Reykjavík Grapevine - 05.12.2014, Síða 50

FOOD
FOR YOUR MIND BODY AND SOUL
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Look, intrepid traveller! Here is a primer
on the usual suspects and new additions to
the ever-popular Icelandic Christmas buf-
fets, found at various restaurants around
the country. If you’re around in time for
one of those, why not give it a whirl? You’ll
certainly be immersing yourself in Icelan-
dic culture, if nothing else.
The Kings of Meat Town
Hangikjöt should be the first word in any
discussion of Icelandic holiday culinary
traditions. A common misconception is
that Hangikjöt can only be made from
lamb, but the name only refers to the
processing method of the meat as it liter-
ally translates as “hung meat” (colloquially
known as Jon Hamm). The Vikings would
be just as likely to use horsemeat as they
would mutton. Traditionally, the meat
is cured with nitrates and saltpetre, and
slow-smoked with dried horse manure
until it has lost over 30% of its weight.
Modern Hangikjöt is usually smoked for
a shorter amount of time, with or without
manure, and will then need to be boiled
before eating. Other recent innovations in-
clude double-smoked Hangikjöt and dried
Hangikjöt (much like Spanish Jamón).
With changing trends, the salt content has
been reduced overall. Hangikjöt is also en-
joyed all year around in the form of sand-
wich cold cuts.
A traditional un-processed leg of lamb
is another holiday staple. Less rare of a
treat in Iceland than it used to be, but likely
to make an appearance at some point dur-
ing the three main days of the Christmas
celebrations.
Pork is the redheaded stepchild of
Icelandic proteins, cheap by modern stan-
dards and rarely seen in the classic na-
tional dishes aside from our Danish-style
hot dogs. It does, however, enjoy a brief
moment in the spotlight during the holi-
days with the “Hamborgarhryggur.” The
Hamborgarhryggur is often misspelled as
“Hamborgarahryggur,” but has no relation
to hamburgers. It consists of a large pork
loin, which is salted and cured before be-
ing boiled, glazed and oven-roasted. It
is very similar to what the Germans call
“kassler.” The glaze differs from family to
family, but usually includes mustard, mus-
covado sugar, and ketchup.
The alternative pork dish is “Pörus-
teik,” roasted pork, usually shoulder,
with a thick layer of crisp crackling, usu-
ally served with brown sauce made from
stock, roux, food colouring and some form
of booze.
At last but not least is a dish almost ex-
clusively associated with Christmas, the
rock ptarmigan. For those about to rock
ptarmigan, you may be in for a disappoint-
ment, as the hunting quota for this croak-
ing, birch-fed game bird is at an all-time
low. This has given rise to a vibrant black
market in ptarmigan breasts, despite all
ptarmigan trade having been made ille-
gal. The bird has an intense game flavour
not unlike that of the spruce grouse (who
names these birds!?). If that sounds like
something you would like, just keep an
eye out for shifty men in suspiciously long
trenchcoats leaving a trail of white feath-
ers behind.
Pretenders to the Meat
Throne
Poultry in general is a new thing in Ice-
land. Icelanders have never eaten as much
chicken as they do now. A couple of gen-
erations ago, an average Icelandic family’s
annual poultry consumption was likely to
have been lower than the current monthly
quota. With that change came the turkey,
a bird that has been gaining territory rap-
idly at the expense of established meats
like Hangikjöt and the Danish Hambor-
garhryggur. The turkey is often served in
the American Thanksgiving style, with a
mound of stuffing, sweet potatoes, and a
Waldorf salad. It corresponds quite com-
fortably with Iceland’s cultural allegiance
shifting from Denmark to the United
States over the last 100 years.
Wild game has been on the increase as
well. Reindeers were imported into Ice-
land in the late 18th century and have be-
come established in the east of the coun-
try. Mostly seen in holiday pâtés, they will
grace the occasional main course listing
come the 24th.
The roasted goose has also been a reg-
ular feature in game hunting households,
usually stuffed with a triple sec cream
sauce and the occasional piece of shotgun
pellet.
The latest additions would have to be
the vegetarian nut loaf and tofurkey, which
have arrived with the growing community
of vegetarians and vegans in Iceland. The
restaurant Fjalakötturinn will be open
over the Christmas holidays and they have
offered an impressive vegetarian holiday
menu in the past for those who haven’t felt
up to the task.
Sweets & sides
Appetizers include the classic shrimp
cocktail, langoustine tails in garlic butter,
creamy langoustine soup and pâtés.
Among the sides you will get various
combinations of the following: “Laufab-
rauð” (deep-fried, thin pancakes cut with
geometric patterns), pickled red cabbage
(canned or homemade with a stick of cin-
namon), Ora peas, Ora mixed diced “veg-
etables,” creamy Waldorf salad, steamed
Brussels sprouts, canned sweet corn,
steamed broccoli, caramelized potatoes,
boiled potatoes in béchamel, diced red
beets and apples in whipped cream, and
green salads.
The sweet dimension of the holidays
starts with the usual variety of cookies,
with the Sarah Bernhardt cookies being
a particular favourite. Among the cakes,
the “Lagkaka” and “Randalína” reign su-
preme. The Lagkaka (layer cake) consists
of slabs of something like soft gingerbread
layered with vanilla frosting, while its
close cousin the randalína is slabs of yel-
low cake layered with rhubarb jam.
Desserts vary, but it is difficult to
make it through the season without be-
ing confronted by the classic Scandinavian
“Risalamande”—a rice pudding folded
into whipped cream, almonds, vanilla and
berry syrup.
Now you know. You cannot claim you
didn’t know what you were getting into.
What Icelanders Eat
For The Holidays
RAGNAR EGILSSON
ART BICNICK
Hverfisgata 12 · 101 Reykjavík
Tel. +354 552 15 22 · www.dillrestaurant.is
Lífið er saltfiskur
#109 Dill is a Nordic restaurant with its
focus on Iceland, the pure nature and
all the good things coming from it.

It does not matter if it’s the
ingredients or the old traditions, we
try to hold firmly on to both.
There are not many things that make
us happier than giving life to old
traditions and forgotten ingredients
with modern technique and our creative
mind as a weapon.