During my two weeks in Scandinavia I had one goal in mind….I was determined to try as many Scandinavian dishes as I could! When I travel, I make it a point to try the local cuisine because it’s authentic and it helps give me a sense of how food changes when it gets to America.
Example…In Greece I didn’t hear one person scream “Opa!” when serving my saganaki. In Italy, I was never served olive oil and parmesan cheese for my bread. Maybe somewhere this happens, but I ate A LOT and it never saw it!
All I knew about Swedish food was from IKEA in the form of their meatballs (no judging). If I’m being truthful…I’ve never even tried a Swedish meatball from IKEA (gasp)!! I also heard rumblings that there was going to be a lot of fish, whale and reindeer meat. I don’t eat fish and I’m not sure about you, but whale and reindeer meat isn’t part of my normal diet.
All in all, I was absolutely DETERMINED to hunt down these foods and try them once and for all!!
First up…Whale! I found this at the famous fish market in Bergen, Norway. My sister and I walked up and down the market until we were sure we found the best tent! After a little help from the crew, we chowed down on a small portion of whale and potato salad (sorry PETA). I expected whale to taste like fish, but it actually tasted more like gyros…kinda.
A short distance away from the fish market, we were lucky to come across the hot dog stand that was on our list – Trekroneren Hot Dog Stand. This isn’t your ordinary hot dog stand though…this one serves REINDEER hot dogs!! I confidently walked up to the stand, paid my 55 NOK and nervously ate my first bite. I thought it would have a gamey taste, but it actually tasted like a normal hot dog. I was a little bit unimpressed, but happy that I had now crossed two items off my list!
Last on the list…meatballs! We found these all over Sweden, but decided on a small restaurant close to our hotel in Stockholm. Swedish meatballs are traditionally served with potatoes and lingonberry jam and that’s just how mine were served! They were tasty and I promise that the next time I go to IKEA, I will order some and officially compare the two!
What are some of your favorite Scandinavian dishes?? Do you have any other recommendations for future travelers??
What about pickled herring in Sweden? That’s a standard with schnapps!
Ohh! But I don’t eat fish!! However, next trip to Sweden is in September, so I will try and find it and make someone else eat it 🙂
I’m Swedish at heart. Lived there for a while and come back almost every year ❤️ the herring would definitely more common than whale or reindeer 🙂 a little more tame but very traditional are cinnamon buns – kanelbullar.
I love Sweden! My sister ate all the fish and loved it!!