Þorramatur

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Þorramatur (food of the þorri) is the traditional Icelandic national food. Today þorramatur is chiefly consumed during the ancient Nordic month of þorri, in January and February, as a tribute to old culture. Þorramatur consists of many different dishes, including:

• Súrsaðir hrútspungar, the cured scrota of rams, including testicles
• Kæstur hákarl, rotten shark
• Svið, singed sheep faces
• Sviðasulta, a confit of the aforementioned svið
• Blóðmör (blood-fat), a type of blood pudding made from sheep's blood
• Lifrarpylsa (liver sausage), a sausage made from the offal of sheep
• Harðfiskur, dried fish (often cod, catfish, haddock or seawolf), served with butter
• Rúgbrauð (rye bread), traditional Icelandic rye bread

During the month of þorri, þorri buffets are quite popular in Iceland where many restaurants in Reykjavík and elsewhere serve þorramatur which is almost always served on wooden platters, called trog (trough). At these gatherings, Icelandic Brennivín is often consumed in copious amounts.

Chef Anthony Bourdain, who has travelled extensively throughout the world sampling local cuisine for his Travel Channel show No Reservations, has described shark þorramatur as "the single worst, most disgusting and terrible tasting thing" he has ever eaten. [1]

[edit] References

• Þorramatur [2] from the Reykjavík Grapevine, Iceland's main English-language newspaper. Fetched 28 November 2006.