Smørrebrød

Smørrebrød

A selection of Danish smørrebrød. Here dark rye bread covered with salmon topped with either remoulade or prawns. In the background are other kinds.
Type	Sandwich
Place of origin	Denmark
Main ingredients	Rugbrød, butter, pålæg (cold cuts, pieces of meat or fish, cheese or spreads)

Smørrebrød (Danish pronunciation: [ˈsmɶɐ̯ɐˌb̥ʁœðˀ]; originally smør og brød, "butter and bread") usually consists of a piece of buttered rye bread (rugbrød), a dense, dark brown bread. Pålæg (literally "on-lay"), the topping, that among others can refer to commercial or homemade cold cuts, pieces of meat or fish, cheese or spreads. This daily practice is the base of the famous Danish open sandwich, smørrebrød: a slice or two of pålæg is placed on the buttered bread, and then decorated with the right accompaniments, to create a tasty and visually appealing food item.

Bread is a very important part of the Scandinavian table, primarily rugbrød, which is sour-dough rye bread. It is a dark, heavy bread which is often bought pre-sliced, in varieties from light-coloured rye, to very dark, and refined to whole grain. It forms the basis of smørrebrød, which is closely related to the Swedish smörgås. Some toppings are served on franskbrød, a very light, crusty wheat bread. The bread is usually buttered, though for some variants a spread of lard is customary.

Traditional toppings include marinerede sild, which are pickled herrings (plain, krydret – spiced, or karry – curried), slightly sweeter than Dutch or German herrings; thinly sliced cheese in many varieties; sliced cucumber, tomato and boiled eggs; leverpostej, which is pork liver-paste; dozens of types of cured or processed meat in thin slices, or smoked fish such as salmon; mackerel in tomato sauce; pickled cucumber; boiled egg, and rings of red onion. Mayonnaise mixed with peas, sliced boiled asparagus and diced carrot, called italiensk salat (lit. Italian salad, so named because the colours match the Italian flag), remoulade or other thick sauces often top the layered open sandwich, which is usually eaten with utensils. It is custom to pass the dish of sliced breads around the table, and then to pass around each dish of toppings, and people help themselves.