Taste These Favorites: Delicious and Just Plain Weird Foods of Iceland

Iceland’s gastronomy is inventive. A function of it’s extreme climate, Norse/Irish influences, rich natural resources and creative food culture. Until very recently, fishing was the primary industry, now second only to tourism. Sheep outnumber the Icelandic population. Not a single citrus fruit can be grown but root vegetables are abundant. Winters are long, dark and cold and summers are brief and cool.

Here are my top tasting recommendations if you’re “eating Icelandic.”

Skyr

Let’s start with breakfast. The country’s staple is called Skyr and they love the stuff. Any time of day but especially for breakfast.  Skyr is thicker and creamier in texture than yogurt. This is because of the heirloom Icelandic cultures and dairy milk (sometimes whole milk) used to create the skyr. It takes nearly 4 cups of milk to make 1 cup of skyr which makes it higher in protein than our traditional yogurt.

Mixed with fruit, granola or natural flavorings, it’s delicious. Plain, it’s an acquired taste.

Kjötsúpa

Kjötsúpa is a simple Icelandic lamb soup made from braising cuts of lamb or mutton and stored root vegetables.  Sometimes called “Meat Soup” it is a staple in every family restaurant and even in the “quick stop” gas station combination stores where I stopped in northern and especially western Iceland. The meat is braised bone-in and creates its own stock while the coarse root vegetables give the soup a hearty texture and sweetness. Iceland’s cure-all equivalent of your mother’s homemade chicken soup.

Icelandic Hot Dogs

What sets Icelandic hot dogs apart? They are made from organic, free range, grass fed, hormone free – Icelandic lamb, pork and beef. Where sheep roam the countryside eating berries and leaves. Where Iceland’s pigs and cows live on small farms in one of the cleanest, most pristine environments on Earth. Of course the hot dogs are amazing.

Served on a warm, steamed bun topped with raw white onions and crispy fried onions, ketchup, sweet brown mustard called “pylsusinnep” and remoulade. To order one “all the way”, say“ein með öllu” roughly pronounced “ane meth alt”.  Or just say one all the way since all Icelanders speak English.

hjónabandssaela

Or “Happy Marriage Cake”

I took this photo in a small, family restaurant in East Iceland when we stopped for coffee. Curious, I asked the owner about it’s tradition as I sampled the rich sweet crumble. The filling itself is simply rhubarb cooked down with sugar until it melts into itself. The special ingredient is a spice, cardamom, which adds aroma and warmth. The owner told me this traditional bakery item is so easy a new bride can make it with just a few staple ingredients that every home has year round and thus the name…

Arctic Char

I had never tasted this type of fish but ordered it several times as I traveled the country and was never disappointed!

Arctic char are the most common freshwater fish in Iceland. They are found in rivers and lakes all over the island. The taste and texture are similar to a cross between salmon and trout. It’s served grilled and baked but my preference was lightly pan-sauteed not to disguise the rich, nutty flavor.

And while we’re talking fish…

Hardfiskur

This is like beef jerky only it is fish. Dried fish. Dried, strong-tasting, stringy fish. It’s in every grocery or convenience store and seems to be a snack staple in the Icelandic diet. I’d rather eat the plastic bag it comes in. My personal and clearly minority opinion.

Bragðarefur

This is much better…

Bragðarefur is a popular ice cream dish that is available in most shops throughout Iceland.  Ideally it’s served mixed with your choice of ice cream blended fresh in a special mixer with candy, fruit and your choice of sauces then ladled into a container. But Icelanders have also created a quicker version of traditional favorites and can scoop them up, pre-blended from the frozen table of offerings. Regardless, it’s delicious and in a country where everything stays frozen for long periods. Icelanders really, really love their ice cream.

Hakarl

Yeah…this is fermented Greenland Shark. I had to include it but I’m not sure even Icelanders like the taste since they pair it with their national gut-burning brand of liquor called Brennevin. Sometimes called “Rotten Shark” making it even more charming, the prime meat used to produce it is actually poisonous while fresh so it must be dried to be edible.

Hákarl is a national dish of Iceland consisting of a Greenland shark or other sleeper shark that has been cured with a particular fermentation process and hung to dry for four to five months. It has a strong ammonia-rich smell and fishy taste, making hákarl an acquired taste

wikipedia

Licorice

Iceland is in love with licorice. The reasons are interesting. In their harsh climate they had such a hard time cultivating carbs, they took to buttering dried fish like it was bread. Flowers and bees couldn’t flourish, so neither could honey. Licorice did not need to flower to be viable—the edible portion is the root, which contains a compound 30–50 times sweeter than sucrose. Icelanders came to rely on its strong flavor to satisfy their cravings.

More than that…

It also served functions beyond a sugar fix. Considered highly effective clearing mucus from the airways, licorice has been relied on by Icelandic pharmacists for centuries to combat respiratory ailments. This, and a ban on foreign confectionary imports until 1998 boosted the candy’s popularity. A fan of Belgian and Swiss chocolate, I expected to hate it…but it was surprisingly good!