Enjoy Danish specialities on holiday in Denmark

When the day begins - What do you eat for breakfast in Denmark?

When the day begins, it's time for breakfast. Of course, this is also a pleasure in Denmark. Very few Danes want to do without a freshly brewed coffee at the breakfast table. It is often drunk black or traditionally with milk and/or sugar.

Muesli with milk or yoghurt, which can be bought in Tetra Paks, are also a must. You can also enjoy a freshly squeezed orange juice.

Bolle and Wienerbrød

The Danes also like to eat freshly baked goods, for example Danish "Bolle". These soft rolls are served both savoury and sweet. Raspberry or strawberry jam, butter, sausage and cheese are just as much a part of the topping.

One of Denmark's most famous national dishes is also a must at breakfast: Wienerbrød. The sweet pastries are home-baked in traditional bakeries (bageri). You can eat them for breakfast, as a snack between meals or for coffee and cake.

Drømmekage and rundstykker

There are plenty of sweets for the soul in Danish cuisine. The Danes love to eat their typical Danish pastries, whether for breakfast or in between meals. Delicious cakes such as drømmekage (dream cake), rundstykker (literally "round pieces") or a juicy cake with fresh strawberries - a holiday in Denmark would be unthinkable without a Danish speciality such as these.

Fortunately, you will always find many small bakeries and cosy cafés offering their homemade cakes, tarts, pastries and biscuits all over Denmark. In some places, Danes also like to meet up for brunch, which is usually served from 11am until the early afternoon. A popular, filling option for all late risers who want to really indulge themselves on holiday.

Ymer with Ymerdrys

Ymer is a Danish dairy product that dates back to the 1930s. It is similar to yoghurt and buttermilk and is often served as a breakfast, snack or dessert. Ymer is often prepared with a topping that can be sprinkled on top. The topping is called ymerdrys by the Danes and is made from Danish rugbrød (rye bread). The sweetness of the bread perfectly complements the slightly sour ymer and is also a great way to use up leftover rugbrød.

Typical Danish specialities on the lunch table

Danish cuisine gets really interesting again at lunchtime. In contrast to Germany, people in Denmark only eat a small meal at lunchtime. For practical reasons, this is prepared at home and then taken to work or school.

If you want to eat out at lunchtime, you can of course visit one of the many restaurants. These offer the traditional smørrebrød, a slice of bread topped with butter, meat, fish or cheese and various fresh side dishes. In our region, smørrebrød is also on the menu as an affordable lunch dish. Have you got hungry? Then we have a Recipe for smørrebrød for you. Other Danish specialities that you should definitely try are Hotdogs or a crispy salad with crab and oysters.

Fresh oysters from the Danish Wadden Sea

The flat coastline and temperate climate in Denmark are ideal conditions for growing oysters. Oysters from the Limfjord are something of a celebrity among shellfish lovers. The local delicacy is not only rare, but is also one of the best oysters in the world. Limfjord oysters grow very slowly, which makes their texture firm and contributes to a more complex flavour experience. The fist-sized shells contain a small mouthful of oyster meat the size of a chicken egg.

Participation in a Oyster safari offers you a unique opportunity to collect fresh oysters in Denmark. Oyster safaris are offered between October and April, in English and in Danish. The oyster beds are only accessible at low tide, so a walk through the Wadden Sea always feels like entering another world.

Tip: Have you already been on an oyster safari? Then how about a Amber safari?

It doesn't get any more Danish than this - Hot Dog with rød pølse

For a snack in between meals, you will find the traditional pølsevogn, small sausage carts where you can buy Hotdogs, in most Danish pedestrian zones.

Typically Danish, they are served with a soft bread roll, onions, a remoulade and, of course, the red sausage rød pølse. Find out more about danish Hot dogs. We have also put together a recipe so that you can try this Danish speciality for yourself.

What do the Danes eat in the evening? The national dish stegt flæsk

Now it's time for dinner, the main meal of the day. The Danes like to eat warm in the evening. Then stegt flæsk med persillesovs is undoubtedly one of the national dishes that should definitely end up on your plate in Denmark. In 2014, the Danish government set out to find the Danish national dish - and this savoury option took first place with more than 60,000 votes.

Pork belly with potatoes and parsley

The court Flæskesteg consists of crispy pork belly with potatoes and a creamy white parsley sauce. Stegt flæsk can be traced back to the 1800s and was historically considered a dish for poor people. For many years, flæskesteg but besides smørrebrød it is also found on the menus of Danish luxury restaurants.

Danish specialities have experienced a boom in recent years. Many chefs are now internationally renowned for reinterpreting traditional Danish specialities and treating hungry diners to innovative culinary delights.

All liquorice!

Sweet, salty, mild, bitter, delicious! The Danes have a special fondness for liquorice, especially salty liquorice. The strongest liquorice varieties in the world are produced in the liquorice country of Denmark; the variety of this spicy sweet is endless. Salty liquorice is also popular in other Nordic countries, such as Sweden, and is often called "salmiak.

Tyrkisk Peber and liquorice festivals

In addition to the typical liquorice snails, there are also liquorice sweets called "Tyrkisk Peber" (Turkish pepper), which can have a certain spiciness. So not for liquorice novices. And as if that wasn't enough liquorice, there is now even a liquorice festival that takes place every year in Copenhagen.

Red fruit jelly in the colours of the Dannebrog

On your holiday in Denmark you should definitely rødgrød med fløde try it. The red fruit jelly with cream is known as a tongue twister due to its pronunciation and is THE national dessert of Denmark. No wonder, as the red and white dessert is reminiscent of the colours of the Danish flag Dannebrog, the Danish flag.

You will need the following ingredients to cook it:

• 1 kg red fruit (e.g. strawberries, raspberries, redcurrants)

• 250 g sugar

• 1 tbsp cornflour

• 200 ml water

Bring the fruit to the boil in the water. Add the sugar and simmer for 10 minutes. Add more sugar if necessary. Mix the cornflour with a little water until smooth and add to the boiling fruit jelly. Cook until the jelly thickens. Pour into a dessert bowl and leave to cool.

The red fruit jelly tastes fruity and sour, depending on which berries you have used. You can try it not only with cream, but also with vanilla sauce and milk.

Grocery shopping in Denmark

If you want to cater for yourself completely, look out for Danish specialities in the local supermarkets. The supermarkets are well distributed throughout our holiday home regions.

During the summer months, almost every holiday resort also opens a small købmand (grocer), which offers fresh bread rolls every morning and has the essentials for the day. In addition to milk, butter, sugar, fish, meat and sausage, you will find all the ingredients you need to prepare Danish specialities yourself. Enjoy the smørrebrød or another dish of your choice in your holiday home!

Danish supermarket chains

Typical supermarket chains in Denmark are Fakta, Bilka, SuperBrugsen, Spar and Net. The latter is a Danish chain and therefore has nothing to do with the German discounter of the same name. However, the German supermarket chains Aldi and Lidl are widespread in Denmark. With a few exceptions, the range is almost completely identical to the range you should be familiar with from Germany. By the way: Danish supermarkets are open 7 days a week, including Sundays.

How expensive is food in Denmark?

The Food prices in Danish supermarkets are roughly comparable to prices in German supermarkets. Basic foodstuffs are sometimes only 10 per cent more expensive. Eating out in Danish restaurants is comparatively expensive, but the menus are of very high quality. Many restaurants attach great importance to using locally sourced and freshly prepared ingredients. This is naturally reflected in the flavour.

Dagens tilbud and dagens ret

In addition to smørrebrød, liver pâté (leverpostej) and various dishes with fish, meat and fresh bread made from Danish rye, you will often find a so-called dagens tilbud on the menu in the restaurants. This is the special of the day. Also take a look at the dagens ret, the dish of the day. These delicious specialities usually cost between 80 and 120 Danish kroner.

Danish cuisine is also sometimes Asian

Anyone who has ever eaten stegt flæsk, a hot dog, liver pâté or smørrebrød in Denmark will love Danish cuisine. These dishes are particularly delicious and will make your mouth water. But Danish cuisine doesn't just consist of Danish specialities, but also specialities that may traditionally come from another country.

Just like in Germany, for many Danes today it is simply a matter of eating out at an Asian restaurant. Most places in Denmark have at least one Asian restaurant. So if you don't want to miss out on delicious specialities but are looking for a cheaper alternative to an upmarket Danish restaurant, you can indulge in the taste of an Asian dish.

You won't find Danish specialities on the menu here, but thanks to the well-stocked yet reasonably priced buffets, many Danes like to go to their local Asian restaurants - and that's always a sign that it tastes good. So typical Danish also means Asian for a change. Kebab shops are also widespread.

Typical Danish drinks - Aquavit

When it comes to typical Danish drinks, the country's traditional schnapps is a must. We are talking about aquavit. If you bring up aquavit in Denmark, be prepared for a long conversation - many Danes have an opinion on it. For some, the schnapps doesn't have a particularly good reputation, while others love their national spirit.

Aquavit is served in cocktail bars, on public holidays and at parties

Aquavit is experiencing a renaissance in Copenhagen today. The city's hip cocktail bars like to use it as a special extra for their latest creations. The schnapps is made from potatoes and flavoured with herbs or spices. Aquavit tastes good with gin and will never go undetected with its caraway or dill flavours.

Aquavit is usually served on public holidays and at celebrations. For example, it is typically Danish to serve pickled herring, fried fish, pork and a wide range of other delicious dishes on festive occasions and "wash it all down" with a strong Danish aquavit. Incidentally, Denmark's most famous toast is "Bunden i vejret eller resten i håret". This means: Empty out or put the rest in your hair. Well then, skål!

Skål! Danish beer

The most sociable places to get a fresh beer are pubs, also known as værtshus, bar or bodega. The cheapest beer in Denmark is called lager and is served in a bottle. The so-called golden beers guldøl and elephant beers elefantøl are the strongest. Fadøl is draught lager and a little more expensive, but some Danes would argue that it tastes particularly fresh.

Carlsberg, Tuborg and small breweries

Carlsberg is the largest brewery in Denmark. Another popular brewery is Tuborg. However, small microbreweries are now also producing their own Danish beer. Seasonal beers are also popular, especially the Christmas beer Jule øl (Julebryg). Every year in November, the Danes celebrate J-dag, the day on which Christmas beer is officially released. The pubs and bars are always particularly busy then.

Honigwine and Holunderflower juice

As Danish mineral water is comparatively expensive, people in Denmark often drink tap water. Children naturally like to drink lemonade (sodavand). Another typical alcoholic beverage is mead (mjød), which has always been flavoured and prepared with fruit or spices. Hyldeblomst juice is also popular. This is a liqueur made from Holunderflowers, which is served hot in winter or often drunk cold.

Danish restaurants in our northern region

Please note that in many restaurants on the Danish North Sea coast it is necessary to book a table in advance. The restaurants are particularly busy from Easter until the end of October, so if you want to eat well on holiday, it is advisable to plan your restaurant visit in advance.

Danish restaurants in our southern region