Kenora holds many lovely memories for me. My mother, Harriet, was born and raised in Dryden, and we often visited this beautiful neighbouring lake city to see cousins and enjoy all it had to offer. So when I received the email about the new Kenora website, the first food memory that came to mind wasn’t about the dish itself, but about the laughter and conversation that surrounded its making.
I tend to focus on my Italian heritage when I think about the food of my youth—partly because I love it, and partly because my Nana always kept us well-fed. My Norwegian grandmother, Nora Nymark, lived in Dryden, a four hour train or car- ride away, so her traditional dishes were more of a rare treat. My grandfather Harry was Swedish, but since he passed away when I was only three, my only memory of him comes from a photograph of me sitting on his lap.
I immediately thought of a dish my Grandmother called Pult. Shredded potato dumplings mixed with flour and salt, boiled in water with pork and eaten with butter. The stories would start while the strange gray balls were boiling, usually about how many Pult were eaten by some uncle and how amazed and impressed the family was of him. I learned that there is an actual word ‘Paltkoma’. This is what happens to you after you eat a bunch of these dumplings, you go into a palt-coma.
Doing a little digging into the dish that I know as Pult, I realize that our names for these items, may not be correct. Here’s a little google research for those of you that are insisting as you read this article that the potato dumplings are called Pult, Palt or Klubb.
Norwegian pult is a thick porridge, a cross between oatmeal and soft dough. Swedish palt is a dumpling made with potatoes and flour, sometimes stuffed with bacon or pork and served with lingonberry jam and butter. Klubb is the Norwegian word for pult, potatoes dumplings sometimes stuffed with meat and served with butter.
No matter what your family calls these dense, comforting dumplings, they share one thing in common: humble grains or potatoes transformed into hearty food that could sustain a family through long, cold winters. Along the way, they became more than just nourishment—they carried with them traditions, laughter, and nights of togetherness. Try them yourself and see who will be the first to slip into a paltkoma.
Palt/Klubb
4 large potatoes peeled and shredded (russet is best)
3 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 large egg
Butter
Salt and pepper
Directions:
- Mix potatoes, flour, salt and egg in a large bowl well
- Form into tennis ball sized balls
- Drop into pot of simmering water and cook for 45 min- stir gently at first so they don’t stick to the bottom
- Eat with butter, salt and pepper
- If you have leftovers the next day, slice them into pieces and fry them in a pan with lots of butter- this was my favourite.
We’d love to share your favourite recipe & story! Send any questions or comments: tbayflavourfiles@gmail.com.
