at least two hours to harden.
- Heat oil to 180ºC and fry the bitterballen until golden brown. If you leave them for a short time, they will be cold inside when eaten. (AND)
Source: Eluniverso
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
