Traditional Swedish food contains fish, pork of all kinds, grains, like all grain, potato and other root vegetables. Spices is not used that much. A lot of local varieties are common, like reindeer meat in the north.

Dishes

The Swedish meatball is probably the most known Swedish dish. Also the Swedish smorgasbord, which is a buffet-style table with a lot of different cold and warm dishes found during Christmas and Easter, is a known dish In August, people traditionally have big feasts where they eat boiled crayfish. Another traditional dish which is served traditional on Thursdays is pea soup and thin pancakes.

Rotten Fish

One of perhaps “strangest” dishes is the fermented herring which is consumed during September within the range of people who actually eats it. Because of it’s stench it is almost always consumed outside together with thin bread, red onion, potatoes and milk. That the fish is rotten as some might say is not true.

Drinks

Swedes are the highest consumers of milk in the world and a heavy coffee drinking country. Also around Christmas specialties as Julmust, a stout-like sweetened soft drink and Glögg, a form of mulled wine is consumed in big quantities.

Alcohol

Vodka and Akvavit is the major hard liquors consumed in Sweden. It also has a tradition of being mulled with different wild herbs. The typical Swedish beer is a bitter and light kind, often of the lager type.

Alcoholic restrictions

The state have a monopoly on selling alcoholic beverages that contains a higher level of alcohol then 3.5%. The beverages are sold in special stores that are open between Monday and Saturday during business hours. The main reason, even though Sweden is an EU member, is that alcohol is a people’s health issue that needs to be controlled. The legal age to purchase in the shops is 20, meanwhile it is 18 on most restaurants and pubs to buy alcohol.