Ethnic Food Project

Taverna Cretekou may be one of the most adorable restaurants in the D.C. area. Located in Old Town Alexandria, Taverna Cretekou has murals, stone walls, Greek-Island inspired flooring, a beautiful outdoor courtyard, and pleasing decor. The vibe transported us to Greece, especially since their was a meat being roasted on a giant spit in the Courtyard. The staff dresses in Greek-inspired outfits and are numerous, eager, and doting. The restaurant seems to be run by a family and has that type of feel. When we left (at the end of the lunch service), it seemed like they were closing before dinner and that the staff was sitting down to a communal meal, which was sweet. We went there for lunch and were able to catch their lunchtime buffet. Taverna Cretekou translates to Cretan Tavern, so Taverna Cretekou specializes in Cretan Greek cuisine. The history of the Taverna is interesting. Wikipedia notes that Taverna

refers to a small restaurant serving Greek cuisine, not to be confused with “tavern”. The Greek word is ταβέρνα and is originally derived from the Latin word taberna (’shed’ or ‘hut’, from tabula ‘board’, possibly by dissimilation from traberna, from trabs: beam, timber). As Greeks have migrated elsewhere, tavernes (plural) have spread throughout the world, especially countries such as the USA and Australia. The taverna is an integral part of Greek cuisine and of Greek culture. Usually in tavernas there is, often live, Greek traditional music such as rembetiko, and people apart from dining can join in Greek dances such as zeibekiko and hasapiko.

We ordered the buffet and were immediately brought bread, extra-virgin olive oil (which looked even darker than normal extra virgin olive oil), and a cold pureed and cream of broccoli soup. Κρητική Διατροφή wrote ”that one who eats oil and bread and oily pastries is invincible to the arrows of death.” The Cretan/Greek diet is supposed to be one of the healthiest in the world. A Greek travel site explains the Cretan diet, which has olive oil as its staple and also includes wheat, vegetables, cheeses, and wine. Much of the Greek diet is ancient or influenced by the Arab world, as Wikipedia notes:

Some dishes can be traced back to ancient Greece: lentil soup, fasolada, retsina (white or rosé wine flavored with pine resin) and pasteli (candy bar with sesame seeds baked with honey); some to the Hellenistic and Roman periods: loukaniko (dried pork sausage); and Byzantium: feta cheese, avgotaraho (cured fish roe) and paximadi (traditional hard bread baked from corn, barley and rye). There are also many ancient and Byzantine dishes which are no longer consumed: porridge as the main staple, fish sauce, and salt water mixed into wine.

Many dishes are part of the larger tradition of Ottoman cuisine and their names reveal Arabic, Persian or Turkish roots: moussaka, tzatziki, yuvarlakia, keftethes, boureki, and so on. Many dishes’ names probably entered the Greek vocabulary during Ottoman times, or earlier in contact with the Persians and the Arabs. Some dishes may be pre-Ottoman, only taking Turkish names later; Ash and Dalby, for example, speculate that grape-leaf dolmathes were made by the early Byzantine period.

A few dishes are influenced by Venetian (Italian) and French cuisines, such as pastitsio, makaronia me kima, (pasta with meat) found mostly in Greece and Anatolia and Asia Minor and regions of that influence.

We tried to find the history of the cold broccoli soup, which was a thin and finely purred soup that tasted exactly like cold broccoli soup, however all we could find about it was a recipe on Greekrecipes.com for it. It seems like cold soups are common in Greece, though.

The buffet had a variety of hot and cold dishes. The entree changes from day to day, and on the day we went they served lamb. They had a garden salad, various spreads, and a Greek salad with fish and a vinaigrette, stuffed grape leaves, and olives among the items in the cold salad section. Among the spreads included a fava bean spread. The spread resembled hummus to us and seemed like it was prepared in a similar way. Also included was taramosalata, a pink spread “traditionally made from taramas, the salted and cured roe of the cod or the carp, though blends based on other forms of fish roe, particularly cod, have become more common. The roe is mixed with either bread crumbs or mashed potato, and lemon juice, vinegar and olive oil” (Wikipedia).

We were served tzatziki (thinned yoghurt mixed with cucumbers, garlic, salt, olive oil, pepper, and other spices), which we learned has an interesting history inside and outside of Greece. In fact, we read that the word actually derives from a Turkish word. Ours was served as part of the buffet and we ate it with bread. However, Wikipedia notes that:

In Cyprus, the dish is known colloquially as ttalattouri (cf. tarator), and recipes often include less garlic and includes the herb mint, unlike the Greek counterpart. Tzatziki is always served cold.

In touristy restaurants, and outside Greece and Cyprus, tzatziki is often served with bread (loaf or pita) as part of the first course of a meal. Greeks, Cypriots and those from all over the Middle East use this dish as a side dish to a meal with meat. The acidity cuts the fat, thus tzatziki is also used as a sauce for souvlaki and gyros.

There were also other items in the buffet and possibly more spreads. One of them was a Greek salad served with chunks of marinated fish. We couldn’t figure out if this salad is traditional or not, but we did read that fish is traditionally a more common meat in Crete. We also were served feta cheese and stuffed grape leaves (dolmadakia). Feta cheese is ancient and one of the food items we found that is specifically Greek. A lot of foods common in Greece also occur in other countries that were formerly part of the Byzantine Empire, including salads, wine, and syrupy honey sweet meats (baklava?). Feta was originally associated with Crete and its storage in brine was even described in an Italian travel log in 1494. In fact, feta comes from the Italian word “fetta” meaning “slice,” which was introduced into the Greek language in the 17th century. Our feta was served in cube-like strips at the buffet. The European Union has protected feta as a “protected designation of origin product,” and has defined feta as a sheep’s milk cheese that may contain goat’s milk, but only if it makes up less than 30% of the total mixture. The curing of feta in brine is what gives feta its saltiness. Feta is also an aged cheese. Although we only had plain feta, it is often used in other Greek meals, like spanakopita (“spinach pie”) and tyropita (“cheese pie”).

The stuffed grape leaf is often listed as a “dolma” on menus. However, a dolma is an umbrella term for a stuffed vegetables common to countries formerly part of the Ottoman Empire, like Turkey, Greece, Cyprus, Iraq, the Balkans, etc. such as zucchini, eggplants, tomatoes, and peppers (Wikipedia). The stuffed grape leaf dolma can be filled with either meat (which are generally served warm) or without meat (generally served cold). Ours were served cold and with olive oil and stuffed with rice and spices and had a tangy taste.

We actually ate so much of the cold salads that we almost missed the entree: the lamb dish. This dish consisted of marinated pieces of lamb. We could not figure out what this was later and what the traditional name for this dish was, but it was delicious. Alongside this dish were plain steamed vegetables and a sort of rice pilaf.

We had to pass up trying dessert and of course we couldn’t try any other entrees, however, we noticed that the meal had a large variety of traditional, Cyprian, and Cretan cuisine. We ended up trying some Greek beer. Our server suggested we try KEO, which is a medium-toned Cypriot lager. It tasted similar to a pilsner.

TOTAL: $21.31 excluding tip per person (includes lunch buffet, one alcoholic beverage, and extra bread)

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The Russia House is a strange restaurant suffering from an undiagnosed multiple personality disorder, somehow caught between a European (eurotrash?) club, expensive high-end restaurant, mixology bar, and an overcrowded house party taking place in someone’s grandfather’s row house. The owners of the restaurant were (on the phone) very responsive and accommodating, but the restaurant itself on arrival was strange and disorganized. Upon entry, there was no host in sight (just a clueless bouncer) and we had to figure out how to get to where we were being seated (the piano lounge), which was upstairs. The restaurant is tall and multi-leveled, situated in a row house downtown. However, it was unclear how the different sections (or levels) of the restaurant operated. It seemed akin to a nightclub with tons of people packed in all different levels free to mill around. We were seated upstairs at a large table with leather backed chairs near the front of the restaurant. Our reservation was for 8 p.m., but by then the music was so loud that it was difficult to even talk to the person sitting directly across without yelling. The music was of the European variety, loud, and repetitive. The actual restaurant was very dark, as well, especially since the wallpaper, carpet, floors, are dark wood, wine colored, and heavily draped. We were a little thrown off by this loud and chaotic atmosphere because the website stated that:    

The Russian-European elegance of the Russia House offers a uniquely warm and comfortable meeting place for anyone appreciative of its friendly and intimate coziness.    

Moving on to Russian cuisine, according to Way to Russia:     

Russia is mainly a northern country with long-lasting cold winter. The food should give us much energy and warmth to survive during the winter time. So, the essential components of Russian cuisine are the ones, which provide more carbohydrates and fat rather than proteins. Fresh fruits and vegetables are rarely used in food. So, the top five components of a Russian meal are potatoes, bread, eggs, meat (especially beef) and butter. Other popular foods include cabbage, milk, sour cream, curds, mushrooms, lard, cucumbers, tomatoes, apples, berries, honey, sugar, salt, garlic, and onions.  

Appetizers, as in any cuisine culture, and Russia is not an exception, serve as small snacks before main course. Russian appetizers (in Russian, they are called “zakuski”) were meant mainly not to provoke keen appetite but to have them with strong drinks. So, most favorite Russian appetizers were all kinds of pickles and cold meats which go best with ice cold vodka. But not only vegetable pickles were used in Russian cuisine, the abundance of sea and river food provided cooks with a wide range of various fish appetizers.   

The Russia House’s streamlined menu features small plates, which are small samples of Russia’s traditional dishes, and full size portions located under the large plates section of the menu. We ended up ordering borsch, pelmini, pierogis, wild game sausage sampler, pickled herring croquette, roasted garlic beet dip, and pan seared duck breast (large plate). Wikipedia notes that soups are extremely important in Russian cuisine. In addition to the the most well-known and featured soup on the menu, borsch, Russian cuisine also features several other traditional staple of soups such as shchi, ukha, rassolnik, solyanka, botvinya, okroshka, and tyurya.      

Russian soups can be divided into at least seven large groups:   

• Cold soups based on kvass (a fermented beverage made from black rye or rye bread) or sour milk (a.k.a. buttermilk), such as tyurya, okroshka, and botvinya.
• Light soups and stews based on water and vegetables.
• Noodle soups with meat, mushrooms, and milk.
• Soups based on cabbage, most prominently shchi.
• Thick soups based on meat broth, with a salty-sour base like rassolnik and solyanka.
• Fish soups such as ukha.
• Grain- and vegetable-based soups.

Wikipedia has some interesting facts about cold soups, the history, and their relationship to hot soups:   

Tyurya is very similar to okroshka, the main difference being that instead of vegetables, bread is used. It is rather historical meal, that was consumed during rough times (WWII, WWI, Revolution) and by poor peasants. Also, due to its simplicity, it was very common as a meal during religious fasting. Comparing to other cold soups it is based on water and rarely on milk.   

Botvinya is one of the most typical cold Russian soups. It almost became extinct because it is difficult to make. Some modern cookbooks list recipes showing how to prepare it “easily” by substituting some of the ingredients, but cutting corners tends to diminish much of the authentic taste.   

A full botvinya consists of three parts:   

1. The soup.
2. Boiled “red” (most prized) fish (salmon, sturgeon, or stellate sturgeon), that is served separately from soup.
3. Crushed ice, served on a separate platter or cup.

The name of the soup comes from the Russian word botva, which means “leafy tops of root vegetables“, and the ingredients are in line with the name: leafy tops of young beet, beetroots, oxalate sorrel, green onions, dill, cucumbers, and two types of kvass, then some mustard, lemon juice, and horseradish as spices.   

It is eaten as the first course or right after a hot soup, before the second course as an appetizer. It is eaten using two spoons and a fork: the fork is used to eat the fish, the first spoon to sip the soup and the second spoon to put ice into the soup, so it stays cold for a long time. Botvin’ya is eaten with fresh rye bread.  

We had a woman from Russia along with us, and she informed us that the borsch served at The Russia House tasted as she would expect it to and that there is a lot of variation in the preparation of borsch in Russia and Eastern Europe. Wikipedia notes that borsch is Ukrainian in origin, and owes its popularity in the U.S. due to Jewish immigrant populations. Borsch usually includes a stock made from beets, although there are some kinds of borscht that do not use beets (instead sorrell or tomato). Borsch is commonly served with sour cream and white bread and in other regions (like Lithuania) can be served hot or cold. In Poland “borscht” (barszcz) may include bacon or dumplings. Unlike borsch, which Westerners most likely identify as the most popular Russian soup, in fact, shchi (cabbage soup) had been the main first course in Russian cuisine for over a thousand years.  

We were not able to try kholodets (not on the menu), which are traditional “jellied chopped pieces of pork or veal meat with some spices” or shashlyk (featured on the large plates menu), which is a form of Shish kebab (marinated meat grilled on a skewer). We did try one of the most traditional Russian dishes: pelmini. Ruscusine.com has some interesting facts and a recipe:  

Most people associate pelmeni with Siberia, and many recipes and references to the dish call it “Siberian dumplings.” Pelmeni probably did originate in Siberia, where hundreds or even thousands could be made, and then frozen and stored outside during the long winters. However, the dumplings became very popular all over Russia. They are closely kin to “pot stickers,” “pierogies,” and other similar dumplings found in many cultures.  

The Russian variety traditionally is made of flour, milk, one egg, and salt. The dough is rolled out fairly thin, and cut in circles approximately two inches in diameter. The filling is usually a mixture of minced pork, onions, garlic, salt, and pepper.  

Wikipedia notes that one theory about the history of pelmini is that they were brought to Russia by the Mongols from China. Pelmini literally “ear bread” in the native Finno-Ugric Komi and Mansi languages. The ones we tried more resembled and tasted like tortellini than the pelmini we saw in photos online.  Pelmini often are put in soups. Wikipedia also describes the difference between the pelmini and the pierogi:  

The most important difference between pelmeni and vareniki and pierogi, is the thickness of the dough shell — in pelmeni this is as thin as possible, and the proportion of filling to dough is usually higher. Also, the feature of pelmeni is that they do not have a sweet filling, thus differing from Ukrainian vareniki and Polish pierogi, which do sometimes have sweet filling. Another distinctive feature is that the filling of pelmeni is usually raw or uncooked, while the filling of vareniki and pirogie is pre-cooked.  

We also read that store-bought and machine prepared pelmini resembles tortellini, which may account for why the pelmini at The Russia House resembles tortellini rather than the pelmini we saw online. Although, these are a lot larger than traditional tortellini and the ones we ate were standard size. 

We also thought the pierogi we were served were interesting, since they came in a puff pastry shell rather than the pasta-like shell of the Polish pierogi. We couldn’t find much information on the Russian pierogi, so we think that although they were listed on the menu as pierogi, they really meant this food item: 

Pirozhki (singular: pirozhok; diminutive of “pirog” (pie)) are small stuffed buns (pies) made of either yeast dough or short pastry. They are filled with one of many different fillings and are either baked (the ancient Slavic method) or shallow-fried (known as “priazhenie”, this method was borrowed from the Tatars in the 16th century). One feature of pirozhki that sets them apart from, for example, English pies is that the fillings used are almost invariably fully cooked. The use of chopped hard-boiled eggs in fillings is another interesting feature. Six typical fillings for traditional pirozhki are: 

1. Fish sautéed with onions and mixed with hard-boiled chopped eggs.
2. Chopped boiled meat mixed with sautéed onions and eggs.
3. Rice and boiled eggs with dill
4. Mashed potatoes mixed with dill and green onion.
5. Sautéed cabbage.

Online they appear to be more bunlike, but the ones we were served were in flaky pastry crust. In addition to these, the blini is also traditional (which we did not try as it was only available with caviar): 

Blini are thin pancakes (very similar to French crêpes) which are often served in connection with a religious rite or festival in several cultures. The word “blin” (singular of blini) comes from Old Slavic “mlin”, which means “to mill”. Blins had a somewhat ritual significance for early Slavic peoples in pre-Christian times since they were a symbol of the sun, due to their round form. They were traditionally prepared at the end of the winter to honor the rebirth of the new sun during Maslenitsa (Масленица, Butter Week; also known as Pancake Week). This tradition was adopted by the Orthodox Church and is carried on to the present day, as the last week of dairy and egg products before Lent. Bliny are still often served at wakes, to commemorate the recently deceased. Blini can be made from wheat, buckwheat, or other grains, although wheat blini are most popular in Russia. They may be topped with butter, smetana (sour cream), fruit preserves or caviar. 

Other traditional dishes include kotlety (a type of meatball similar to Salisbury steak), syrniki (fried curd fritters, garnished with sour cream, jam, honey, and/or apple sauce), and vatrushka (a kind of cake with a ring of dough and tvorog [cottage cheese] in the middle, often with raisins or bits of fruit, from about five inches to two and a half feet in diameter). 

Fish is especially popular in Russia because Orthodox fast days prohibit the consumption of meat. Herring is also popular in Russia, especially pickled, salted, and smoked. Ruscuisine.com notes that “Russian brined herring is cured without any sugar or wine vinegar. The best herring is the one brined whole, with the head on and its innards intact. Cleaning it is actually easier than it looks. Unfiltered sunflower oil is available at Russian supermarkets. It should be dark yellow and slightly cloudy.” Our Pickled Herring Croquettes were large balls of pickled herring covered in fried breading. They still tasted strongly of pickled herring. 

The Russia House also boasts a selection of caviar, including beluga, osetra, sevruga, and American sturgeon. We couldn’t afford any of this caviar, however, we did learn that Russians typically consume caviar on special occasions, despite its price. Although only fish eggs from sturgeon can be considered true “caviar,” Russians also eat black and red salmon roe. The Russia House serves all caviar with “blini, chopped Eff, minced red onion and Crème Fraiche.” We also read it is traditional to eat caviar with toast and butter. 

Wikipedia has some interseting information about teh types of caviar: 

This elegant and expensive appetizer is simply sieved and lightly salted fish roe (eggs). Sturgeon roe is premium and considered the “true” caviar. The four main types of caviar are beluga, sterlet, osetra, and sevruga. The rarest and costliest is from the beluga sturgeon that swim in the Caspian Sea, which is bordered by Iran, Russia and other ex-Soviet republics. Wild caviar production has now survived only in Iran as Russia maintains a self-imposed ban on caviar trade from wild sturgeon. Beluga caviar is prized for its soft, extremely large (pea-size) eggs. It can range in color from pale silver-gray to black. It is followed by the small golden sterlet caviar which is rare and was once reserved for Russian czars, Iranian shahs and Austrian emperors. Next in quality is the medium-sized, gray to brownish oestra, and the last in the quality ranking is smaller, gray sevruga caviar. 

Russians doe consume some meats, primarily fowl, offal, and veal. We ordered the wild game sausage sampler, which included rabbit, boar, and venison. We found a reference to sausage in Russia as an upper-class dish. We also ordered the pan-seared duck as a large plate, which was tender and elegant. Although we did not try it, we decided to read up on the infamous Chicken Kiev (chicken stuffed with seasoned butter and then breaded and fried). All we could find about this is from Wikipedia, which notes that “This famous method of preparing chicken is probably not of Ukrainian origin as the name Kiev, the national capital, would imply. The Russian food historian William Pokhlebkin claimed that Chicken Kiev was invented in the Moscow Merchants’ Club in the early 20th century and was renamed Chicken Kiev (kotleta po-kievski) in one of the Soviet restaurants in later years.” 

The Russia House has an emormous drink menu, as well. We did not try any of the many vodkas they serve, but we did try some beer, although it has only been open from 1990. One of the featured brands on their menu is Baltika Brewery, which is the largest brewery in Russia and the second-largest in Europe. Baltika is based in St. Petersburg and they also sell beer under the Arsenalnoe, Zhiguljovskoje, and Leningradskoebrand names. They also serve a variety of vodkas from a variety of countries. Other traditional beverages we read about where medovukha, mors, kvass, and sbiten. Medovukha is an ancient drink similar to mead and mors is a type of berry juice. Kvass is an extremely common Eastern European drink that dates back to 989 made from fermented rye bread. Originially it was served during the summer, but today it is commercially packaged, served year-round, and part of a multimillion dollar industry. Commerical kvass production is akin to the manufacturing of soda pop. There is a lot of variation in home brews. Sbiten is another traditional drink served hot, which sounds similar to a cross between mead wine and mulled wine. These traditional drinks were not served at The Russia House and not being inclined to drink straight vodka, we ended up sampling their mixology cocktails or drinking beer. We found their cocktails to be fancy and delicious.

NOTE/WARNING: We do not recommend going here as a large group, as we had a bad exprrience. Although they claim they will split checks, they won’t actually do this in the restaurant. They also won’t charge more than four credit cards per party. Because of the chaotic nature of the service, they may make mistakes on your bill. For us they insisted they were right and were openly rude when we disputed the fact that we were charged for drinks we did not order. Finally, they advertised drink specials on their website that were unavailable to actually order.

 TOTAL: ~$500 (for 16 people) or $31 per person

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We tried to find an Icelandic restaurant in the area without success. In fact, the only one we could find one the entire U.S.: The Frosty Mug in Florida. We’re not sure if their food is legitimate or not. We even contacted the Icelandic Embassy. They are very friendly, and assured as that there are no Icelandic restaurants in this area or anywhere close by. They had a great suggestion, which was for us to host our own Icelandic festival during the months of January or February during their festival month, Þorrablót. According to Wikipedia:

Þorrablót is an Icelandic midwinter festival that takes place in the month of Þorri, according to the Old Icelandic Calendar, which starts in late January and ends in late February. These festivals were started by Icelandic student associations in the latter half of the 19th century. The first one was reportedly organised by the association of Icelandic students in Copenhagen in 1873. Related to other nationalistic feasts invented in the 18th and 19th centuries, such as Burns night in Scotland, the Þorrablótis an evening with dinner where participants hold speeches and recite poems, originally to honour the Norse god Thor, after whom the month is presumed to be named. Calling the feast a blót (a feast held in honor of a god in Norse paganism) makes clear the reference to pagan times, which many nationalists of the 19th century considered a golden age of Icelandic history.

Additionally, Þorrablót is a relatively recent event, gaining popularity in Iceland during the 50’s and 60’s during Iceland’s post-WWII urban boom. Isholf.is has a lot of information about the festival from an insider’s view, including complaints about non-traditional food permeating the festival (like Þorri pizza). The variety of food served on this occasion is known as Þorramatur. Þorramatur foods include traditionally cured meats, fishes, brennivín (an Icelandic akvavit),  rúgbrauð (dense and dark rye bread), as well as the following:

• Kæstur hákarl, putrefied Greenland shark
• Súrsaðir hrútspungar, the testicles of rams pressed in blocks, boiled and cured in lactic acid.
• Svið, singed and boiled sheep heads, sometimes cured in lactic acid
• Sviðasulta, head cheese or brawn made from svið, sometimes cured in lactic acid
• Lifrarpylsa (liver sausage), a pudding made from liver and suet of sheep kneaded with rye flour and oats
• Blóðmör(blood-suet; also known as slátur, meaning slaughter), a type of blood pudding, which is made from lamb’s blood and suet, kneaded with rye flour and oats
• Harðfiskur, wind-dried fish (often cod, haddock or seawolf), served with butter. [We read on isholf.is that "In old times Harðfiskurwas eaten like bread in those homes that could only afford flour for baking on special occasions. It is still Iceland's favourite snack, and a popular travel food. (Chances are, if you meet an Icelander and he has a funny smell about him, it will be because of the harðfiskur tucked away in his luggage.)"] 
• Rúgbrauð (rye bread), traditional Icelandic rye bread
• Hangikjöt, (hung meat), smoked and boiled lamb or mutton, sometimes also eaten raw.
• Lundabaggi, sheep’s loins wrapped in the meat from the sides, pressed and cured in lactic acid
• Selshreifar, seal’s flippers cured in lactic acid

According to Wikipedia,

Þorramatur has undergone many changes since the 1950s. The large midwinter festivals of associations in Reykjavík have been supplemented by many smaller ones and nowadays even informal family gatherings can be called Þorrablót, which has become defined by the serving of Þorramatur, i.e. the consumption of Þorramatur is the necessary and sufficient condition for any kind of party to be called “Þorrablót“. Originally, this led to the standardisation of the buffet around a few foods mass-produced by large meat-production houses for the Þorrablót season, whereas before it often had to be locally procured. Not least, Þorrablót festivals have become one of the high points of the year in the rural countryside and villages around Iceland in the last three decades. Being thus exported from the city to the countryside the buffet has come to reflect again regional culture and traditions.

Þorramatur has also changed to reflect changing tastes. The traditional method of storing meat by submerging it in fermented whey, which gives the food a characteristic sour taste, is unfamiliar to most generations of Icelanders living today and therefore a Þorramatur buffet usually has a choice between sour and unsourpieces of the same food, served on separate trays as the acid readily contaminates food it comes in contact with. Some of the food, for example the rams’ testicles, has to be cured by the acid before serving though. A number of foods have been added to the buffet that have never gone out of fashion in Icelandic cuisine, such as smoked lamb, fermented sharkand dried fish, which are still commonly consumed in all seasons. Þorramatur also may include some novelties, traditional food that was strictly regional and even rare as such, and unfamiliar even to the older generation. Examples include seals‘ flippers, known only from the Breiðafjörðurarea, which is sometimes, albeit rarely, served as part of Þorramatur.

We, of course, had a hard time securing many of the foods listed above, so we had to come up with our own variations. The Icelandic Embassy suggested we go to Whole Foods and Wegmens. Wegmens sells Arctic Char, an indigenous fresh water Icelandic fish. The Artic Char is similar to trout and salmon, but is blander. Whole Foods has quite a few Icelandic products, although it is hard to tell what since no one working at the Clarendon location had any idea about what was available in the store, although according to the Icelandic Review, Whole Foods is actively adding more Icelandic products to their store. We were able to find Skyr (Icelandic yogurt) and Sirius chocolate at the Clarendon location. From these few items, recipes provided by the Icelandic Embassy, insider Icelandic tourist knowledge, and Google we were able to plan our approximation of Þorrablót (buffet-style, of course).

Overall Icelandic cuisine focuses on fish and meat. It is virtually impossible to be vegan and live in Iceland, unless you rely on imported goods. Fermentation, drying, and smoking are important parts of food preparation methods. Sheep are important to Icelandic culture, as is dairy, whey, and lamb. In fact, sheep are the most common domesticated animal in Iceland. Grains and cereals were historically luxury items. The most common type of bread is rúgbrauð, similar to pumpernickle although wetter. Wikipedia notes that “Popular garden vegetables at first included hardy varieties of cabbage, turnip, rutabaga and potato. These entered Icelandic cuisine as boiled accompaniments to meats and fish, sometimes mashed with butter.” Game is also popular in Iceland, although declining numbers have limited their consumption, including puffin, cormorant, seal, minke whale.

In Þorramatur tradition, we tried to purchase an approximation of the food suggested, and bought pickled herring (always a Scandinavian favorite), rye bread, butter, and smoked salmon. Traditionally, the sliced meat and fish is served on rye bread with butter. We found that the butter gave it a rich taste and helped cut the acidity of the pickled herring. Haddock, plaice, herring, shrimp, and halibut are probably the most common types of fish in Iceland.

To round out the meal, we also incorporated other Icelandic cuisine like hot dogs, cake, Skyr, porridge, etc. Hot dogs are popular in Iceland, although their hot dogs have a higher fat content and contain lamb, pork, and beef (“Icelandic Cooking“). The Icelandic style hot dog is served on the standard white bun, but includes the following condiments: remoulade, ketchup, pylsusinnep (Icelandic hot dog mustard), chopped raw onions and fried onions. This topping selection is known as “the works,” i.e., all condiments, or in Icelandic, “eina með öllu.” We approximated these ingredients slightly. Since pylsusinnep is unavailable, we used a generic sweet mustard. Based on a recipe from Icelandic Cooking, we mixed our own remoulade using mayonnaise, capers, sweet mustard, and sweet relish. At their recommendation, we also used French’s French Fried Onions. Overall, the hot dog was crispy, rich, savory, sweet, and liked by all. We decided to leave out the other extras Icelandic Cooking suggested, like kokkteilsósa (cocktail sauce containing mayonnaise and ketchup) and pickled red cabbage.

We also purchased Skyr and made a popular Icelandic breakfast food: Skyr, porridge, and preserves. Skyr is sold at Whole Foods in a variety of flavors alongside the yogurt, although it is technically a soft cheese. Supposedly Skyr was originally Norwegian, but brought to Iceland by the Vikings. It is made with skim milk, so it is a low fat/calorie food. Wikipedia noted that

Skyr may be used in a traditional Icelandic dish called hræringur(meaning “stirred” or “made by stirring”) which consists of roughly equal amounts of Skyr and porridge. It is often mixed with jam or fruit for a dessert, or with cereals for breakfast. Children often like sugar sprinkled on top. It will keep without refrigeration, making it a good high-protein food to take on a trip.

We created this dish and found that the combination was pretty good. The Skyr made the porridge a lot creamier and the preserves kept it from being bland and made it sweeter. We found a recipe for Skyr, as well.

Finally, we rounded things out with some Icelandic desserts, including Nói Siríus Chocolate, randalín (an Icelandic layer cake), and some Icelandic candies brought by a friend from Iceland. We found the chocolate and candy to be pretty typical. The chocolate tasted similar to a Cadbury sort of chocolate, meaning bland, milky, and sweet. However, Nói Siríus’ website states that their chocolate contains less milk and sugar compared to other types of chocolate. We followed a recipe for randalín from the Icelandic Embassy’s website, but can no longer find the recipe (it looks like they have recently redone their website). According to Wikipedia:

A variety of layer cake called randalín, randabrauð or simply lagkaka has been popular in Iceland since the 19th century. These come in many varieties that all have in common five layers of half-inch thick cake alternated with layers of fruit preserve, jam or icing. One version called vínarterta, popular in the late 1800s, with layers of prunes, became a part of the culinary tradition of Icelandic immigrants in the U.S. and Canada.

We couldn’t exactly figure out what it was supposed to look like based on the website so we had to approximate on this cake. The finished result was much similar to shortbread than cake. It was dense, buttery, and crumbly. The cake wasn’t very sweet, but was very buttery. The jam helped add sweetness.

We’d hoped to find some brennivín, Iceland’s aquavit, but weren’t able to find any. According to Isholf.is, ”Brennivín“is a national drink, a nasty schnapps made from potatoes and flavoured with caraway. It is also called ‘Black Death,’ which explains a lot. Many Icelanders never touch it, and a majority of the ones who drink it only do so when feeling patriotic, such as when attending Þorrablót or when trying to impress foreign visitors.” Wikipedia corroborates this, stating that most people rarely drink it and notes that brennivín translates to “burning wine.”

RECIPES:

Remoulade Sauce
(from Icelandic Cooking, Recipes and Food)

1 cup mayonnaise
1 tbsp. drained, finely chopped cucumber pickle
1 tbsp. drained, chopped capers
2 tsp. French mustard
1 tsp. finely chopped parsley
1/2 tsp. fresh tarragon
1/2 tsp. chervil
1/2 tsp. anchovy paste

Combine the ingredients, mixing well and refrigerate. Serve with cold meat, poultry, fish or hot dogs.

Randalín
(Our recipe was from the Icelandic Embassy’s website. This one is from Jo’s Icelandic Recipes.)

500 grams  flour 
250 g  sugar 
250 g  margarine/butter, soft 
2 ea.  eggs 
1 1/2 tsp.  baker’s ammonia (ammonium carbonate)  pinch  baking powder 
essence of cardamom/pinch of ground cardamom 

Mix together all dry ingredients. Add the margarine/butter, kneading until well mixed. Cool in the refrigerator for 12-24 hours. Roll out into a thickness of approx. 1 to 1 1/2 cm. You can divide the dough now or after baking, into as many parts as you want layers (3-5 is the usual). Try to keep each portion the same shape, size and thickness as the others. Bake in the centre of the oven at 200°C, until golden in colour and done through. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. When the cake is almost cold, spread rhubarb jam or prune jam (see recipe below) on top of all layers except one and sandwich the layers together. 

More Icelandic Recipes:
-Jo’s Icelandic Recipes: Lots of recipes and information about Icelandic culture, etc.
-The Icelandic Embassy: Now they only have a few recipes, but they may add more.
-Samkoma: A few different recipes, but some broken links.

TOTAL: ~$50 (we had some ingredients on hand)