The most beloved Finnish food comes from hearty home kitchens. Classics are classics for a reason - there is no match for these saviours of the bustling everyday life.
Work, school, ice hockey practice, piano lessons, doctor appointments.
In Finland this busy time in life is called “rush years”. That is why Finnish family dinner is prepared in no time and thanks to great ingredients, is loved by every generation.
Meatballs and minced meat are the corner stone
Whether you are 5 or 85 years old, you can definitely recognise the rich taste of real Finnish meatballs.
Shaped into round little pieces of goodness, meatballs are prepared from tasty and pure Finnish minced meat sold everywhere across the Finland, even the smallest convenience store.
To be able to enjoy meatballs for 80 years while keeping up the spark, Finns vary their daily family dinner menu with other treats as well. Delicious sausages and chicken are great and valued ingredients served with colourful seasonal root vegetables.
Finnish chicken - pure, healthy and delicious.
Finns are talking about the modern classic while serving it everywhere from pre schools to neighbourhood restaurants. Low fat chicken fillets and chicken strips are easy to prepare and hard not to like. Just roast them quickly in a splash of oil or let them simmer in soup or stew.
The most beloved chicken dish might be the chicken sauce often served with pasta of rice. Rounded with cream and spiced with honey and curry powder, it is a true everyday classic.
And one can definitely enjoy some dessert after the meal. Pancakes with fresh berries such as blueberries or strawberries get everybody excited.
Rye bread is the king
Rye bread is a staple of the Finnish cuisine, served throughout the day.
Instead of afternoon tea, the Finns usually enjoy afternoon coffee. Ryebread with cold cuts keeps the mind clear and energy levels steady until the dinner time.
Seasonal fruits are often eaten as snacks as well. Local apples are crunchy and delicious - and also available almost whole year round. One should definitely see the apple trees blossoming during the spring in every Finnish house yard. It is a phenomenon that compares to famous Japanese hanami, cherry blossoming.
Chicken and potato stew, “sailor’s steak”
500 g chicken strips
1 + 1 tbsp oil
1 onion
10 garlic cloves
4 potatoes
2 carrots
1 parsnip
2 ½ dl chicken stock
3,33 dl lager beer
15 whole allspice berries
salt and black pepper
fresh parsley
fresh oregano
Cook the chicken in a dutch oven on the stove until all sides are brown. Take the chicken out of the dutch oven and place it on a plate.
Peel and chop the onion and garlic cloves. Peel and cut potatoes, carrots and parsnip to thin slices. Add one tablespoon of oil into the dutch oven and fry onions for a few minutes. Add garlic and all the root vegetables and continue frying over medium heat for 10 minutes. Put the chicken back into the dutch oven and add chicken stock, lager beer and allspice berries. Put the dutch oven into the oven and bake in 200 degrees celsius for a 30 minutes or until the root vegetables are tender.
Season the stew with salt, black pepper and minced fresh herbs before serving.
Chicken and potato stew, “sailor’s steak”
500 g chicken strips
1 + 1 tbsp oil
1 onion
10 garlic cloves
4 potatoes
2 carrots
1 parsnip
2 ½ dl chicken stock
3,33 dl lager beer
15 whole allspice berries
salt and black pepper
fresh parsley
fresh oregano
Cook the chicken in a dutch oven on the stove until all sides are brown. Take the chicken out of the dutch oven and place it on a plate.
Peel and chop the onion and garlic cloves. Peel and cut potatoes, carrots and parsnip to thin slices. Add one tablespoon of oil into the dutch oven and fry onions for a few minutes. Add garlic and all the root vegetables and continue frying over medium heat for 10 minutes. Put the chicken back into the dutch oven and add chicken stock, lager beer and allspice berries. Put the dutch oven into the oven and bake in 200 degrees celsius for a 30 minutes or until the root vegetables are tender.
Season the stew with salt, black pepper and minced fresh herbs before serving.