Swedish cuisine

Swedish cuisine tends to be hearty, practical and sustaining. Only recently have Swedish restaurateurs attempted to update it with a more modern, gourmet approach. There are large regional variations in the cuisine in Sweden, but most dishes are traditionally simple. In the north, some variations, including reindeer, and other game dishes, have their roots in the Sami people while, in the south, the supply of fresh vegetables is better.

History

Sweden's long winters explain the lack of fresh vegetables in many traditional recipes. Plants that would sustain the population through long winters became the cornerstones: various turnips in older times such as the native rutabaga (in British English, "swede"), gradually supplanted by the potato in the 18th century. A lack of spices made the food rather plain, although a number of local herbs and plants have probably been used since ancient times.

The importance of fish has governed Swedish population and trade patterns far back in history: due to the vast supply of fish, in particular herring, people settled on the east coast around present-day Stockholm, and on the west coast around present-day Gothenburg. These remain Sweden's most populated areas to this day. For preservation, fish were salted and salt became a major trade item at the dawn of the Scandinavian middle ages, which began circa 1000 AD.

Cabbage, conserved as sauerkraut, or lingonberry jam was used as a source of vitamin C during the winter. Lingonberry jam, still a favourite, also added some freshness to the often rather heavy food.

Meals

Swedes usually have three main meals per day, but there are at least two traditions followed:

The older tradition, still common among blue collar workers, consists of breakfast in the early morning (frukost), a light lunch before noon (lunch), and a heavy dinner (middag) at around six.

Since the early sixties, most 9 to 5 workers eat breakfast when they wake up, a substantial lunch around noon, and a lighter dinner around six or seven in the evening.

It is also common to have a snack, often a sandwich or fruit, in between meals (mellanmål). In schools including high school, a free hot meal is served at lunch as part of Sweden's welfare state. Most Swedes also have coffee after lunch, and a coffee break in the afternoon, often together with a biscuit or similar.

Breakfasts

Breakfast usually consists of open sandwiches, possibly crisp bread (knäckebröd). The sandwich is most often buttered, with toppings such as hard cheese, cold cuts, caviar (or messmör), ham (skinka), vegetables (grönsaker) like tomatoes (tomat) or cucumber (gurka). Swedes usually do not have sweets on their breads such as jam (like the French and Americans), or chocolate (like the Danes). However, orange marmalade on white bread is common, usually with morning coffee or tea.

Many traditional kinds of Swedish bread, such as sirapslimpa (less fashionable today, but still very popular) are somewhat sweetened in themselves, baked with small amounts of syrup. Like in many other European countries, there are also lots of non-sweetened breads, often made with sourdough (surdeg). Swedish breads may be made from wholegrain, fine grain, or anything in between, and there are white, brown, and really dark (like in Finland) varieties which are all common. "Barkis" or "bergis" is a localised version of challah usually made without eggs and only available in Stockholm and Göteborg where Jews first settled and not available in the whole country.

Filmjölk (fermented milk), or sometimes yogurt, is also traditional breakfast food, usually served in a bowl with cereals such as corn flakes, muesli, or knäckebröd, and sometimes with sugar, fruit, and/or jam.

A third food that is commonly eaten at breakfast is porridge (gröt), often made of rolled oats or rice, and eaten with milk and jam or cinnamon with sugar.

Common drinks for breakfast are milk, juice, tea, or coffee. Swedes are among the most avid milk and coffee drinkers in the world.

Dishes

In August, Swedes traditionally eat boiled crayfish at feasts known as kräftskivor.

The most highly regarded mushroom is the chanterelle. It is considered a real treat. The chanterelle is usually served together with a piece of meat, or just fried with a sauce and some onions and put on a sandwich. Second to the chanterelle, and considered almost as delicious, is the porcini mushroom, or Karl-Johansvamp named after Charles XIV John (Karl XIV Johan) who introduced its use as food.

Internationally, the most renowned Swedish meal is meatballs, or köttbullar.

Traditionally, Thursday has been soup day because the maids had half the day off and it was easy to prepare. One of the most traditional Swedish soups is the pea soup, or ärtsoppa. It dates back to the old tradition of peas being associated with Thor. This is a simple meal, basically consisting of yellow peas, a little onion and often pieces of pork. It is often served with a little mustard and followed by thin pancakes (see Pannkakor). The Swedish Army still serve their conscripts pea soup and pancakes every Thursday.

Potatoes are the main complement to most dishes. Only in the last 50 years have other complements such as rice and spaghetti become standard on the dinner table. There are several different kinds of potatoes: the most appreciated is the new potato, which ripens in early summer, and is enjoyed at the feast called Midsummer. Other sorts of potatoes are eaten all year around.

Other typical Swedish dishes:

Ärtsoppa — Pea soup
Blodpudding — Black pudding
Falukorv — Sausage originating from Falun. The lifts and pumps at the Kopparberg copper mine in Falun were, before the introduction of steam engines, powered by oxen. When these oxen died from strain or old age, the skin was turned into leather ropes used in the mine, and the meat was turned into sausage - Falukorv.
Gravad lax — Salmon, salted, and cured
Isterband — Sausage made of coarsely ground pork, barley and potatoes
Janssons frestelse (Jansson's temptation) — Grated potatoes, onion, anchovy and cream - the anchovy here is not the genuine anchovy, but the sprat - quite a different species and is also spiced. [1]
Julbord — Christmas smorgasbord (smörgåsbord)
Julskinka — Christmas ham
Kaviar — Swedish caviar comes in tubes and is typically made from cod roe.
Kåldolmar — Cabbage rolls
Köttbullar — Swedish meatballs
Köttsoppa — A rustic beef and root vegetable soup
Kroppkakor — Boiled potato-dumplings, filled with pork
Lutfisk — Stockfish
Palt — Potato-dumplings with a filling of pork
Pannkakor and Plättar — Pancakes
Inlagd sill — Pickled herring
Pölsa — Hash
Raggmunk — Potato pancakes
Stekt fläsk och bruna bönor — Pork and brown beans
Pyttipanna — Chopped and fried meat, onions, and pre-boiled potatoes.
Smörgåsbord — Smorgasbord
Smörgåstårta — Sandwich cake
Surströmming — Fermented Baltic herring - a rather different tasting species of herring - it has about 10% fat whereas Atlantic herring is 16% - this may occur because of the Baltic having half the salt concentration of many seas.
Våfflor (Waffles) — Often served with jam with ice cream or whipped cream. Waffles also have their own day on March 25.

Drinks

Sweden is one of the heaviest coffee drinking countries in the world, second only to Finland. Milk consumption in Sweden is the highest of any country in the world. Milk is bought in milk cartons, and it is no coincidence that Tetra Pak, the world's largest maker of milk cartons, is Swedish. Milk is considered the standard drink to have with meals during weekdays in most families, for both children and adults.

At Christmas

Julmust -- Traditional stout-like, very sweet seasonal soft drink (jul means Christmas in Swedish) Also called påskmust (påsk meaning Easter) (carbonated)
Glögg -- Mulled wine

Sweet drinks

Enbärsdricka -- Traditional juniper berry soft drink
Sockerdricka -- Traditional sweet-sour soft drink (carbonated)
Fruktsoda -- Traditional lemon-lime soft drink (carbonated)
Champis -- Soft drink alternative to sparkling wine (carbonated)
Pommac -- Soft drink alternative to sparkling wine (carbonated)
Trocadero (drink) -- Traditional soft drink with the taste of apple and oranges, with its roots in the north of Sweden. (carbonated)
lingondricka -- lingonberry drink

Liquor

Stronger beverages are mainly of two kinds: The Akvavit, also called Aqua vitae, Scandinavian vodka or schnapps (snaps). A second popular drink is Absolut Vodka, one of the world's best known liquor brands. Both have around 40% alcohol. The production of hard liquor has a tradition dating back to the 18th century and was at a high in the 1840s. Since the 1880s, the governmental Systembolaget has a monopoly on selling spirits with more than 3.5% alcohol, limiting the access. Hembränt (moonshine) has been made in rural Sweden, but it has lessened in later years due to more liberal rules for the import of alcohol as well as increased smuggling.

Hard liquor has a tradition of being mulled. Gourmets pick their own selection of wild herbs, and put them into a bottle of liquor for a few days.

The typical Swedish beer is of a bright and bitter kind. The brands Pripps Blå and Norrlands Guld are typical examples.

Treats

In the summer, various cakes are common, often made with the fruit of the season. In the summer, the strawberry and cream cake is highly regarded. Strawberries are also often eaten on their own with sugar and milk or cream. With the late summer and autumn, apple cakes are baked. The apple cake is often served with vanilla custard, but sometimes with ice cream or whipped cream.

In the winter, other treats are common. This includes the

Knäck -- Christmas toffee
Ischoklad -- Cold ice-chocolate "toffees"
Lussebulle or Lussekatt -- Lucia bun, a Swedish saffron bun eaten on the Saint Lucia celebration (December 13).
Pepparkaka -- Ginger snap
Prinsesstårta -- Princess Cake, a cake layered with sponge cake, whipped cream, syrup, and sometimes jam. It is wrapped in a marzipan coating traditionally colored green.

With the new year, the Lenten bun, or semla, is baked. It is a cream and almond paste filled wheat bun, traditionally eaten on Shrove Tuesday.

Other treats are:

Kanelbulle -- Cinnamon roll
Chokladboll -- Round balls made of an oatmeal-cocoa-sugar-butter mix, often coated in coconut shavings or pearl sugar. (Also negerboll which literally means negroball is another less accepted name of the treat. However, Chokladboll (chocolateball) is missleading as they don't actually contain any chocolate).
Ostkaka -- Swedish cheesecake (very different from American cheesecake).
Saltlakrits -- Liquorice candy flavoured with ammonium chloride.
Spettekaka -- A sweet Swedish cake, shaped like a hollow cylinder. It comes from the southern region of Sweden, Skåne.

Pancakes, muffins, sponge cake and different sorts of pies and cookies are typical desserts, practically always served with coffee. Typical pies are apple pie, blueberry pie and rhubarb pie and there are many different recipes for each. Pancakes and muffins are never ever served American style - for breakfast. In recent years American brownies, cookies and cup-cakes have become popular in cafés and restaurants.

Food and society

The people of Sweden are uniquely confident in their government, and expect it to solve their everyday problems, also when it comes to food. A famous story is when the lobby group Brödinstitutet (The Bread Institute) campaigned with a quotation from the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare, recommending eating 6 to 8 slices of bread daily.

Health issues

Traditional Swedish food is rich in saturated fat and sugar. As in most of the western world, metabolic syndrome is common. Government has tried several methods to encourage health (such as tax-exempting physical exercise), and a "fat tax" has been considered. Low-fat products, wholemeal bread and other healthy alternatives are common - grocery stores usually sell milk in four or five different fat levels, from 3 to 0.1%.

The Swedish alcohol consumptions has increased greatly during the last decades due to more "continental" habits, as Swedes combine their traditional holiday binge drinking with casual weekday drinking, and relaxed import regulations - see alcoholic beverages in Sweden. Tobacco smoking has decreased greatly during the last decades, most because of many Swedes' transition to the national specialty snus and (more recently) due to smoking being prohibited in bars and public places. Recreational drugs other than alcohol and tobacco are less common in Sweden than in continental Europe, partly due to the long distance to areas of production.

Ethical issues

The Swedish people are concerned about the environment and animal protection. Swedish farmers actively advertise their products as free from genetic engineering, cruelty against animals, un-organic chemicals and excessive transportation (with the implication that these features are common in foreign food production). The national organic farming label, KRAV, is popular, and a fair trade label was recently established. The vegetarian and straight edge movements are widespread among Swedish youth.

External links

Swedish Recipes for American Kitchens