The Norwegian cuisine

Since I lived several years in Norway, I can tell you with certainty that there is a lack of good food. This can be easily explained due to the country’s geography, which is mostly mountainous and situated in the frozen northern part of Europe, with half of it lying within the Arctic Circle. Apart from apples, potatoes, and cabbage, there is a shortage of vegetables and various herbs. Despite increased production in fishing, their fish bears no resemblance to those of the Mediterranean. They mainly have cod, haddock, and salmon. Therefore, there is compulsory import from other southern countries but they sell products with Norway’s high prices!

It’s better to go to grocery stores owned by immigrants, mainly Turks, who sell a wide variety of vegetables. There you will also find Greek products like pastries, cheese, yogurt, and more. Supermarkets offer a variety too, such as Meny, but it’s very expensive. If you want fresh meat, it’s better to shop at butcher shops. If you want to eat at restaurants, Norwegian food is very expensive. So it is suggested to taste ethnic cuisine, and my favorite is the Turkish because it has a lot of foods in common with Greek cuisine.

But what exactly is Norwegian cuisine? There’s the dish called cod tongue, which is only available fresh during the right season (January-March). Quite surprisingly, cutting the tongues from the cod is traditionally assigned to children in Northern Norway. Every year when the season comes, there are discussions about whether this constitutes child labor, but authorities have responded that it isn’t, as they are paid 1200 NOK per hour (120 EUR), they keep the money, and it is considered “light work.”

At Christmas, Lutefisk is served with bacon and syrup of brown cheese, which is a traditional Norwegian Christmas food. Lutefisk is a white fish that has been soaked in lye for a while. Its texture is very gelatinous and can be somewhat off-putting, but the combination of lye, fish, brown cheese syrup, and bacon creates a unique blend of flavors for Norwegians.

There’s also salty licorice (sometimes with chocolate). Licorice is a beloved treat in Scandinavia, and Norway is no exception. A very peculiar type is salty licorice, which has a very unusual taste, even if you like licorice.

What’s special about a frozen pizza? The Grandiosa pizza is not only a favorite food for Norwegians but they are also known for their creativity when it comes to pizza. Although variations with potato chips, kebab, or taco may seem strange to someone raised on traditional Greek foods like stifado and oven-baked goat, they are popular choices in Norway.

The problem is that Norwegians often prefer processed foods that cook quickly and are ready to eat. This may be due to a perception of lower quality of Norwegian food compared to other cuisines, such as Italian or Japanese. TasteAtlas ranked Norwegian food among the countries with the “worst food in the world,” can you guess why?