Food of Denmark

Danish cuisine is built on rye bread, pork, potatoes, fish and dairy, with a love of pastries. Lunch is often smorrebrod, an open-faced sandwich on rye, and a cozy sense of hygge shapes the table. Danish bakeries are renowned for their laminated pastries and breads.

Frikadeller
National dish

Frikadeller

Pan-fried pork and veal meatballs with potatoes.

Staples

  • rye bread
  • pork
  • herring
  • potatoes
  • butter
  • rye flour
  • cabbage

Signature flavors

  • dill
  • remoulade
  • mustard
  • cardamom
  • parsley
  • horseradish

Main dishes

Frikadeller
Frikadeller

Pan-fried pork and veal meatballs with potatoes.

Key ingredients: ground pork, onion, milk, flour
Smorrebrod
Smorrebrod

Open-faced sandwiches on dense rye bread.

Key ingredients: rye bread, butter, fish or meat, garnishFull guide →
Stegt flaesk

Crispy pork belly with parsley sauce and potatoes.

Key ingredients: pork belly, potatoes, parsley sauce
Flaeskesteg
Flaeskesteg

Roast pork with crackling.

Key ingredients: pork roast, rind, bay leaf
Hakkebof

Danish beef patties with onions and gravy.

Key ingredients: ground beef, onions, gravy
Medisterpolse
Medisterpolse

A mild pork sausage.

Key ingredients: pork, spices
Karbonader

Breaded pork cutlets.

Key ingredients: pork, breadcrumbs, butter
Gule aerter

Yellow split pea soup with pork.

Key ingredients: split peas, pork, vegetables

Breakfast

Danish pastry
Danish pastry

Flaky, buttery pastry with custard or jam.

Key ingredients: butter, flour, custardFull guide →
Rugbrod
Rugbrod

Dense rye bread with butter and cheese.

Key ingredients: rye, seeds
Havregrod

Warm oat porridge with cinnamon and milk.

Key ingredients: oats, milk, cinnamon

Street food

Polser

Red hot dog with pickles and crispy onions.

Key ingredients: sausage, remoulade, fried onions, pickles
Rundstykke

Crusty roll with butter and cheese.

Key ingredients: flour, yeast

Soups

Aeblesuppe

Sweet apple soup.

Key ingredients: apples, sugar

Salads

Rodbedesalat

Pickled beet salad.

Key ingredients: beets, vinegar
Agurkesalat
Agurkesalat

Thinly sliced cucumber in vinegar.

Key ingredients: cucumber, vinegar, sugar

Breads

Tebirkes
Tebirkes

Flaky poppy-seed roll.

Key ingredients: laminated dough, poppy seeds

Desserts and sweets

Aebleskiver
Aebleskiver

Round puffed pancakes dusted with sugar.

Key ingredients: flour, eggs, buttermilk, cardamom
Kanelsnegle

Cinnamon snail pastry.

Key ingredients: dough, cinnamon, sugar
Rodgrod med flode
Rodgrod med flode

Berry compote with cream.

Key ingredients: berries, sugar
Koldskal

Cold buttermilk soup with vanilla.

Key ingredients: buttermilk, vanilla, eggs

Drinks

Kaffe
Kaffe

Strong filter coffee.

Key ingredients: coffee
Kakao
Kakao

Cocoa with whipped cream.

Key ingredients: cocoa, milk
Saft

Fruit cordial.

Key ingredients: elderflower, berries
Kakaomaelk
Kakaomaelk

Chilled chocolate milk.

Key ingredients: milk, cocoa

Fruits and produce

Strawberries
Strawberries

Sweet summer berries.

Key ingredients: cream, jam
Apples
Apples

Apples from Funen.

Key ingredients: pastry, juice
Black currants
Black currants

Berries for juice.

Key ingredients: jam, juice
Cherries
Cherries

Danish sour cherries.

Key ingredients: cakes, jam

Dish guides from Denmark

Danish pastry
Danish pastryBreakfast
Smorrebrod
SmorrebrodMain dishes
Explore Denmark on Geographical EffectMaps, capital and cities, population, climate, landscapes and landmarks.

More cuisines of Northern Europe

About this page

Descriptions written by Intercontinental Chef. Dishes are listed as commonly eaten today; many are shared across neighbouring countries.

Photo credits
  • Frikadeller: This image was taken by Kenneth Jorgensen (gallery).Please attribute this image with "Kenneth Jorgensen".An email would, CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Ida Davidsen udsnit af glasmontren: User:Nillerdk, CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Flaeskesteg med svaer: fru_green, CC BY-SA 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Medisterpølse: Nillerdk, CC BY 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Glazed apple Danish: Peter Isotalo, CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Rugbrød: No machine-readable author provided. Sten assumed (based on copyright claims)., CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Flickr - cyclonebill - Frikadeller med ristet rugbrød og cornichons: cyclonebill, CC BY-SA 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Frøsnapper tebirkes grovbirkes (cropped to tebirkes): Nillerdk, CC BY 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Æbleskriver (54997580931): Christian Ursilva from København, Danmark, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Rote Grütze mit Vanillesoße: Olaf Simons, CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Latte and dark coffee: Bex Walton, CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Chocolate cup Chantilly porcelain 18th century: World Imaging, CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Chocolate milk: stevepb, CC0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Garden strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) single2: Ivar Leidus, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • 95apple: Agricultural Research Service (Research agent of United States Department of Agriculture), Public domain (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Ribes nigrum a1: Jerzy Opioła, CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Cherry season (48216568227): spurekar, CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)