What is lutefisk and how is it made?
Lutefisk, which means "lye fish," is dried cod that has been treated with lye for preservation. While there are, of course, more advanced ways of preserving food, lutefisk is a Scandinavian tradition still enjoyed today. Before it is prepared, it is soaked in cold water for days to remove the lye.
How do you cook lutefisk with salt?
The salt must be rinsed off carefully before cooking. Lutefisk does not need additional water for the cooking; it is sufficient to place it in a pan, salt it, seal the lid tightly, and let it steam cook under a very low heat for 20–25 minutes. An alternative is to wrap in aluminium foil and bake at 225 °C (435 °F) for 40–50 minutes.
What's so great about eating lutefisk?
The real bonus that comes from the smell? As one person told AP News, "One thing about eating lutefisk. You can wear dirty socks and nobody'll even notice.″
Origin
Preserved fish provided protein during the long winter months for generations in a part of the world with a strong fishing tradition. It is not known when people first started treating dried fish with lye.
Preparation
For it to become edible, lutefisk must again be soaked in cold water. The first step is soaking for five to six days (with the water changed daily). The saturated lutefisk is then soaked in an unchanged solution of cold water and lye for an additional two days.
Cooking
After the preparation, the lutefisk is saturated with water and must therefore be cooked extremely carefully so that it does not fall to pieces.
Eating
Lutefisk is traditionally served with boiled potatoes, mashed green peas, melted butter and small pieces of fried bacon .
Modern consumption
Lutefisk as a Christmas season meal has gained attention in Norway over the past 20 years. The Norwegian Seafood Export Council indicated sales of lutefisk to restaurants and catering companies in Norway increased by 72% between 2005 and 2008.
Folklore
An article in Smithsonian magazine quotes some oft-rendered tall tales regarding the origins of the dish:
See also
Bacalhau – Type of Portuguese cod dish: Portuguese dish also made of reconstituted dried fish.
Step 1
Arrange the lutefisk in a baking dish in a single layer and sprinkle with salt. Let the lutefisk rest for half an hour. .
Step 2
Drain and discard the liquid that has been expelled from the lutefisk. Press down on the lutefisk, gently, to purge the fish of any additional liquid.
Step 3
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Sprinkle a little more salt on top of the lutefisk and bake, covered, approximately 25 minutes or until the fish flakes easily.
Step 4
Melt butter or fry a few slices of chopped bacon while the lutefisk bakes. When the lutefisk is finished, serve drizzled with melted butter or topped with bacon and bacon grease.
Step 1
Combine a cup of water and a cup of whole milk with two spoonfuls of white wine vinegar in a pot so that the liquid is just covering the lutefisk.
Step 2
Bring the pot to a boil and reduce the heat to low. Add the lutefisk and gently simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the fish is slightly flaky.
Step 3
Remove the lutefisk from the pot and let drain on paper towels. Serve with melted butter or a white gravy sauce.
Buying and Cooking
Freelance food writer who specializes in Scandinavian cuisine and is the author of "The Everything Nordic Cookbook."
What Is Lutefisk?
Literally meaning "lye fish," lutefisk is a dried stockfish (normally cod or ling, but haddock and pollock can also be used) that has been brined in lye, soaked to remove the resulting caustic solution, and then steamed until it flakes. The end result looks and feels gelatinous.
Lutefisk vs. Salt Cod
Salt cod, which is basically codfish cured in salt and then dried, is similar in concept but has a couple key differences. Lutefisk is dried to be preserved because salt simply wasn't in abundance in Scandinavia. Another major difference is that the salt cod is not reconstituted in lye.
How to Cook With Lutefisk
Recipes tend to vary in terms of what is needed to prep the fish before you cook it. Some say to let it soak in cold water for a few hours up to overnight; others suggest salting and letting it stand for a short period of time.
What Does It Taste Like?
Lutefisk tends to be divisive. There are those who revere its smooth, supple, delicate taste, and others who think it's too fishy and can't get past the gelatinous texture. One might say that it's more about the butter and cream than it is the fish itself—after all, so many foods are vastly improved by butter and cream.
Where to Buy Lutefisk
This is not your run-of-the-mill ingredient, but if you live in an area where there's a concentration of Scandinavian descendants, such as the upper Midwest (especially Minnesota) or western Canada, you will probably be able to find it in a small specialty purveyor or deli that caters to foods of the region.
Storage
In many other parts of the world, salting was the way to preserve fish, but because Scandinavia lacks major salt deposits, drying became the method of choice. Typically it would be put in strong lye for a couple of days, followed by clean water to make it as soft as you want.
What is lutefisk?
Lutefisk is a traditional Norwegian Christmas dish. It is made from dried whitefish which is then soaked in water to which lye is added. It is most common to use tried cod, but other white fish can be used as well.
Why is lutefisk soaked in lye?
While the dish is mentioned in literature dating back to the 15th century, no one really knows why lutefisk is prepared the way it is.
How is lutefisk prepared?
Today, lutefisk is prepared from dried cod of the highest quality. First, the dried fish is soaked put in water to soak, to which lye is later added. The concentration of lye will determine the consistency of the lutefisk.
How is lutefisk served?
Lutefisk is served hot straight from the oven. The garnish varies across the country, however, it is always served with some sort of fat. This can come from the preparation of other Christmas dishes (such as ribbed). However, Today, it is most commonly served with bacon along with bacon grease, however, melted butter can also be used.
Where and when do you eat lutefisk?
Lutefisk is a traditional Christmas dish and it is served in restaurants throughout the country from October to January. Lye-treated lutefisk is also available in stores and it is common to have friends and family over for lutefisk dinner.
Can you make lutefisk at home?
The actual process of preparing the dried cod in water in lye is best left to professionals. If you get it wrong you can end up with a potentially harmful piece of fish. Also, for the beginner, I recommend going with fish that has been prepared with less concentrated lye solutions. This makes the fish firmer and easier to handle when cooking.
Final thoughts
Lutefisk is a weird dish, soaking fish in lye doesn’t sound like it will make delicious food. Some argue that lutefisk is inedible and that people only et it because of tradition. Others find it to be a delicacy they can’t live without.
Lutefisk has a unique texture
Lutefisk's gelatinous texture is a result of the fish breaking down during the preparation process. First, the fish are cleaned and then hung to dry, which An Off Grid Life notes takes approximately nine to 10 days. When fully dried, the cod will be tough and leathery. The process of rehydrating the fish takes over a week, notes CDKitchen.
Lutefisk has a distinct smell
Perhaps the greatest offense of the lutefisk isn't necessarily its texture, but the smell associated with it. Most people describe it as a very pungent, fishy smell that can't be easily forgotten. Simply put, lutefisk smells strongly of fish, with notes of sourness and ammonia.
Lutefisk's taste is definitely something else
While generally speaking, people say lutefisk tastes mildly fishy, with a soapy aftertaste and a hint of ammonia on the palate, though there seems to be a lot of variation of its description based on whether people are fans of the stuff or not.
Want to try lutefisk?
If after all that it's still appealing to you, lutefisk can usually be found in church dinners and Scandinavian heritage events throughout the country, particularly in the upper Midwest, which is sometimes referred to colloquially as the "Lutefisk Belt" (via NPR ).
Is lutefisk nutritious?
Along with preserving the leftover fish for the long Norwegian winters, there are other benefits to lutefisk's drying process, Norwegian American notes. Because it's dried there's no longer any moisture that would allow bacteria or mold to grow and ruin the fish.
