Bread is a very important part of the Scandinavian diet, primarilyrugbrød, which issourdough rye bread. It is a dark, heavy bread which is often bought sliced, in varieties from light-coloured rye to very dark, and from refined to whole-grain.[3][4] Some toppings are served onfranskbrød ('French bread'), a very light, crusty wheat bread. The bread is usually buttered, though for some variants, a spread of lard is customary.
Smørrebrød. Left: Roast beef with remoulade, tomato and shredded horseradish on Danish rye bread; right: egg, prawns, lemon and mayonnaise on white bread.Dark rye bread topped with breaded fish, salad, cucumber, shrimp, black lumpfish roe, and tomatoShrimp on French bread. Torvehallerne Copenhagen, Denmark
Traditional toppings include pickled herring (plain, spiced or curried), slightly sweeter than Dutch or German herring; thinly sliced cheese in many varieties; sliced cucumber, tomato and boiled eggs; pork liver-paste; dozens of types of cured or processed meat in thin slices, or smoked fish such as salmon; mackerel in tomato sauce; pickled cucumber; boiled egg, and rings of red onion. Mayonnaise mixed with peas, sliced boiled asparagus and diced carrot, calleditaliensk salat ('Italian salad'), remoulade or other thick sauces often top the layered open sandwich, which is usually eaten with utensils. It is customary to pass the dish of sliced bread around the table, and then to pass around each dish of toppings, from which people help themselves.[5]
More festive meals can be loosely divided into courses: fish toppings first (such as herring, shrimp, or smoked salmon) followed by cold cuts and salads, and finally cheese with bread or crackers and fruit. One or several warm dishes are often served with the meats on special occasions, such as breaded plaice filet, friedmedister sausage,frikadeller with pickled red cabbage, ormørbradbøf (pork tenderloin with sauteed onions or a creamy mushroom sauce). Toppings change with the seasons and some are mostly associated with Easter or Christmas lunches, likehead cheese andæbleflæsk (lit. 'apple pork', roast pork or bacon in apple sauce). Summer offers lighter fare such as smoked mackerel,sommersalat (lit. 'summer salad', radish and cucumber in a smoked cheese dressing), new potatoes, and freshly peeled shrimp.[6]
Hundreds of combinations and varieties ofsmørrebrød are available, and some traditional examples include:
Dyrlægens natmad (Danish: 'veterinarian's midnight snack') – on a piece of dark rye bread, a layer of liver pâté, topped with a slice ofsalt beef and a slice of meataspic. This is all garnished with rawonion rings andgarden cress.
Eel – smoked eel on dark rye bread, topped with scrambled eggs and slicedradishes or choppedchives.
Leverpostej – warm rough-chopped liver pâté served on dark rye bread, topped withbacon, and sautéedmushrooms.
Roast beef – thinly sliced and served on dark rye bread, topped with a portion ofremoulade, and decorated with a sprinkling of shreddedhorseradish and toasted onion.
Eggs and prawns – Thin slices of egg and prawns on either rye bread or white bread topped with tomato, mayonnaise, and lemon, and garnished with garden cress.
Roast pork – thinly sliced and served on dark rye bread, topped with red sweet and sourcabbage and thinly sliced pickles and garnished with a slice oforange.
Stjerneskud (lit. "shooting star") – on a base of buttered white bread, two pieces offish: a piece of steamed white fish on one half, a piece of fried, battered plaice on the other half. On top is piled a mound of shrimp, which is then garnished with a dollop ofmayonnaise, redcaviar, and alemon slice.
Tartar – raw lean beef mince with salt and pepper, served on dark rye bread, topped with raw onion rings, grated horseradish and a raw egg yolk.
Ida Davidsen and Mia Davidsen,Open your heart to the Danish open... the Davidsen dynasty and their best recipes, Lindhardt og Ringhof, 2006.ISBN978-87-614-0400-8.
Inge Lotz,Danish open sandwiches, Aschehoug Fakta, 1997.ISBN87-7512-668-0.
Troelsø, Ole (2012), Smørrebrød i Danmark - Stederne, stykkerne og historien, København: Forlaget Lucullus,ISBN9788799551606.
