Nordic Gastronomy: 15 Scandinavian Dishes You Must Absolutely Try

Nordic Cuisine: Much More Than IKEA Meatballs

The Nordic gastronomic revolution started with René Redzepi's Noma projected Scandinavian cuisine into the Olympus of world gastronomy. But beyond the Michelin-starred restaurants at €500 a head, there is a traditional cuisine that is rich, authentic, and strongly tied to the territory: Arctic fish, reindeer meat, wild berries, forest mushrooms, dense bread, and goat cheese. Here are the 15 dishes you need to know before you leave.

Norway

• Gravlax: raw salmon marinated with salt, sugar, dill, and sometimes aquavit. Served on rye bread with a mustard and dill sauce. The symbol of Nordic cuisine in the world
• Rakfisk: trout fermented for 3-12 months, served with onions and sour cream. Extremely strong smell, incredible taste for those who approach it with an open mind. Not for everyone
• Fårikål: the Norwegian national dish — lamb and cabbage stew with whole black peppercorns. Simple, wintry, comforting
• Skrei with cod roe: seasonal Arctic cod (January-April), served with its roe and liver fried in butter. In Lofoten restaurants, it is treated like Parma ham — a noble raw material
• Brunost (Geitost): caramelized goat's whey "cheese". Sweet, with notes of caramel. It is sliced and put on bread or warm waffles

Sweden

• Köttbullar: true Swedish meatballs (no IKEA) are served with brown cream sauce, lingonberry jam, and mashed potatoes. The sweet and savory combination is the surprise of every first taste
• Smörgåsbord: the Swedish buffet in its original form — dozens of preparations of herring, salmon, cold meats, cheeses, and bread. A Friday night or Christmas family tradition
• Surströmming: fermented herring in a can — officially the food with the strongest smell in the world (olfactory tests put it ahead of Limburger and Icelandic Hákarl). Must be eaten outdoors. A cultural experience more than a gastronomic one
• Kanelbulle: the Swedish cinnamon bun is probably the best baked good on the planet. With a coffee, in a mid-morning fika, it is the Swedish ritual par excellence

Denmark

• Smørrebrød: open-faced sandwiches on Danish rye bread (rugbrød), with highly elaborate toppings — from herring with red onion to eggs with mayonnaise to roast beef with parsley sauce. A culinary art, not a simple sandwich
• Flæskesteg: roast pork with crispy crackling — the Danish Christmas dish. The golden, crispy crackling is the chef's point of pride

Finland and Iceland

• Loimulohi (Finland): fresh salmon nailed to wooden boards and slowly smoked around the fire. The preparation is part of the show
• Poronkäristys (Finland): sautéed reindeer stew with mashed potatoes and lingonberry jam. The ultimate comfort food of Finnish Lapland
• Hákarl (Iceland): Greenland shark fermented for 4-6 months and dried. Pure ammonia to the nose, a taste reminiscent of a very strong aged cheese. The guidebook does not lie: it is an experience
• Skyr (Iceland): a millennium-old Icelandic dairy product similar to Greek yogurt but with more protein. Eaten for breakfast with Arctic crowberries. Available everywhere in Iceland at affordable prices

Where to Eat Authentic in Scandinavia

Avoid restaurants with illustrated menus in 5 languages near tourist attractions. Look instead for: local food markets (Torvehallerne in Copenhagen, Mathallen in Oslo, Kauppahalli in Helsinki), neighborhood pubs and taverns frequented by locals, and seasonal food festivals like the Lofoten Food Festival (August) or the Midgard Viking Festival (summer).