What to Eat in Finland

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• What else should the list cover? Desserts and pastriesNon-alcoholic drinksLocal alcohol

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1. Try lohikeitto

   The iconic Finnish salmon soup made with chunks of fresh fish, potatoes, leeks, and a generous amount of fresh dill in a velvety cream-enriched broth.

   Best enjoyed in historic indoor market halls with a thick slice of rye bread topped with salted butter.

2. Try karjalanpiirakka

   Traditional Karelian pasties made of an ultra-thin rye crust filled with rice porridge or mashed potatoes, crimped by hand and served warm with egg butter.

   Buy them from bakery counters warm out of the oven rather than packaged supermarket versions for the crispest crust.

3. Try poronkäristys

   Shaved reindeer meat braised in butter or pork fat with a splash of beer or water, served over creamy mashed potatoes alongside tart lingonberries and pickled cucumbers.

   Lapland's staple game dish, ubiquitous around Rovaniemi and Arctic ski resorts throughout winter.

4. Try paistetut muikut

   Small freshwater lake vendace tossed in rye flour and fried crisp in butter on large outdoor griddles, eaten whole from head to tail.

   The quintessential summer street food found at harbour market stalls in lake regions like Kuopio and Savonlinna.

5. Try kalakukko

   A traditional Savo region specialty consisting of a thick rye loaf crust packed with lake fish and fatty pork belly, baked slowly until the bones melt away.

   Originally from Kuopio, it is eaten hot or cold by slicing off the top crust and slathering the filling with butter.

6. Try graavilohi

   Dry-cured salmon fillet seasoned with sea salt, sugar, crushed white pepper, and fresh dill, sliced paper-thin after curing under light pressure.

   A centerpiece of Finnish smörgåsbord buffets, served alongside warm dill-boiled potatoes and mustard sauce.

7. Try leipäjuusto

   A baked fresh cow milk cheese with toasted brown spots, famous for its rubbery, squeaky texture when warm.

   Served gently heated in a pan with a dollop of wild cloudberry jam, or diced directly into hot black coffee in northern Finland.

8. Try Finnish pea soup (hernekeitto)

   Thick green split pea soup slow-simmered with smoked pork, seasoned with Finnish sweet-hot mustard and marjoram, historically eaten nationwide on Thursdays.

   Look for the Thursday lunch specials across cafeterias and lunch bistros, followed immediately by oven pancake with strawberry jam.

9. Try rosolli salad

   A diced root vegetable salad of boiled potatoes, carrots, pickled beetroot, gherkins, and tart apples, dressed with beet-tinted whipped cream.

   Essential dish of the Finnish Christmas table, often ordered as a side salad at traditional lunch buffets.

10. Try karjalanpaisti

    A slow-baked stew combining beef, pork, and sometimes lamb, simmered in a pot for hours with whole allspice and onions until meltingly tender.

    One of Finland's unofficial national dishes, traditionally served without sauce thickeners, accompanied by mashed potatoes.

11. Try potato rieska flatbread

    An unleavened flatbread made from mashed potatoes and barley flour, baked at scorching heat until speckled with blistered spots.

    Best enjoyed still warm from local bakeries with salted Finnish butter alongside soup or morning coffee.

12. Try fried Baltic herring (paistetut silakat)

    Baltic herring fillets sandwiched together with fresh dill, dusted in rye flour and pan-fried crisp in butter, or pickled in mustard and berry sauces.

    Helsinki hosts the historic annual Baltic Herring Market every October, where archipelago fishermen sell their catches directly from boats.

13. Try korvapuusti Desserts and pastries

    Finland's iconic cinnamon roll heavily fragranced with crushed cardamom seeds in the dough, folded uniquely into an ear-like shape and topped with pearl sugar.

    The mandatory pairing for afternoon coffee breaks; look for neighborhood bakeries that grind fresh whole cardamom pods.

14. Try salmiakki Desserts and pastries

    Salty black licorice candies spiked with ammonium chloride, delivering a sharp, astringent, salty-pungent flavor profile unique to the Nordics.

    If you are a novice, start with chocolate-coated or fruity salmiakki before braving the intense diamond-shaped pure pastilles.

15. Try mustikkapiirakka Desserts and pastries

    Rustic Finnish wild blueberry pie made with small tart forest bilberries, filled with a sweet sour-cream custard over a buttery rye-crust base.

    At its peak during the July and August forest harvest, best enjoyed warm with cold vanilla custard.

16. Try Runeberg torte (runebergintorttu) Desserts and pastries

    A dense cylindrical almond-and-cardamom cake crumb moistened with rum or arrack punch, topped with a ring of white icing enclosing a dollop of raspberry jam.

    A seasonal winter pastry sold across Finland throughout January and February, though available year-round in the historic town of Porvoo.

17. Drink Finnish filter coffee (kahvi) Non-alcoholic drinks

    Light-roast drip filter coffee consumed by Finns in world-record quantities, typically enjoyed black or with a splash of milk.

    Refills (santsikuppi) are often complimentary at casual cafeterias; light roasts dominate the local coffee culture.

18. Try sima mead Non-alcoholic drinks

    A refreshing, naturally fermented sparkling lemon drink brewed with brown sugar, yeast, and raisins, carrying a gentle tang and slight effervescence.

    Traditional beverage of the May Day (Vappu) spring festival, typically paired with sugary fried funnel cakes (tippaleipä).

19. Try warm wild berry juice (marjamehu) Non-alcoholic drinks

    Unfiltered pure juice pressed from hand-picked wild lingonberries, sea buckthorn, or bilberries, served warm with a hint of spice.

    Served steaming hot at outdoor winter huts, campfire shelters, and cross-country ski trails throughout northern Finland.

20. Try Finnish long drink (lonkero) Local alcohol

    The iconic canned 'Long Drink' mixing craft dry gin with tart grapefruit soda, originally formulated for the 1952 Helsinki Summer Olympic Games.

    Look for the classic blue-and-white striped cans in every supermarket and summer sauna terrace across the country.

21. Try salmari (salmiakkikossu) Local alcohol

    Pitch-black spirit made by dissolving salty licorice candies directly into neutral Koskenkorva grain vodka, producing a thick, bracing shot.

    A nightlife staple across Finnish rock clubs and student bars; invariably ordered and downed as an ice-cold shot.

22. Try glögi Local alcohol

    Nordic spiced mulled wine brewed with berry juice, cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom, garnished with whole peeled almonds and plump raisins.

    Available in spiked alcoholic versions with vodka or akvavit at Christmas markets from late November through the New Year.