The Scandinavian Smörgåsbord

the

Words By: Astrid Langoe Graphics By: Jamie Kim

Scandinavian Smörgåsbord

When I was little, my family and I would spend midsummer, a celebration of the summer solstice, in Järvsö, Sweden. During this day, families would come together, share food and drinks, and celebrate the warmer days ahead. Some people wore wreaths made with Lady’s mantles, large daisies, and clovers on their heads; a few older guests even wore Swedish Folk dresses. I especially looked forward to the smörgåsbord that was served for lunch. The smörgåsbord wasn’t just a regular meal, it was an experience that would linger on for hours upon end. Most children only chose to eat a few things from the glorious display of dishes, while the adults ate everything in the correct order. As a child, I didn’t pay much attention to what the proper way of eating a smörgåsbord was. Nevertheless as I grew older, I learned from my “mistakes,” and they have only made me appreciate the tradition even more.

The Scandinavian smörgåsbord has played an important and unifying role in Swedish culture and lifestyle for centuries, however it wasn’t until the 20th century that it gained popularity around the world. At the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm, the smörgåsbord was even designated as the official meal provided to the athletes. In English, smörgåsbord translates to “open faced sandwich table,” a pretty good representation of what it actually is: a table filled with various sorts of food like bread, cheese, pickled herring, and fresh gravlax. The dishes on the smörgåsbord contribute in different ways, however together they complement each other to create something wonderful. The unique combinations of the floral aromas and fresh dill, the smell of the spices from the bread, and hard Swedish cheese always fill up the room where the smörgåsbord is placed. For most Swedes, the nostalgic smells bring childhood memories back to life in a way that it is hard to describe. Perhaps this is why some say that the smörgåsbord motivates people to connect on a deeper level.

In Sweden, the smörgåsbord appears every time some sort of celebration is taking place. This can range from birthdays to holidays like Christmas, Easter, and Midsummer. During the meal, guests gather around the table to fill up their plates with the different dishes. In a way, it is almost like a buffet, however the food on the smörgåsbord is laid out in a distinct way.

Crackers (knäckebröd) along with different types of cheese, vegetables, and butter can be found at one end of smörgåsbord. Next on the table comes the pickled herring and salmon, as well as the hard-boiled eggs and beet-salad. After the cold dishes have been presented, warm foods like Swedish meatballs and potatoes are laid out in various pots and pans. The smörgåsbord is usually enriched with dishes such as Jansson’s Temptation during holidays like Christmas. This creamy potato-andanchovy casserole has been a classic in most Swedish households since the 1940s, and it still stands strong to this day. Although it wasn’t my favorite growing up (I had an irrational fear of anchovies), Jansson’s Temptations is now one of my favorites.

As I have already mentioned, younger children often pick and choose which parts of the smörgåsbord they eat. This is mostly because some of the colder dishes have a bit of a mature taste. Herring in Sweden is typically salted and then pickled in a mixture of vinegar and different spices. Pickled herring has an acquired taste, as my dad likes to say, so it often scares children away; the same goes for the different types of cheeses. As a result, the warmer dishes are quickly devoured by the youngins. My mom tells me that it is apparent when Swedish children start to mature: their plates become more diversified with new things such as the pickled herring or gravlax. For me, I began to eat herring when I was around 11, however my cousin (who is now in his late 20s), has yet to become fond of this little fish.

It wasn’t until I grew older when I realized that most Swedes don’t recognize the impact that the smörgåsbord has on both their physical and mental well being. Due to the massive technological advancements of the 21st century, the world in which we live in has become extremely fast-paced. It seems as though most people don’t have the

time to prioritize shared meals with their loved ones. In today’s world, anything that promotes productivity is usually chosen over pleasure, so the idea of setting aside time to eat with others gets put on the back burner. As a result, the smörgåsbord is becoming more and more valuable with each year. Not only does it help people connect on a deeper level, it also increases social bonding between those who would otherwise never have made an effort to get to know each other better. The tradition of eating food from the common smörgåsbord makes people not only value the food they are being served, but value the people they are eating with. It relieves stress as it creates a sense of belonging for the guests and promotes people to share things that have happened in their daily lives. These benefits are more likely to be sustained when it’s done often, which is why the idea of having a smörgåsbord during celebrations is so valuable.

Growing up, I don’t think my friends and I realized why the smörgåsbord meant so much to us. The smörgåsbord simply made me happy in a way that no other meal could do. As I grew older and became immersed in the exhausting real world, I found myself thinking back to the times when my family and I shared a smörgåsbord. There is truly something special about setting aside time to share a meal with others, and I would do anything to be able to go back to Järvsö again.