Have you been searching for more recipes to cook during lockdown? Since my fridge is the only place I’ve been travelling back and fourth to these days, I also got the idea to write a blog post about the stranger foods you can find in Iceland.
While Iceland has amazing local food and is famous for having the world’s best lamb due to livestock being reared in outstanding conditions, it also has some pretty bizarre grub too.
While several Icelandic dishes on this list might seem odd to anyone but an Icelander, historically they were a valuable source of sustenance during a time when the country was poor and resources were scarce.
Many of these dishes draw polarising views, but I’ll leave it up to you decide… and try…
Hákarl aka Rotten Shark
Hákarl (which is Icelandic for shark) is a food from Iceland consisting of fermented and dried Greenlandic shark which is produced intentionally 3-hours away from Reykjavik because the smell is so bad!
The meat of the shark when fresh is actually poisonous due to its high content of urea and trimethylamine oxide! Hákarl is traditionally prepared by first gutting and beheading a Greenlandic or Basking shark, and then placed in a shallow hole in gravelly sand, filled up and then left for 6-12 weeks. Once removed from the sand, the Hákarl is hung up to dry for several months, in which it ages, the uremic acid evaporates leaving it non-toxic, and the meat shrinks. The skin of the Hákarl is extremely sharp when drying, and in the old days was used as sandpaper.
Hákarl has an extremely strong ammonia-rich smell to it, however the smell is described as being much stronger than the taste, which has been described as sweet, nutty and surprisingly nice or like the taste of death!
The late TV chef Anthony Bourdain, who travelled extensively throughout the world sampling local cuisine for his Travel Channel show No Reservations, described Hákarl as “the single worst, most disgusting and terrible tasting thing” he has ever eaten!
A few year ago I tried it for myself when I visited the Shark Museum on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. My reaction wasn’t as strong as Bourdain’s, but I certainly wouldn’t call myself a fan either!
Slátur aka Icelandic Black pudding
Slátur (pronounced slaughter ) is similar to British black pudding though without spice and offers a smoother texture. It is a traditional Icelandic dish first eaten in Viking times made from sheep’s innards.
The blood is first filtered and then mixed with a couple of cups of water, a tablespoon or so of sea salt. It is then blended with fresh sheep’s fat, rye flour, oats and seasoning, and once that is done, it’s held together inside a pouch made from the lining of sheep’s stomach and boiled for an hour to create a spongy, almost cake-like texture that can be eaten hot or cold.
Slátur provided Viking’s a good food source of protein, vitamins and iron over the winter period. It is still eaten to this day.
Svið aka Sheep's head
Although it’s hard to find sheep’s head in Icelandic restaurants these days, it’s still considered a very traditional dish. Icelanders still cook it at home, and you can find it glaring back at you from within the frozen section of pretty much any supermarket.
To prepare, first the head is cut in half, followed by the removal of the brain, then the fur is singed off before boiling.
It’s typically served with mashed potato or turnip and the whole head is eaten with the exception of the brain (which funnily enough, is considered a delicacy in France). The cheek and tongue are considered the best part for their meatiness, but some folk prize the eyes due to their succulent texture.
The presentation is mainly what throws people off. A sheep’s head is probably too much of a visual reminder of the animal they’re used to seeing in nature. But I find this reaction to eating meat a bit ridiculous. In my opinion it’s important to have a connection of the food chain if you’re going to eat meat anyway.
You can also get sviðasulta (sheep head jam) – which is constructed by chopping up the meat from cooked sheep heads, pressing it into moulds, and then cooling it. That’s eaten as a bread topping.
Cod's Head
Another head dish, only less terrifying! The export of cod is big business in Scandinavia and Iceland is no exception. After exporting the fillets to Spain and Portugal who then turn it into mouth-watering bacalao, the Icelanders were left with the heads. Being extremely resourceful, they eventually created a show-stopping dish that you can still find in some restaurants serving traditional Icelandic cuisine with a contemporary twist.
Such a restaurant is the award-winning Matur og Drykkur in Reykjavik who cook it with a chicken and berry glaze before caramelising it with a theatrical blowtorch performance before serving. Yum, yum, yum!
Súrir Hrútspungar aka Sour Ram's Testical
Ok, admittedly I haven’t tried this one because I simple don’t have the, erm, balls.
It’s no longer a common dish but you’ll find it as part of a traditional spread for Þorrablót, an Icelandic midwinter festival to honour the Norse god Thor associated with lightening, storm, strength and the protection of mankind.
Once the testicles are washed and boiled, they are then pressed into moulds and cured with lactic acid. The end result is a loaf of sour ram’s testicles that can be sliced down much like a loaf of bread. That makes it sound much more edible than what it looks like to begin with!
Baejarins Beztu Pylsur (the Best Hot Dogs in Town),
Maybe not a bizarre food like the rest of Iceland’s delicacies , what makes this hot dog stand unusual is that it is the most popular restaurant in the whole of Iceland!
That’s right, more people eat here than any other restaurant in Iceland, and has played host to an assortment of famous people, from Ex-President Bill Clinton to James Hetfield of Metallica. Boosted their profile even further was a 2006 Guardian article named them the best hotdog in Europe.
Operating since 1939, the secret to Baejarins Beztu Pylsur’s success is that the hot dogs are made from Icelandic lamb, and served with fried and raw onions, sweet mustard, remoulade and a secret sauce!
Brennivín aka Black Death
2 Responses
Sheep’s head. Eek!