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Condé Nast Traveler
08-07-2025
- Condé Nast Traveler
Harvesting—and Tasting—Norway's Wild Landscape While Sailing Up the Coast
The mottled landscape of the Lofoten Islands is essentially an enormous collection of tidal pools, as if the waves had only just departed, leaving behind a tumble of seaweed-covered rocks interspersed with puddles. I can see two figures in the ocean, their petrol black skin glistening. They look like seals but wear bright beanies on their heads. When they stand up, they hold aloft tresses of saw-toothed kelp, which they bring back to shore along with a strawberry pink sea urchin. We take turns holding it, as carefully as one would a Fabergé egg. The pair are Angelita Eriksen and Tamara Singer, who together run Lofoten Seaweed. They use their harvest to supply top restaurants and to make seasoning, pasta, chocolate, and skin lotions. Back at their small store in the village of Napp, we sit down to a feast of sugar kelp tempura, as crispy as popadams, that are embedded with pearls of algae; pickled dulse and seaweed-cured trout; and halibut wrapped in kelp. The butter has been whipped with truffle seaweed, a red algae with a similar flavor to its landlubbing namesake. Lofoten Seaweed's seaweed salt atop flatbread Eva Trifft Fotografie Hurtigruten culinary ambassador Máret Rávdná Buljo at work Mariell Lind Hansen My host for the trip is the Norwegian cruise line Hurtigruten, which is taking me behind the scenes of Norway's Coastal Kitchen, its long-running culinary program that highlights local farmers. In the past few years the company has developed a network of around 70 farms and artisanal producers that provide its ships with up to 80 percent of their ingredients—from king crab, arctic char, and cured wild game to sauerkraut, berries, herbs, and, of course, seaweed. It's an approach that makes practical sense, given that Hurtigruten's various itineraries visit 34 ports along Norway's shores, enabling cruise ships to pick up fresh supplies as they go while creating dishes that best reflect the places they visit. Guests on board ships such as the MS Richard With—which takes us part of the way along its northern route—can dine on dishes like barley risotto with baked celery and blackcurrant mousse with brown-cheese ice cream. But on this journey Hurtigruten's F&B directors are exploring ways for guests to get their boots muddy and experience ingredients at their source. 'With more and more foodie travelers discovering Norway and with our ongoing relationship with these farmers and producers,' says Øistein Nilsen, Hurtigruten's culinary director, 'it felt like a natural evolution of the Coastal Kitchen concept.' One of these producers is Gisle Melhus, a screenwriter who once wrote a rom-com set aboard a Hurtigruten ship but flipped his own script to move to Myklevik Gård, his small farm in Lofoten. There he raises pigs and ducks with his partner, Åshild, and grows crops using compost made from the cruise line's leftover food. Ingredients from Melhus's farm appear on the menu in a baked root vegetable salad and a green pepper sauce used as a condiment in meat dishes. Lofoten Seaweed founders Tamara Singer and Angelita Eriksen Morten Munthee It's dark when we arrive at the farm. Candles lead the way to a cozy dining room with a table laid with pickled vegetables and foraged morels, which are soon joined by crisp-skinned pork barbecued over charcoal outside. Melhus has a strong sense of the mythic, talking about how women worked this land during Viking times, and how the skrei fish that swim here were once so plentiful they could be scooped right out of the water. 'We live not only close to nature, we live in nature,' he says. 'When spring arrives in May, we forget about the seven cold, dark, and extremely windy months that we collectively cursed and agree we live in the most beautiful place on earth.' Scallops as seen aboard a Hurtigruten ship Agurtxane Concellon Catherine Thoresen at work in the greenhouse of Kvitnes Gård Kristian Dale It's a view shared 110 miles north by chef Halvar Ellingsen, who moved back to the islands from Oslo to open a restaurant with rooms at his great-great-grandfather's farm, Kvitnes Gård. Using only ingredients grown within the Arctic Circle (save for flour, seasoning, and oil), his team assembles a 20-course tasting menu that includes halibut on a bed of seaweed; a leg of lamb with blueberries; and blood pancake. As a culinary ambassador for Hurtigruten, he devises seasonal recipes for cruise menus such as cured halibut with smoked potatoes, sour milk, and dill. 'The limited larder and season force us to be creative,' he says. 'Phrases like 'local' and 'sustainable' are so overused. I wanted to see just how far I could stretch them.' He leads us past turf-roofed outbuildings to a cellar made of stone, where vegetables ferment in jars and boxes are filled with carrots, salsify, and potatoes. On the way back, a herd of young goats surrounds us. As I bend down to photograph one, another jumps on my shoulders and stands there, crowning me with hooves and horns for a short moment—a fitting symbol of my experience in this wild Nordic landscape. The Lofoten Islands are one of our Best Places to Eat in 2025. For the full list, read here. This article appeared in the July/August 2025 issue of Condé Nast Traveler. Subscribe to the magazine here.
Forbes
14-05-2025
- Forbes
Beyond Salmon, Discover These 5 Regional Norwegian Food Favorites
'Sodd' is a traditional Norwegian soup with mutton, seasoned meatballs, potatoes and carrots. Brunost, the caramel-colored 'cheese' with its unmistakable tang, and fresh salmon pulled from icy fjords are two of the most familiar elements of Norwegian cuisine. But across the country, regional specialities offer a deeper and more surprising culinary story. Norway's rugged climate shaped a long tradition of food preservation. Drying, salting, fermenting, and curing were everyday necessities that gave rise to staples like stockfish from Lofoten and salted lamb, many of which remain important today. In recent years, Norway has also earned acclaim for its bold new-Nordic cooking. From Michelin-starred restaurants in Oslo to seasonal tasting menus in the Arctic, chefs are reinventing tradition with modern flair. To truly understand Norwegian food, it's worth stepping away from the fine dining scene. While the country's cuisine doesn't enjoy a glowing international reputation, many of its most beloved dishes are simple, hearty and deeply rooted in local tradition. You'll find them at mountain lodges, roadside cafes, and family kitchens across the country. Here are five regional favorites that may not make international headlines, but are well worth seeking out. Known as bidos, this traditional stew is a cornerstone of Sámi cuisine in Northern Norway. 'Bidos' is often cooked and served inside around a fireplace at Sami villages in Norway. Made with tender cuts of reindeer meat, potatoes, and carrots, bidos is a simple dish that relies on the quality of its ingredients rather than elaborate seasoning. The result is a rich, gently savory broth that highlights the natural flavor of the reindeer, a meat that's prized for its leanness and gamey depth. It's both a comforting meal and a cultural expression, closely tied to the Sámi people's reindeer-herding traditions and often prepared over an open fire and eaten in communal settings such as lavvu tents. While once a home-cooked staple, bidos can now be found on the menu at several restaurants and lodges across Northern Norway, especially those offering Sámi culinary experiences. If bidos isn't available, other popular reindeer dishes include creamy stews with wild mushrooms and juniper berries, or thinly sliced smoked reindeer served cold as a starter. You might also come across reindeer hot dogs or cured reindeer meat known as spekemat, usually served with crispbread, sour cream or lingonberry jam. Crossing a fjord by car ferry in western Norway might seem like a purely practical part of your journey. But for many Norwegians, it comes with a beloved tradition: a warm, fluffy svele. The best place to sample a Norwegian 'svele' is on a ferry as you cross a fjord. These thick, slightly sweet griddle cakes are often cooked fresh on board and served folded in half with a generous smear of butter and sugar, or sometimes a slice of tangy brown cheese. The scent of batter on the hot griddle and the gentle hum of the ferry make for a uniquely Norwegian moment. It's best enjoyed with a strong coffee and a panoramic view of the water. While sveler can be found in cafés and bakeries across the country, they're most commonly associated with Norway's extensive network of car ferries, especially along the west coast. For locals, it's a nostalgic snack. For visitors, it's an unexpected delight in the middle of a travel day. Stockfish (tørrfisk) is unsalted cod that has been naturally dried in the cold Arctic air for several months. This ancient method of preservation has been practiced for over a thousand years in the Lofoten Islands, where rows of wooden racks filled with hanging cod remain a striking feature of the landscape. Once rehydrated and cooked, the fish has a firm, chewy texture and a deep, concentrated flavor that some find challenging. But for many Norwegians, it's a taste of home. One of the most common ways to enjoy tørrfisk is in bacalao, a hearty stew of dried fish, tomato, onion, and potato with Spanish roots that has become a coastal classic. Stockfish (tørrfisk) is air dried on wooden racks in the fierce winds of Norway's Lofoten Islands. You'll also find tørrfisk in a much more portable form: thin, slightly crispy strips sold in supermarkets, especially in the north and along the west coast. These fish snacks, often enjoyed with beer, are coastal Norway's answer to jerky. Known by different names across the country but most commonly raspeballer, these dense potato dumplings are a beloved comfort food, especially in Western Norway. Made from grated raw potato mixed with flour and often a bit of boiled potato, the dumplings are typically boiled and served with salted meat, sausages, and a generous helping of melted butter or syrup. Traditionally, raspeballer are eaten on Thursdays in many local restaurants. In some versions, a piece of meat is even hidden inside each dumpling. A ceremonial dish with deep roots in the Trøndelag region of Central Norway, sodd is a clear mutton or beef soup served with potatoes and carrots. What sets it apart is the inclusion of finely seasoned meatballs, cooked separately and added just before serving. With a history dating back hundreds of years, sodd is often reserved today for weddings, confirmations and national holidays. However, it can be found year-round in certain regional restaurants or in supermarkets across Central Norway ready to heat up and enjoy. Best served piping hot with flatbread.
