Scan Magazine
| Food and Drink
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Top Ten Feature
Culinary habits of Scandinavians you need to be aware of It’s not all pickled herring, open sandwiches and meatballs in Scandinavian kitchens. From lacking inhibitions to very specific rules for crisps and sweets, here are some dining-related Scandinavian habits you might not be aware of. 1. Don’t make the cheese into a ski slope A lot of people will recognise the allimportant cheese slicer, which all truly Scandinavian kitchens have at least one of. But not everyone will know exactly how to use it. Whatever you do, when your Scandinavian friend invites you over for brunch, do not slice the cheese block into the shape of a ski slope; it is as close to a mortal sin as culinary behaviours go in the Nordics. The trick is to turn the block of cheese around every now and then and slice from both sides. 2. Fish for breakfast Alright, we said it’s not all pickled herring, but sometimes it does get fishy in Scandinavian kitchens – and not only at midsummer. How about mackerel on toast for breakfast? Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, many Scandinavians will boast, and so no sugar-coated wheat puffs will do. Healthy fats, wholegrain and protein – what’s not to love? It’ll keep you going for hours, like a real Viking. 3. Tacos – the most Swedish dish in the world Don’t get us wrong, we’re not pretending to have come up with pico de gallo or guacamole. No, Swedish tacos are actually nothing like the Mexican origi-
Cheese slicer. Photo: Alexander Hall, imagebank.sweden.se
nal – but the corn shells and salsa are enough to make us cling to the word, and in recent years, some people have even started adding fresh coriander and lime. Anyhow, the point of Swedish tacos is less about the culinary experience and more about ‘fredagsmys’, the laidback couch get-together in front of the TV of a Friday night. Chop stuff, lash it into different bowls and let people help themselves and take what they like. It’s easy, it’s delicious (or delicious enough), and everyone can just chill.
our case made. Don’t give us sweetened yoghurt, please. We want the sour stuff. 5. Bucketloads of coffee It’s not just the global happiness and trust indexes that Scandinavians tend to repeatedly top; we’re the best coffee drinkers in the world, too. At least if, like us, you think that more is better (that’s in the case of coffee – don’t go overboard with other stuff). Consuming an average
4. Sour dairy
Photo: Shutterstock
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Issue 139
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February 2022
“It’s like yoghurt, but runnier. Like milk but thicker – and sour. No, not gone off, but almost.” If you’ve ever heard a Scandinavian try to explain ‘filmjölk’ or ‘surmelk’ to a non-Scandinavian, you might have been confused, and that’s OK. Suffice to say, milk is not very filling, the live bacteria in products similar to kefir work wonders for your gut, and that’s
Photo: Unplash
