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Must try Swedish foods (not just meatballs)
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items OK, so everyone probably knows about Swedsih meatballs thanks to IKEA (and the chef on the Muppets), but there are in fact, lots more culinary delights that are absolutely worth trying next time you visit Sweden.
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Kanelbulle (Cinnamon Bun) – A Swedish fika staple, subtly spiced and often topped with pearl sugar. The Swedes love this bakery treat so much, they even created a special day for it - October 4!
Swedish Cinnamon Buns (Kanelbullar) - Gimme Some Oven
Gravad Lax – Cured salmon served cold, usually with mustard-dill sauce. This is a staple at every smorgasbord (buffe) regardless of whether it's Easter, Christmas or Midsummer.
Gravadlax recipe - BBC Good Food
Janssons Frestelse – A creamy potato and anchovy casserole served at Christmas but delicious year-round. I personally prefer this one without the anchovies, but either way, it's a must at any Christmas feast.
Jansson's Temptation (Janssons Frestelse) Recipe - Allrecipes
Prinsesstårta (Princess Cake) – A green marzipan-covered layer cake with cream, jam, and sponge. Pretty hard not to find at any kind of celebration - birthdays, weddings, graduations and funerals.
Princess Cake (Prinsesstårta) Recipe | King Arthur Baking
Räksmörgås (Shrimp (or prawns as we Aussies say) Sandwich) – Open-faced and towering with fresh shrimp, mayo, boiled egg, and lemon. Took me a while to get used to the combination of prawns and hard boiled eggs, but now I actually get it although the...
Räksmörgås: Swedish Prawn Sandwich - The Petite Cook™
Köttbullar (Swedish Meatballs) – Iconic comfort food best served with lingonberry jam and creamy gravy. IKEA supposedly sells over 1 billion of these annually worldwide. I find them rather tasteless with the lingon sauce and gravy but then again, I'm...
Traditional Swedish meatballs (köttbullar) - Caroline's Cooking
Surströmming – Fermented herring with a very distinct aroma. Not for the faint of heart and you wouldn't get me anywhere near this one even with a ten foot pole!
Surströmming
Semla – Cardamom bun filled with almond paste and whipped cream, traditionally eaten before Lent. These are a true calorie bomb!
The semla – a Swedish delicacy | sweden.se
Filmjölk – Could be compared to kefir because both are a cultured milk product but I would say more like a slightly sour yoghurt. Most often eaten at breakfast with muesli and berries.
Filmjölk
Lördagsgodis (Saturday Candy) – A Swedish tradition of bulk-picking sweet, sour, and salty candies every Saturday which deserves it's very own list!
Lördagsgodis
Pannkakor (pancakes) - I liken these more to crepes because they are so thin, often served folded in half. Usually eaten with jam, or sometimes sugar. When kids go on a school excursion, this is what parents usually pack for them to eat for lunch.
Swedish Pancakes - (Pannkakor) Recipe - Food.com
Kolbulle - This is old Nordic dish popular among forest workers and hunters. A slightly thicker pancake mixture is poured over fried bacon and best cooked over a camp fire.
Kolbulle - Stabilotherm
Kålpudding - A typical ‘husmanskost’ (which means ‘old fashioned meal’) primarily based around white cabbage and minced meat. The combination of ingredients are a bit weird, but surprising work.
Swedish Cabbage Casserole - Kålpudding | All that's Jas
Kalles Kaviar - I honestly don't get why this is so popular (but then most people don't get vegemite either :-D ). It's basically fish eggs in a paste form and it's generally eaten on bread (or eggs) for breakfast.
Kalles Kaviar
Ärtsoppa (yellow pea soup) - typically eaten on Thursdays because in the Middle Ages, the Roman Catholic church usually fasted on Fridays. Pea soup is traditionally followed by pancakes.
Swedish Yellow Pea Soup Ärtsoppa Recipe - The Spruce Eats
Kladdkaka - extremely dense and gooey (if cooked correctly i.e. undercooked) chocolate cake typically served with whipped cream. Seriously not recommended for diabetics!
Kladdig kladdkaka | Recept ICA.se
Knäckebröd - A crispy ‘hard’ cracker often made from rye flour and eaten as a substitute for bread. This is a staple on the breakfast table because it works with either sweet (jam or marmelade) or savoury (caviar & cheese).
Crispbread
Falukorv - in my opinion, this is just a glorified hotdog. It's a popular sausage that originated from an area in Sweden called Falun. Popular with parents to small kids as it's often fried and eaten with macaroni, used in korv (sausage) stroganof, b...
Falukorv
Ungspannkaka - this is essentially a pancake batter poured into a baking dish with piping hot oil and baked for 30-40 minutes. I suppose you could say it's similar to yorkshire puddings but with a bit more texture. Rather bland on it's own so it's be...
Swedish Oven Pancake – “Ugnspannkaka” - Hanna's Corner
Pinocchiotårta - this is a classic in Summer when fresh strawberries abound. Basically 2 layers of thin sponge cake topped with meringue and flaked almonds, sandwiched together with masses of whipped cream and strawberries with even more cream and st...
Pinocchiotårta - Recept
Chokladbollar (chocolate balls) - no Swedish fika would be complete without a chokladbol. Rolled oats, butter, cocoa powder, sugar and coffee, rolled into balls and then rolled in coconut or peal sugar.
Chokladbollar - Recept | Arla