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It’s hard for me to say, most things would be quite normal for me, and I would be “home blind” so to speak. But I’ll make an effort.

In Sweden it is quite normal to:

Drinking coffee from the saucer and not from the cup. Mostly by older people today, and perhaps a dying habit. But still considered normal.

Kebab Pizza. Yes, Pizza with tomato sauce, cheese, Kebab-meat, fefferoni-peppers, salad, tomato and Kebab sauces. At least we don’t deep fry our Pizza, but there is a very large span of pizzas around here. And if Kebab-Pizza doesn’t sound so bad, try Sashimi-Pizza, Pickled-Herring-Pizza, Sturgeon-Caviar-Pizza, Curry and Banana-Pizza, Quattro Christmas Pizza or Marmite-Pizza. If there’s any way to ruin a Pizza, I think a Swede have tried it.

Quattro Christmas Pizza. A whole Christmas dinner on one Pizza. Swedish Meatballs, Wiener Sausages, Boiled and Glazed Christmas Ham and Pickled Herring.

In Sweden it’s quite normal to eat Surströmming, which is the smelliest food in the world. It’s baltic herring that’s been through a fermentation process.
Actually outlawed in several countries and banned in a few more. Considered a Weapon of Mass Destruction by people not eating it. Okay, it’s normal to eat, but most Swedes don’t eat it. It’s more of a regional food, and because of the smell you have to be careful of the neighbours when you eat it. But people who like it treat it as a delicacy and get hungry by the smell.

WARNING! I am not kidding about the smell! It’s like durian on steroids! Commercial stink-bombs are just a breeze compared to Surströmming. Never ever try this at home, or in any unventilated area. The stink have been compared to chemical warfare, and have been known to penetrate ABC-masks. An aquired taste. Never eat it without proper condiments without at least a 20 year training period. Proper condiments always include Vodka. People who can eat it directly from the can have been born into Surströmming country. I am not kidding.

I asked a british friend of mine, and can add a few more items:

Filmjölk or Fil. It’s a fermented milk-product, not entirely different from Yoghurt or sour/curdled milk. It’s actually eaten outside Sweden in the Nordic countries, but mainly in Sweden. The most common usage is for breakfast with cereals, instead of water or milk. It could also be used as a baking ingredient in for example, scones and Swedish Waffles. It could also be used as a low fat dip base or cold sauce ingredient instead of sour cream.

Filmjölk, muesli and raisins.

Food in tubes - especially creamed smoked caviar/cod fish eggs. In Sweden, in the grocery store, the wall with a lot of brightly coloured tubes are not toothpste. It’s food, normally different condiments for sandwiches. Things sold in tubes are paté, a lot of melted cheeses like bacon-cheese, reindeer-cheese, cheddar-flavoured cheese, Västerbotten-flavoured cheese, Mayonnaise, etc. Most famously Kalles Kaviar. Ok, Kalles is only one brand, and there are a lot of brands and variants like smokier, milder, mixed with cheese, dill and more.

The Swedish kind of Caviar or more correct “sandwich caviar” is smoked and/or salted fish eggs - just like russian caviar - but with cod eggs and then creamed, mixed with oil and spices. It’s used on sandwiches, to boiled eggs instead of salt, in sandwich cakes and with shrimps. Can be used to great effect on Swedish crisp bread with fresh dill and sliced eggs.

The sandwich caviar is sold as striped (with cheese) smoked, with Dill taste, more or less salt, and so on. Since it’s made of Cod it isn’t considered “true” caviar.
Most non-Swedes consider it an aquired taste. Even Japanese who can appreciate
Surströmming (see above) usually have a hard time with this condiment.

Hard bread. Actually Crisp Bread. It’s a hard usually rye bread that is quite crispy. People who never known other than soft bread will be very surprised because it doesn’t look or taste like other forms of soft bread. But it is versatile and you can store it almost indefinitely, which is why it was baked in the first place. There are hundreds of recipies and many wholegrain variants which makes this bread very good for the stomach. Nice roughage.

I have combined crisp bread with vegemite and/or cold swedish meatballs which I find delicious, but I am quite alone with that and even other swedes will look at me suspiciously. Crisp bread with cheese, pickles, boiled eggs, almost every condiment goes with crisp bread.

Someone said Horse meat. Well, yes, it’s quite normal eating horse around here, but that isn’t that unusual even in other countries. In Sweden, the most common is smoked on sandwiches with whipped horseradish.

Mmmm! Delicious Black Beauty.

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