Talk:Cuisine of Denmark

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I have reverted a part of the sentence: "This mode of cooking is increasingly international, highly influenced by French, American and Asian cuisine, especially the cuisine of Thailand."

The reverted part being ", especially the cuisine of Thailand" which was removed on 12:30, 25 Aug 2004 by 192.87.154.191. It was an unexplained removal, and it is a fact in Danish cooking. Danish cooking is being influenced by various Asian cuisines, but by far the cuisine of Thailand is having more influence on Danish cuisine then many others. This is due to an increase of people from Thailand living in Denmark, an increase of marriages between Danes and Thai people, more vacationing in Thailand, more availability of Thai food products in the supermarket, as well as specialty stores and more Thai restaurants opening up. I am sure there are other reasons for this influence. Other Asian cuisines are not keeping pace with this trend. Sfdan 14:22, 26 Aug 2004 (UTC)

Changed "Crawfish" to "Langoustine" under Main Dishes, as that's what "Jomfruhummer" is. --Kvan 09:54, 6 Oct 2004 (UTC)

I'm going to do some major changes in the next couple of weeks. For one thing, the section on meats is somewhat out of date - pork has major competition from turkey, and beef and veal are eaten much more frequently than they used to be. The comment about bacon is also wrong, and the fish list needs revising. And this is just one section; the necessary fixes are too numerous to list, so I'll just go ahead and make some whenever I have a couple of minutes in the coming weeks. --Kvan 18:18, 21 August 2005 (UTC)

Go for it, Kvan! But if you feel that things have changed in Danish eating habits (and they certainly have), consider keeping an historic perspective on your edits, such as "While pork has been traditionally the more popular meat choice, nowadays it has major competition from... etc. etc." And good luck, the article can use a fresh new perspective. Sfdan 18:27, 21 August 2005 (UTC)

Contents

[edit] Danish language link

I removed a hyperlink leading to a Danish language collection of recipes, and I replaced it with a hyperlink to an English language collection of recipes. This is an English language article, and should cater to English language readers, in my opinion. Luckily one can find the same hyperlink in the Danish language article. Sfdan 18:27, 11 Jan 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Confectionary

Apparently Denmark holds the distinction of having the highest per capita candy consumption in the world, at 29.5 pounds. (One site says 23.9 pounds, which may be a typo.) The sites list the source as "National Confectioners Association/Chocolate Manufacturers Association". I can't find the original reference, however, so I have been unable to confirm this factoid. (It may be just a rumor repeated endlessly... :) — RJH 20:11, 19 April 2006 (UTC)

according to statistics, danes have the highest intake of almost everything. but this might be due to the fact that statisticians have much easier access to these facts in denmark than anywhere else.Dkviking 16:07, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Vegetarians in Denmark?

Does Denmark have much of a culture of vegetarianism? In Danish cities, do the vegetarian restaurants serve for the most part non-Danish cuisine, or are there distinctly Danish-style vegetarian and vegan restaurants? Can one shop for vegetarian food easily in Danish supermarkets?

-- All restaurants have at least one vegetarian dish, most have a couple. I Copenhagen there are several vegetarian restaurants and chains. As for supermarket, of course you can buy vegetarian, I mean, why wouldn't they sell vegetables and fruit??? The hardest part of being vegetarian in denmark is the traditional Julefrokost: If you want special food, you have to bring it yourself. Trying to demand special treatment is something that often spark sharp replies.

As a vegetarian who spent the past 9 years living in Denmark, I can say with certainty that many restaurants in Denmark offer no vegetarian fare whatsoever. With very few exceptions - almost all of them foreign ethnic foods or desserts, there is little of interest for the vegetarian in Denmark. Most of the local vegetable dishes that are to be found are bland and unhealthy. There are only 1 or 2 vegetarian restaurants in the entire country, discounting a couple of cafeteria-style lunch places. And sadly, the comments posted above do reveal quite a bit about what I found to be the typical Danish attitudes towards vegetarianism: Ignorance, and a lack of flexibility/accomodation that often verged on intolerance. --wormcast 09:18, 19 February 2007 (UTC)
It's like saying Americans are ignorance toward chocolate allergies. cecikierk
I know 3 vegetarian restaurants just in my neighborhood, and I know at least two citywide "chains" with 3-5 restaurants. There are plenty of vegetarian food, but you are correct in that you will not find many local vegetarian dishes, as vegetarianism in Denmark is an imported culture, mostly Jewish and American. Therefore the local vegetarian dishes are really only sidedishes or deserts and not complete meals. Carewolf 11:51, 26 April 2007 (UTC)
Well, I had always been under the impression that Hindu and Buddhist countries, such as India, with its 300 million or so vegetarians were the pioneers and world leaders of vegetarianism. I also never met (as far as I know) a Jewish or American person working in any vegetarian restaurant in Denmark. In fact, in my nine years living there, I never met a Jewish or American vegetarian at all, just ethnic Danes and expat Indians. But perhaps you have had different experiences... In any case, in the whole of the country, I know only of 5 true vegetarian eateries, all of which are listed here[1], and at least three of which are cafeteria-style and/or lunch only. Apart from Under Engle in Aarhus, at which I have never eaten, I consider only Den Groenne Kaelder in Copenhagen to be a full-fledged restaurant, and even they offer only microwaved pre-prepared food. All in all, I found it quite a feeble experience. --wormcast 06:50, 6 July 2007 (UTC)
make that 4: Under Engle is apparently no more http://www.underengle.dk/ --wormcast 07:15, 6 July 2007 (UTC)
Okay. True, the vegetarian restuarants I know all have limited meat-dishes. I call them vegetarian, because the main clientel and focus of the restuarants is vegi. I don't see the availability of other dishes as a problem, and they are just there for the other guests (invited friends like me). Carewolf 07:56, 24 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Dipping sauces for pomfritter

I suggest that until we have some statistics that can be referenced to, we avoid labelling either "mayonnaise" or "ketchup" as being more popular than the other, and also where "remoulade" fits into the preference scale. SFDan 08:08, 11 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Danes love good food?

I don't see the relevance of this remark in the article. Is it supposed to mean something in the lines of, Unlike the other populations on earth, Danes really do love good food, or Danes love good food, while (insert name of any other population here) do not? Or is this done to confront anyone who might possibly think that Danes like their food when it's really bad? Is there any person who thinks this way that you know of?

I mean, really, can anyone explain to me the role of this remark in the article, other than being some unnecessary eulogy to the Danish eating habits, as if it is unique to them? 88.240.33.60 21:38, 15 November 2006 (UTC)SS 23:38, 15 November 2006

You are most welcome to improve the writing style if you think that is appropriate. --SFDan 00:42, 21 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Thank You For This Article

This is a great article, so thank you. Information about Danish cuisine is sparse, but the creator of this article has been generous. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 131.96.74.30 (talk) 19:45, 7 December 2006 (UTC).

[edit] We need a food calendar!

Since the majority of traditional Danish dishes are linked to various dates such as cardamom bread on General Prayer Day or cod on New Year's Eve, I propose that we make of list of these. the only problem is that the xmas section of such a list will be enormous. Any opinions?Dkviking 16:52, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

My suggestion is associate the food item with the holiday in the article Public holidays in Denmark with a short addition to the existing text (many of the items in that article are very short!) and, where possible, in the specific article for the holiday. There is also a good List of Christmas dishes divided into sections for different countries including Denmark. There are a number of items listed there— maybe you have some additional items to list. I do not want to suggest any additional sections to this article as it is rather long-- but if it makes sense to add a bit of extra text here and there, where it is appropriate, by all means do so. --SFDan 22:05, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Great start, poor finish

The beginning of the article is good, but when listing foods it starts to get bad. The dishes ar not traditionally but rather 50' to 70' dishes, and according to meat being the main subject of traditionally danish cuisin is wrong. Cabbage , grain, vegetables and fruits like apples and berries where the primary ingredient in the danish nourishment. These where used in stews, soups, and meat of any kind where used as an accesory to these dishes. The beginning of the article tends to point this out, but it seems that the list has been made by eager spammers.

Any examples of these "new" dishes? Many of the dishes are from "Madlavning for små husholdninger" (~1850), or "Frøken Jensens kogebog" (~1920). Also; you can't define a country's cuisine from the diet of the lower-class pre-industrialisation, that way all countries would have a cuise of stews, soups and gruel. Carewolf 10:54, 23 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] "Round" birthdays?

There were a couple of mentions of certain things being common at '"round" birthdays'. What are these? --StarChaser Tyger 05:39, 23 July 2007 (UTC)

Danish expression for anniversaries. Carewolf 10:49, 23 July 2007 (UTC)
Ah, so desu. Thanks for the explanation... I was thinking of something like 30th / 40th / 50th, a round numbered birthday... --StarChaser Tyger 07:18, 24 July 2007 (UTC)
That is also what I meant. Carewolf 07:44, 24 July 2007 (UTC)
The round "0"Håbet 07:59, 24 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Eating Out

Quoted from the main article:

"the average Dane saves eating out at restaurants for special occasions. When one does go out to a restaurant it is usually a lengthy, relaxed affair, consisting of many courses and drinks. Danish people will come typically to a restaurant at 6.00 p.m., and stay until 11.00 p.m. or later."

Does this seem a little odd to anyone else? I know my experiences aren't necessarily endemic for the entire population but I have never in my life spent 5+ hours at a restaurant. Even on those extremely rare occasions when I order a three-course meal and have a cup of coffee or a drink afterwards I've never come close to spending that kind of time at an eatery.

62.242.177.151 09:03, 1 August 2007 (UTC)

I read it is an average time period. Normal for me would be arriving at 19 and leaving at 22, or arriving at 20 and leaving at 23. 5 hours do seem excesive, but as round numbers the hours seem fine. I wouldn't be surprised if some stayed that long however. Danish lunch/dinners for round birthdays or christmas usually last from 12:00 to 24:00. Carewolf 14:34, 1 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Elderflower juice

"hyldeblomstsaft -- a disappearing delicacy, although it is slowly increasing in popularity." This seems to be rather contradictory... disappearing or increasing? --wormcast 00:12, 6 September 2007 (UTC)

It's an old homemade drink that no one makes anymore. The interesting thing is that is has become available as soft drinks now, so it is making a comeback in the large city cafées. Carewolf 11:18, 6 September 2007 (UTC)
You can find this stuff commonly in Fakta, Netto and so forth. It seems to be an extremely common thing amongst Danes from my experience and not a delicacy at all, it costs maybe 20 DKK. It's concentrated juice with sugar that you add water to. The fact that it's so relatively available should be enough testament to sales and, in return, to popularity. :bloodofox: 12:54, 6 September 2007 (UTC)
True, it is has been on the market for 3-4 years now and has become quite common. You mention the hot drink on in the article, I am pretty sure that just a modern mistake, 'hyldeblomstedrik' is supposed to be served cold in the summer. It is 'hyldebærdrik' (elderberry juice) that is a hot winter drink (also known as hyldebærsuppe). It is just some people how can't tell the difference between Elderberries and Elderflowers, and thus invented the odd hot elderflower drink. Of course elderberry juice is not readily available in supermarkets yet ;) Carewolf 14:27, 6 September 2007 (UTC)
You can get the elderflower juice drink hot too, even in cafes in Copenhagen during the winter. Another concentrated form of saft that is pretty common to find is black currant (solbær) saft. I think basically most forms of saft can be commonly found heated during the long Danish winter. :bloodofox: 13:03, 7 September 2007 (UTC)
The correct terminology is probably elderflower cordial which has its very own WP article. Mathsci (talk) 19:24, 7 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Cookies?

What happened to the famous danish cookies? Kjeldsen, Royal Danish butter cookies. etc. in their traditional blue or marroon tins. I can't find anything on them in this article. --Kvasir (talk) 18:17, 20 February 2008 (UTC)