TRAVEL TO DENMARK: 10 DANISH RECIPES YOU MUST TRY AT HOME
If there is one universal thing that connects people all over the world, it is the collective experience of sharing a meal. Food is the glue that holds together birthdays, family gatherings, and holiday celebrations. Food, and trying new food, is also part of the experience of traveling.
When you visit a new place one of the best ways to get to know a country’s people and culture is through their local recipes and restaurants. It’s also the perfect way to “travel” when you don’t even have a trip booked: trying out a new recipe at home.
I’ve been writing more and more about how to travel when you can’t get away and thought a perfect way to capture this would be to start a cooking series, where I try authentic recipes from the various countries I have been able to visit thus far.
Cooking and baking is also a therapeutic activity for many people, it’s an activity that brings so many people joy, and it can be included in the very definition of the Danish word ‘hygge’.
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“Hygge (pronounced hue-guh) — Is a mood of coziness with feelings of wellness and contentment. It acknowledges that cosy, charming or special feeling or moment, whether it’s ordinary or extraordinary, you’re alone or with friends, at home or out.
”
I have always been fascinated by Scandinavian culture.
• Those stories of Thor, Odin, Loki, and Valhalla from Norse mythology
• Anything I can read or watch that relates to the Vikings
• The deep love the people have for holiday celebrations
• Smörgåsbord (and the Christmas version, Julebord)
• Julmust (Swedish Christmas soda)
• Scandi architectural and interior design
• Meatballs, smoked reindeer, all of the fish, Akvavit/Aquavit, Smørrebrød, and more
• The biking culture
• The stories of Hans Christian Andersen
• And the Danish concept of Hygge (mentioned above)
When I sit down and start of think of my favorite brands I’ve realized so many of them are from Scandinavia: IKEA (Sweden), Spotify (Sweden), Sudio Headphones (Sweden), Somersby Cider (Denmark), Pandora Jewellery (Denmark), H&M (Sweden), and so many more.
I visited Denmark, more specifically Copenhagen, during a trip to Stockholm all the way back in 2014. Copenhagen and Stockholm are super easy to do in one trip as they are only a 1 hour flight/~5 hour train ride away from each other.
But being that this Scandinavia visit was my first overseas trip after my travel course to London in college I learned a thing or two. My trip to Stockholm and Copenhagen was only 6 days, 2 of which were in Copenhagen and the remaining 4 in Stockholm. It was after this trip that I learned I much prefer slow travel, spending a minimum of 4 days/3 nights for domestic travel (which includes Canada and the US), and a minimum of 10 days/9 nights for trips across the pond. I am the kind of person who wants to leave a city satisfied that I won’t have to return for a while because I saw a TON. This is what I have done for every trip since Sweden/Denmark, and this is also why I have been feeling more and more recently that I need to make a return trip to Scandinavia ASAP – and this time do it country by country.
Lately as I have been thinking more about my long term goals, one BIG one being making a move overseas a reality, I have been feeling super nostalgic about that trip and have been immersing more and more Danish cultural aspects into my daily life. It is also the inspiration for the first country in my travel cooking series: Denmark.
After combing through a multitude of recipes I landed on the 10 listed below. Spread across breakfast, lunch and dinner, I’m sharing a handful of recipes, which lie on the easier end of the cooking/baking scale, for you to try at home! Coupled with some images from my short time in Copenhagen, I hope I can inspire you all to add a little more Hygge to your life and book a bucket list trip to Denmark.
Danish Recipes You Must Try At Home
Cardamom Rolls
via Use Less
Cardamom is one of those spices you will find almost everywhere throughout Scandinavia. Pastries, cookies, all of the desserts. It’s delicious and a more complex spice. Slightly citrusy, minty, spicy, and herby (probably not a word) all at the same time, plus that smell. You know it’s cardamom from a mile away. Paired with a little sugar and you have some pretty amazing sweet treats. This is where the cardamom bun comes in (and the cookies a little farther down below).
These buns are a staple. You will most likely find some version of them in any and every bakery you step into, and although they look complicated, they are pretty easy to make.
I made the vegan version and full disclosure: the vegan version will not plump up as much as the regular version. So if you don’t have a dairy allergy like I do 100% go for the regular version.
To make these lovely buns you will need the following ingredients:
For the dough:
1 pack of yeast (50 g)
About 1.3 cups milk
About 1/3 cup cane sugar
½ tsp. salt
1 tbsp. crushed cardamom
About 2.85 cups flour
1 cup butter (soft)
For the filling:
200 grams/0.85 cups butter (soft)
1 cup cane sugar
50 g brown brown sugar
3 tbsp. crushed cardamom
Tips to note: The dough is going to be super sticky so make sure you have a well-floured surface. The filling will also start to melt if your apartment is warm at all so turn on the A/C and work quickly!
Pølser (hot dog) with Syltede Agurker (pickled cucumbers)
Pickled Cucumbers (aka Syltede Agurker) via Valdemarsro
Hot dogs are the staple street food in Denmark, particularly Copenhagen. You will see these white and red pølsevogne (“sausage wagon”) carts all over the place - I experienced Joan’s Pølser one of the nights we were in town and was not disappointed.
The key to a great Pølser is the red hot dog (I just bought the best quality I could find in Trader Joe’s) and the toppings! None of the plain ballpark stuff here!
To make the perfect Danish hot dog you will need:
high quality hot dogs (if you can find traditional red Danish ones even better)
mustard
ketchup
chopped onions (I left these off)
crunchy onions
pickled cucumbers (I have linked the recipe below)
remoulade (recipe also linked below)
Then it comes to the pickled cucumbers there are super simple to make, the most time consuming part is letting them marinate. To make the cucumbers you will need:
0.85 cups apple cider vinegar
2/3 cups sugar
1 teaspoon peppercorn
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup boiling water
fresh dill
Danish Remoulade
Via Copenhagen.dk
Remoulade is a staple condiment when in Denmark. It goes on hot dogs, you dip meat and fish in it, you dip your new potatoes in it, you can spread it on sandwiches, it’s the sauce you want to have on hand.
You have two options when it comes to making remoulade, you can go the more involved route by making your own mayo from scratch and adding it to the remaining ingredients, or go the route I did and use store bought mayo (there are plenty of high-quality brands out there that are just as good as homemade).
Make sure you pick up the following ingredients in order to make this remoulade:
If you’re making the mayo from scratch:
3 large egg yolks
a medium cup of olive oil (drizzled slowly)
If you’re using store bought mayo, you’ll be mixing in the following:
6 tbsp relish
3-4 tbsp chopped red onions
3-4 tbsp drained capers
curry (to taste)
turmeric (for coloring)
1 tbsp vinegar
1/4 tsp mustard
1/4 tsp fresh chopped parsley
1/4 tsp fresh chopped chives
pinch of salt & pepper (to your taste)
For the full instructions make sure you check out this recipe.
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Frikadeller (Danish Meatballs)
via Valdemarsro
When it comes to meatballs it seems as though every country and culture has their own version. Scandinavia is no exception. Just don’t let the Swedes take all the credit! Sure IKEA made have thrust Swedish meatballs into the global mainstream but Denmark has just as good of a version, and it’s just as popular.
The thing that I think truly gives these meatballs their unique flavor is the combination of beef, pork, onion (I used shallot), garlic and thyme. Another thing I really like about this recipe is the fact you aren’t using breadcrumbs.
To make the balls you’ll need:
Just over 2 cups of ground veal and pork
2 tbsp wheat flour
2 tbsp of fine rolled oats
1 1/2 cups milk (I used oat)
1 egg white
1 egg
1 onion finely chopped (I used 2 medium sized shallot halfs)
1 finely chopped clove garlic (about 1 tsp of minced garlic)
1 tsp thyme
2 tsp salt
a few turns of a pepper grinder
Brunede Kartofler (Caramelized New Potatoes)
via Nordic Food & Living
New potatoes are a staple when it comes to Nordic cuisine. You can find them in most of the Nordic countries including Iceland, and luckily for us across the pond they can be easily found in your canned food section of the grocery store.
It may seem weird to have canned potatoes, instead of just grabbing them from the produce section, but honestly they tasted great, and were super easy to cook! All you have to do is drain the water from the can and pop them into a pan!
This recipe is traditionally served around the holidays, but as I have had potatoes with butter and dill before I wanted to try something new.
Tip to note: When you are caramelizing the potatoes be careful of the “caramel” popping. Mine popped multiple times and burned me!
This is probably one of the few recipes that has the fewest ingredients, see below:
35 oz of canned new potatoes (they come in a variety of sized cans)
0.4 cup sugar
1 3/4 tbsp butter
Tarteletter høns i asparges (Chicken and Asparagus Tartlets)
via Valdemarsro
I was actually surprised to learn that these are a traditional Danish recipe. But apparently ‘back in the day’ - aka when our grandparents were younger - these tartlets were very popular. After making them I can definitely see why! They are conveniently small, which means you will probably eat more than you should, and are packed full of flavor.
Although the recipes calls for white asparagus, this can be hard to find, so I substituted for green asparagus, and I went the easier route by buying pre-made puff pastry.
To make these delicious tiny pie-like treats you will need:
For the boiled chicken:
2 chicken breasts (I prefer dark meat so I went with thighs)
1 1/3 cup vegetable broth
1 carrot, diced
1 onion, diced (I used two large halves of a shallot)
a good handful of turns of a peppermill
2 bay leaves
For the filling:
2 tbsp wheat flour
2.8 tbsp butter
4 cups milk (I used dairy free)
Salt and pepper, to taste
a little over 1 cup white asparagus (if you can’t find white, green works)
For the tart cups:
1 package of puff pastry
Fiskefrikadeller (Fish Cakes)
via BBC Food
From meatballs to fish balls, the Danes seem to love rolling their meats into ball shapes and frying them up on the stovetop. But I’m ok with that!
These ended up being more like tiny cod patties but nonetheless they were a delicious companion to my second version of new potatoes, fried up in butter and dill.
Tips to note: For dipping purposes you’ll be using remoulade again, so make extra when you tackle the recipe above! And when you make the spring salad recipe below poach extra cod so you can use it for this recipe.
In general if you have your cod pre-cooked these patties/balls are a breeze to whip up! Just throw everything below into a mixing bowl and form into little patties:
1lb, 7oz cod fillet, skinned and boned
5 oz of whipping cream (I didn’t have any on-hand so I used dairy-free unflavored creamer)
zest from 1/2 a lemon
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup flour (plus extra for dusting your worktop)
3/4 tsp salt
12 turns of a peppermill
Small handful of fresh dill, chopped
1 tbsp capers, chopped (I didn’t have any so I left them out)
2.8 tbsp butter
Koldskål (Cold Buttermilk Soup)
via My New Roots
This was another recipe that pleasantly surprised me. I had never heard of it before but quickly came to realize it’s a great warm, weather treat, and again is a traditional dish. The most time-consuming part of the recipe is the biscuits, but even so they are super easy and quick to make!
Tip to note: This version of Koldskål uses goat yogurt. I chose this recipe because my lactose intolerance does not allow me to consume traditional dairy items from cows. But traditionally people in Denmark do not use goat yogurt. So if you’re looking for a more traditional recipe check out this one from Nordic Food Living.
Probably one of the most difficult items to find will be the goat yogurt. Depending on where you live it may be more difficult or more readily available. What I found for the States is the most reliable retailer that will have it is going to be Whole Foods. And the good thing about Whole Foods’ selection is they have both a big container and small individual containers. Dairy items made with goat milk are something that don’t actually upset my stomach so it was a win to not have to make any substitutions!
If you don’t live near a Whole Foods I would check your local specialty store, or your local grocery store that you know tends to be more adventurous in the items they stock. And of course there are always options like InstaCart.
There are three main ingredients that you will need to make this dish, the biscuits, the yogurt and the strawberries. You’ll need to add a couple of items to the yogurt to sweeten it up a bit, but in general you will only need multiple ingredients for the biscuits.
For the yogurt:
2 cups of goat yogurt
1 1/2 tbsp maple syrup or honey (you can add more to taste)
zest from a small lemon
1 vanilla bean with the seeds scraped (I didn’t want to shell out the extra $$ for an actual vanilla bean, so I used vanilla flavoring)
For the lemon cardamom biscuits:
3 cups rolled oats
1 tsp cardamom
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
zest of a large lemon
1/2 cup coconut sugar (if you live in the States you can find this at Trader Joes!)
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
3 tbsp melted coconut oil
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
flour for dusting
Spring Salad with Poached Cod
Via Dagmar’s Kitchen
So I’m not going to lie, I loved all of the recipes I made, but this one was probably one of my most favorites (aside from the cardamom buns) mainly because of how fresh and delicious it was! In full disclosure, I probably won’t be remaking a lot of the recipes I made throughout this series, but this is definitely one I will remake!
The freshness of the salad, the lightness of the poached cod, the flavor of the homemade dressing, everything was just so good! And I didn’t feel guilty at all while eating it!
Tip to note: if you make this recipe before the Fiskefrikadeller/fish balls (which I recommend you do), poach double the amount of cod you need, let it cool and put it in a container in the fridge so you have it all ready to go for the Fiskefrikadeller.
This is also another recipe that will be done in stages, but in general is pretty easy to pull together. Make sure you pick up the following, the cod is just poached in water and salt so I haven’t added it below, and if I made a substitution I have made a note:
For the salad:
1 small beet, thinly sliced (I don’t like beets so I omitted this)
6 radishes, thinly sliced
4 spring onions (which are green onions)
a bunch of pea shoots (you can find these at specialty stores, Whole Foods, and at your local farmers market)
a bunch of dill fronds (aka fresh dill)
a bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley (make sure you get flat-leaf not curly!)
edible flowers (most definitely optional, but pretty)
For the salad dressing:
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
a squeeze of a lemon (you can definitely just by a container of lemon juice and squirt it in)
sea salt to taste
Once you’ve prepped everything the last thing to do is assemble! Check out the full recipe (which is farther down on the page) here.
Smørrebrød (Open Face Sandwich)
Probably one of the most recognizable dishes when people think of Denmark is the traditional Scandinavian open-faced sandwich: the Smørrebrød. Smørrebrød actually means “butter and bread” and typically consists of a piece of rye bread (that is buttered) that is topped with a bunch of delicious toppings like cold cuts, pieces of meat or fish, cheese, spreads, veggies, and garnishes.
Now the reason I don’t include a recipe for this is because it really depends on what you want to eat, and a quick Google search will give you tons of ideas for toppings. Quantities depend on how much you want to eat and how much you think will allow for a visually appealing sandwich. This is the key here, the end result should look pretty.
I decided to go the smoked salmon/lox route as that is a popular topping in Denmark, and instead of buttering my rye bread I used dairy-free cream cheese. Below are the items I used to create my Smørrebrød:
two pieces of rye bread - I suggest picking it up from a good bakery (two pieces also ended up being too much for me with all the toppings)
dairy free cream cheese (one of my favorite brands is Kite Hill)
smoked salmon
blanched asparagus
fresh dill fronds
remoulade
I truly believe the soul of a country can be found in both it's people and it's food so I make a point to experience all of it—right down to taking a cooking class as well.
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stay wild + curious!
xo, lindsey
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