Finland Food
More traditional Finnish foods are rather plain and simple. A lot of the basis are on potatoes, different breads (namely rye bread) and meats (cow, chicken and pig as well as some game meat). The Finns near our waters still use quite a lot of fish, even though not as much as in the past. In the north you still have people growing reindeer, for example, for food. If you end up here during hunting season(s), you might have a chance to taste different game from ducks to moose. Also, the forests produce a big load of berries and mushrooms. Finns drink a lot of milk and eat different milkproducts. You'll meet a lot of differend sausages as well, even though the more traditional one's are not that meaty. The most traditional very much used spice is salt. Nowadays people use a lot of rice and pasta on the side of potatoes as the basis of the food. People still eat a lot of bread (wheat, rye, oat, barley). Yoghurt is very popular in variety of tastes. Most popular cheese's tend to be Edam and Emmental. Cucumber, tomatoe, salads, onions etc. basics are very much used. Most easily found fruits are banana, apple and orange but of course you've several other choices available as well. Meat sold in the shops is mostly beef, pork and chicken with some fish selection varying from area to another. People have started to add some spice to their food too. All sorts of semifinished foods are favoured by the too lazy (often tell you they're too busy) to cook people. Spicyness: More spicy than Japanese food but less spicy than almost everything else. Foreign food culture in Finland: All sorts of burger joints and pizza places are wide spread. You can find a kebab place almost everywhere too. Chinese food and Thai food are available in the medium to big cities (note: Finnish medium sized city is a 'nice small city' to many of you out there). Mainly Helsinki has a bigger selection of restaurants from Korean restaurant to a lot more. If you want to cook exotic foods yourself, you better stick to cities of at least 50 000 people to find okay to proper shops. Special Finnish food: There are not too many special foods in Finland but here are a few selected dishes of interest: [food] leipäjuusto (Finnish squeeky cheese), lakka (cloudberry), poro (reideer), hirvi (moose), puolukka (lingonberry), mustikka (blueberry), karjalanpiirakka (Karelian pie), ruisleipä (rye bread), mämmi, graavilohi (gravlax), lörtsy, maksalaatikko (liver casserole), porkkanalaatikko (carrot casserole), kalakukko, karjalanpaisti (Karelian hot pot), mustamakkara (Tampere black sausage), porilainen, poronkäristys (sautéed reindeer) [drink] glögi (mulled wine/spiced wine), sima (Finnish mead), kotikalja (Finnish low-alcohol beer) Something you find hard to avoid: Coffee. Most people offer it to you. Especially on smaller cities and villages... and it is not that 'grains in cup, add hot water' weakling version. Last edited Jan 8, 10 3:27 PM. Contributors: Ville S. |
Travel Tips for Food in Finland
Kaamanen, Finland
I never thought before to go to the North Pole, but once i met a friend who went there and told me how amazing is. So, I decided to go with four friends and it have been one of the best experiences in my life. We went during January, therefore, when we arrive it was all complete white. We went from Copenhagen to Ivalo aiport and there we took a taxi until the bus station where we needed to take a bus to Jokitorma/Kaamanen. It was perfect because the bus stopped just in front of our hostel. A wood house between nothing, just snow and silence. Silence. It was the first time in my life that I heard the silence, and it was amazing.
In the hostel we contact with a very nice woman who rent her snowmobilings for us. We met some natural people from there, called Sami's and it was the best thing in our trip. They showed us a lot of things from there, their customs and works. They were farmers of rendieers, an really beutiful animal, more in their natural habitat.
Also this people showed us how they live and they explain us how is Kaamanen in other seasons. How common is to see the Northen Lights and wich is the perfect weather to see it.
In Inari, more or less near to Kaamanen by bus, you can find the Siida Museum, that it's so cheap and really nice. In this museum you can find all the information about Sami's culture as well as about the fauna, weather and all natural things in Lapland. Probably you will see as well expositions of Sami's artists (pictures, clothes, etc) and is really interesting.
Moreover, in Siida there is a open air ice theater! that is sooo cold but very nice. In this ice theater during January they celebrate a Cinema Festival, where they show films of Sami's directors and producers, but also some films from other countries like England, Norway, etc. So some of this films are in finish but also you can see some of them with english subtitles.
Definitly you should go there, but only if you love the nature, to know a really unknown and amazing culture, and if you want to meet a really kind and lovely people.
Kiitos!!
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Oulu, Oulu Province, Finland
Oulu is a great place to visit around the year. I suggest summer. It's not that expensive either. The best place to stay is Hotel-spa Eden, which is right next to the sea. It's one of the best spas in Finland, in my opinion. If you have a low budjet, there's a hostel called Turisti opposite the train station. And of course you can go camping, there's a great area for that next to Eden.
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Helsinki, Southern Finland, Finland
You have to visit Suomenlinna!!
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Yyteri, Western Finland, Finland
Yyteri has the best sandy beach of western Finland.
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Rauma, Western Finland, Finland
when in Finland and love cartoon about Muminki must go there! unique muminki world is there on an island ;-) besiedes the city is lovely, extremely colorful with nice cafes and harbour, small cluster on a hill, good access to Turku city and here just half a day which is certainly enough there
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