Specialties

When you are in Stockholm you just have to try some of the exceptional dishes typical for Stockholm and Sweden. One of the most popular and perhaps most typical dish is pickled herring. This dish can be enjoyed in a variety of flavors. Well-known to almost all Swedes are “Löksill” and “Senapsill” As you already have found out “sill” means herring, so it’s pickled herring in onions – löksill and pickled herring in mustard- senapsill. There are of course a bunch of varieties depending on where in Sweden you are. It’s a “have to” dish at Christmas, in Midsummer and at Easter but it
s enjoyed and appreciated all
times a year.

Depending on the seasons the pickled herring is served with boiled potatoes and sour cream sometimes with chive. Another well-known dish is the yellow pea soup, traditionally eaten on Thursday s all over the country. This tasty yellow pea soup is by tradition served with knuckle of pork and Swedish mustard together with Swedish crisp bread. Some prefer sweet mustard with the soup. When you have eaten this delicious soup, it’s also custom to have pancakes for dessert. At more festive occasions one drink warm Punch when eating yellow pea soup. Punch is a sweet Swedish liqueur flavoured with arrack.

A terrible legend says that the Swedish king Erik XIV was poisoned with yellow pea soup by his brother Johan III in 1577 nevertheless, no evidence of this historical anecdote are to be found.

The long Swedish coastline provides for a rich variation of preparing fish. One tradition is that of whitefish roe. This delicacy from the sea is prepared in many ways into many dishes. Mixed with sour crème put into avocado halves topped with egg and dill isn’t to find elsewhere or using the roe in a gentle fish sauce is another speciality of the Swedish kitchen. This gives an excellent taste to dishes with fish. A kind of Swedish pancake called rårakor a common Swedish homely faire that is pancakes made of eggs and potatoes are delicious eaten with whitefish roe mixed with sour cream. It’s not easy if possibly at all to order at a restaurant but can be worthwhile trying.