This is a list of Norwegian dishes and other dishes related to the food culture of the Norwegian people, from Norway. The cuisine of Norway is similar to the rest of Scandinavia, but the countries all have individual dishes and foods as well.
The following list contains both foods and dishes originating in Norway, as well as foods from other countries which have been a part of Norwegian food culture for hundreds of years, and have become a separate distinct Norwegian version of that dish.
Description
Norwegian cuisine in its traditional form is based largely on the raw materials readily available in Norway and its mountains, wilderness, and coast. It differs in many respects from continental cuisine through the stronger focus on game and fish. Many of the traditional dishes are the result of using conserved materials, necessary because of the long winters.
Bread dishes
– the Norwegian version of French toast; once only a dessert dish, it is now eaten for brunch or breakfast. The most common spices are cinnamon and cardamom. – a version of French toast with more extravagant ingredients, usually served with whipped cream, berries, jam and nuts. – a small wheat bun pastry, usually with a round top and flat bottom, that contains wheat flour, sugar, yeast, eggs, milk, water and often also cardamom and hornsalt. Buns can be served whole or split in half with butter and toppings as a dessert, a snack or often as an accompaniment to coffee. They often contain raisins () or chocolate (). – a traditional Norwegian unleavened bread which is usually eaten with fish, salted meats and soups. Originally it was the staple food of Norwegian farmers, shepherds and peasants. The basic ingredients are barley flour, salt, and water. ("coarse bread") – a bread in which at least 50 percent or more of the flour quantity is wholemeal flour, whole grain or bran.
("comb cake") – a baked good that consists of wheat flour, rye flour, yeast and milk. – a baked product made from buns or (often sweet) bread that has been dried by heat. The buns can be wheat-based or made from other types of flour. Crushed , called , is used, amongst other things, for making kjøttkaker and in the traditional dessert tilslørte bondepiker. – a whole wheat bread that is the most frequently consumed bread in Norway. – a flat and dry cracker, containing mostly rye flour. Commonly eaten for breakfast or lunch, with cheese, cold meats or other spreads. – a flatbread associated with the region of Hardanger, commonly decorated with a cross-hatch pattern.
– a traditional soft Norwegian flatbread. It is made with flour, can include riced potatoes, and includes butter, and milk, cream, or lard. It is cooked on a large, flat griddle. ("thin lefse") is a variation made in central Norway. Tynnlefse is rolled up with butter, sugar, and cinnamon (or with butter and brown sugar). ("thick lefse") is thicker and often served with coffee as a cake. ("potato lefse") is similar to and used like tynnlefse, but made with potatoes. or potetkake ("potato cake") is the smaller version of the potato lefse, and usually made with only boiled potatoes, flour and salt. It is often used in place of a hot dog bun and can be used to roll up sausages, known as pølse med lompe in Norway. It is frequently eaten on Norway's Constitution Day, May 17. Toppings include ketchup and mustard, but can also include raw onions, pickles, and other types of relish. is a variation common to the Salten district in Nordland in Northern Norway. Møsbrømlefse is eaten with a sweetened sauce made of brunost, a type of cheese, flour, and sugar. It is ready when the møsbrømlefse is warm and the butter is melted. ("Nordland lefse") is a chunky small lefse made of butter, syrup, sugar, eggs, and flour. Originally created in Western Norway as a treat for fishermen who worked at the Lofoten Fishery. ("aniseed lefse") is made on the coast of Hordaland. It resembles thin lefse but is slightly thicker, and its texture is distinguished by large amounts of whole aniseed. – Norwegian pancakes are similar to French-style crêpes, and can be served both sweet or savory. Sweet pancakes are served with sugar, jam or chocolate spreads. Savory pancakes are often served for dinner, with bacon, jam, potatoes or sour cream.
– a type of bread in which the dough has been rolled into a long sausage shape, twisted over the end of a stick, and baked over an open fire. – a baked good with a local connection to the Halden district. It is a sweetened flat wheat bread with a hole in the middle. Originally, it was a coarser yeast baked good, and there was both wheat and rye flour in the dough, which also contained a small portion of syrup. It was usually large enough to make up a meal of bread alone. Today they have gradually become smaller, and are made with less coarse flour. In return, some bakers have introduced an even rougher version of the original baked good, now under the name "råne". Rengakaka – a pastry of barley flour, butter, salt of hartshorn and milk. The dough is rolled out into thin strips, about 60 cm long, and the strips are made as seven rings on top of each other in a spiral. Fried become crispy and can be eaten with butter and cheese or salty toppings. – a type of bread made with various proportions of flour from rye grain. It can be light or dark in color, depending on the type of flour used and the addition of coloring agents, and is typically denser than bread made from wheat flour. – a small, usually round or oblong individual loaf of bread served as a meal accompaniment (eaten plain or with butter). – a triangular, leaf-thin flatbread that is coated with freshly strained milk and sugar on one side. Skjenning is traditionally used as a condiment to sodd in certain parts of Norway.
– a traditional open-faced sandwich that usually consists of a piece of buttered bread topped with commercial or homemade cold cuts, pieces of meat or fish, cheese or spreads, and garnishes. – an open-faced sandwich using white bread, usually topped with mayonnaise, pepper, lemon juice, dill and shrimp. – a classic lunch dish consisting of a hot placed on top of a cold slice of bread, preferably light or white bread. The dish can be served as is, or combined with fried onions, fried eggs or pea stew. – waffles in Norway are typically associated with the Constitution Day, birthdays and other holidays. Which toppings they are served with varies greatly, sometimes depending on region or context, and they may also be eaten plain. Common toppings include butter (or equivalent), sour cream, jam (most commonly strawberry or raspberry), brunost and sugar. Waffles may also be used for a hot dog in place of a lompe or hot dog bun. also known as lapp (plural: lapper) – a batter-based cake. They are usually eaten for afternoon coffee or as a snack between meals, served with butter and either sugar or brunost, folded in half to the shape of a crescent. Baking soda and salt of hartshorn are used as rising agent in svele, which give this cake its characteristic flavour.
Meat dishes
– soup with salted or smoked pork knuckles, potatoes and vegetables. – a variation of raspeball containing blood as an ingredient, as well as potato and spices. – a distinct type of blood sausage, made from pork or beef blood, with pork fat or beef suet, and a cereal, usually oatmeal, oat groats, or barley groats. – sausage made from the blood of cattle and pigs, lard, wheat flour, onions and salt. Blood sausage is served in Norway according to local traditions with, among other things, brown cheese, sugar, cranberry jam, syrup, melted butter, fried pork, cured ham, potatoes and white sauce. It is served both hot (fried) and cold. – a traditional dish from Sunnmøre that is also consumed elsewhere in the country. The soup can be made from fresh meat combined with vegetables and varieties of salted meat, such as leftover fenalår. It may also contain barley groats. – a dish from Østerdalen with minced moose meat, potatoes and onions – sometimes also carrot, celery root and cream or sour cream. – a traditional cured meat made from salted and dried leg of lamb, often served with other preserved food at a Christmas buffet or at Norwegian Constitution Day. – a dish made from boiled, minced meat and offal. The meat is fried in fat with onions, apples and herbs and fat is added. Also served with coarse rye bread, a little vinegar and beetroot. – steak or the back of reindeer, sliced thinly (usually while the meat is still frozen so that it is easier to cut through), fried in fat (traditionally in reindeer fat, but butter and oil are more common nowadays), and spiced with black pepper and salt. Finally, some water, cream, or beer is added, and it is cooked until tender. Sometimes brown cheese is added. The dish is served with mashed potatoes and lingonberry preserves or, more traditionally, with raw lingonberries mashed with sugar. – a bacon-based dish from Tysnes Municipality, made with bacon, butter, milk, flour and spices. – a traditional dish that is used as a topping for bread. It contains pork meat, salt, onion, cloves and pepper and the consistency is soft. A more flavored variant is røkt fleskepølse (smoked pork sausage). – an old dish from Valle Municipality in Setesdal. It is made from stock of lamb meat. Many also use leftovers from the traditional setedalssuppe (Setedal soup). The flatbrød is broken into pieces to make what in the Valle dialect is called "flatbraudsoll". It is served with butter and broth or soup on top. – a delicacy usually made from dried meat of sheep or lamb, but sometimes it is also made from goat, beef or pork. This sausage is mainly used as a topping for various types of bread or as a side dish for other dishes. – the national dish of Norway, consisting of pieces of mutton with bone, cabbage, whole black pepper and occasionally a little wheat flour, cooked for several hours in a casserole, traditionally served with potatoes boiled in their skins.
– sweet and salt-cured moose. It is the same procedure as for gravlaks, but akevitt is often substituted for brandy, and juniper berries for dill. – a dish made of minced meat, traditionally there are two varieties: søt hakkemat (sweet minced food) is usually flavored with onion, syrup and seasoned with ginger, allspice and pepper. This is eaten with potatoes or bread, preferably for lunch or supper. Salt hakkemat (Salty minced food) is flavored with brown sauce, onion, salt and seasoned with ginger, allspice and pepper. This minced food is very similar to , but it contains more meat. Salty mince is good for dinner, since it is eaten with potatoes, but it can also be cooked. – a meat dish originating from Hardanger, made using ground meat from pork, veal and mutton, mixed with boiled barley groats. In some cases, venison can be used. – venison is a festive food, especially in autumn. Often served as a tender roast of venison with homemade mashed potatoes, fried mushrooms and cranberry sauce.
– a traditional dish made from clean-cut beef or veal that is coarsely ground into a patty dough, shaped into cakes and fried in butter in a pan. – minced meat consisting of ground, clean-cut beef. Used for making . – smaller rounder meatballs, often served with , mashed potatoes and lingonberry jam. – large meat patties of ground beef, onion, salt, and pepper—generally served with brun saus. Potatoes, peas, carrots and cabbage in cream sauce are typically served on the side. Lingonberry jam is a common relish. – roasted lamb meat, typically served around Easter and during the lamb season in autumn, but preferably at other times of the year as well.
– a thick Norwegian stew made of meat and potatoes, often with vegetables (such as carrots, onions, leeks, celery root, and rutabaga) and spices (such as salt, pepper, ginger, and herbs).