Finnish Recipes
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Welcome to the Finnish recipes page.
This is the foods, cooking and baking section, with a focus on providing you with cooking and preparation instructions for Finnish foods. Recipes are categorized according to food category, making it easy for you to quickly locate the required information.
You may find more informations in the Finnguide or Nordic recipe archive websites.
Finnish meat recipes
Beef and mashed potatoes casserole
Ingredients:
- 8 or 10 medium potatoes
- 4 dl water
- salt
- 500 gr minced beef
- 2 tbs oil
- 1 onion
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp white or black pepper
- 5 dl milk
- 3 tbs shredded parsley
Peel and dice the potatoes, boil them in salted water until soft.
Peel and chop the onion finely. Add the mince and onion to a saucepan and allow them to brown in oil. Season with salt and pepper and set aside to cool.
Remove the water from the boiled potatoes and blend them, together with milk, into a smooth purée. Add the mince-onion mixture and egg to the purée and stir well.
Pour the mixture into a greased ovenproof casserole and cook at 175 degrees Celsius for approximately 45 minutes. Sprinkle the surface of the casserole with shredded parsley before serving.
Chicken Sauce
Ingredients:
- 1 defrosted chicken
- 2 laurel leaves
- 1 tsp peppercorns
- 2 onions
- 2 carrots
- piece of celeriac
- piece of parsnip
- 1 tsp salt or chicken bouillon
- 4 tbs flour
- 3 dl chicken broth
- 2 dl cream
- 2 tbs butter
- ½ or 1 tsp curry powder
Wash the carrots, celeriac and parsnip well. Peel the onion and cut in half. Place the defrosted chicken into a large saucepan together with the vegetables, peppercorns and laurel leaves. Cover the chicken with water and simmer gently for at least 2 ½ - 3 hours, until the chicken is thoroughly cooked.
Remove the chicken from the broth and set aside to cool. Strain the broth and pour into a bowl. Separate the meat from the chicken and cut into small pieces.
Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the flour. Sauté the flour for a while and then add the broth whilst constantly stirring. Add cream, curry powder, salt or bouillon and the chicken pieces and allow to simmer at a low heat for approximately 10 minutes.
Roast Lamb
Ingredients:
- 1 lamb's leg
- 4 or 5 garlic
- dried rosemary
- thyme
- mint
- marjoram
- black pepper
- salt
- olive oil
Basting:
- 1/2 cup of strong coffee
- 1/2 cup of cream
- 2 tbs honey
With a sharp knife cut slits all over the roast. Peel the garlic and cut into slices. Fill the slits with garlic slices.
Make a mixture from the dried herbs, salt and oil, and rub equally over the surface of the roast. Place the roast into a plastic bag and leave it to marinate in the fridge over night. The roast should be taken out from the fridge a few hours before cooking.
Stick the roasting thermometer into the deepest part of the roast and then place the roast onto a flat casserole or baking tray. Roast at 125 degrees C. for approximately 1 hour per kilo. If you prefer your roast pink, you should remove it from the oven, when the roasting thermometer reaches 70 degrees, otherwise leave it until 75 degrees.
While roasting, baste the roast from time to time with a mixture made from coffee, cream and honey. After the roast is ready, wrap it in foil to allow it to set, before serving.
Sauce:
Sauce can be prepared from the skimmed stock of the roast. Strain the stock from the baking tray into a saucepan (to be able to skim the extra fat off, set the stock aside to cool). Heat up the stock together with whipping cream, some honey, thicken with flour and allow it to simmer for a few minutes.
Roasted Elk
Ingredients:
- 1 or 2 kg elk roast
- 3 carrots
- 2 onions
- 4 dl water
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tbs ground juniper berries
- 2 tbs butter
- salt
Sauce:
- 3 dl broth
- 2 dl cream
- 4 tbs flour
- 2 tbs strong berry jelly (rowanberry, blackcurrant)
Rinse the roast well. Wash the carrots and peel the onions. Brown each side of the roast in hot butter, preferably in a cast iron casserole pot. Chop the carrots and onions into large pieces and add to the pot. Sprinkle the roast with ground black pepper, ground juniper berries and salt.
Pour water into the pot. Place a lid over the pot and allow the roast to simmer in the oven at 150 - 175 degrees Celsius for approximately 2 – 2 ½ hours.
Using a meat thermometer: Place the thermometer into the deepest part of the roast. The meat is ready when the meat thermometer shows 75 - 77 degrees Celsius. Remove the roast from the pot and wrap it in foil and allow it to "rest" before cutting.
Sauce:
Strain the broth from the pot. Pour 3 dl of broth into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Dissolve the flour with a few drops of cold water and add to the broth whilst constantly stirring. Add cream and 2 tablespoons of rowanberry- or blackcurrant jelly. Check the taste and add a dash of salt if needed.
Karelian stew
Ingredients:
- 400 or 500 g beef top loin or round
- 350 g lamb
- 350 g pork
- 300 or 350 g piece of beef liver
- salt
- 10 allspice berries
- 10 black pepper berries
- 2 bay leaves
- water
Cut the meats and the liver in chunky pieces. Layer the meats in a deep, large pot, adding some salt, pepper and berries and the bay leaves between the layers. Place some of the fattiest pieces, like the kassler, on top.
Add some cold water in the pot to almost cover the ingredients. Cook the stew, uncovered, at 125 °C until the meats are tender and succulent. The cooking temperature must not exceed 150 °C. While cooking mix the stew a couple of times.
You can serve it with potato puree or boiled potatoes.
Finnish fish recipes
Marinated Herrings
Ingredients:
- 4 or 6 Herring fillets
- 1 ¾ dl water
- 1 dl spirit vinegar
- 1 ½ dl sugar
- 1 or 2 carrots
- 1 large red onion
- 2 tsp white pepper
- 3 laurel leaves
- mustard seeds
Clean the herring fillets under cold water. Allow the fillets to soak in cold water for a few hours.
Bring the vinegar, water and sugar to a boil. Set aside to cool. Strain the fillets and slice into 2 cm pieces. Place the fillet pieces in layers into a glass jar together with the sliced carrots, sliced red onion and seasonings. Pour the cold marinade into the jar. The fillet pieces must be completely covered by the marinade.
Close the jar with a lid and leave to marinate for 2 – 3 days in a cool place before serving.
Freshly-Salted Salmon
Ingredients:
- approximately 1 kg salmon or whitefish
- bundle of fresh dill
- 1 or 2 tsp ground white pepper
- 1 tbs coarse salt
- 1 tsp sugar
Fillet the salmon or whitefish. Do not remove the skin.
Wipe the fillets with paper towels. Rub the seasonings into the fillets and sprinkle with fresh dill.
Place one of the fillets, skin side down, on the bottom of a dish lined with salt and some dill. Place the other fillet, skin side up, on top of the other one.
Sprinkle the rest of the salt and dill over the fish.
Pack the fish tightly with baking paper and aluminum foil. Place a weight on the fillets and store in a cool place for 1 – 2 days.
Scrape off the seasonings, cut the fillets obliquely into thin slices, leaving the skin intact.
Smoked Salmon sauce
Ingredients 4 portions:
- 300 gr smoked Salmon
- piece of leak
- ½ dl shredded dill
- 2 or 3 dl cream
- 2 tbs flour
- 2 tbs cooking oil
- ½ tsp salt or ½ fish bouillon
- 3 tbs lemon juice
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
Slice the leak and sauté in oil, in a saucepan. Dissolve the flour in the cream. Add the cream and salt (or fish bouillon) to the saucepan and allow it to simmer at a low heat for a few minutes.
Cut the salmon into small pieces and add it to the sauce together with the shredded dill, pepper and lemon juice. Allow to simmer for a few more minutes.
Finnish pie recipes
Apple Pie
Ingredients:
Dough:
- 125 gr butter or margarine
- 1 ½ dl sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 ½ dl flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla sugar
Filling:
- 250 gr quark (maitorahka)
- 2 dl sour cream
- 1 dl sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 5 or 6 apples
Prepare the dough. Beat the butter together with the sugar until light. Add the egg. Mix together the flour, baking powder and vanilla sugar, and stir into the dough. Line the bottom and edges of a large, greased pie tin with the dough. Place the pie tin in the fridge to cool.
Peel, core and slice the apples. Place the apples into the pastry-lined pie tin. Sprinkle with sugar.
Mix together the quark, sour cream, eggs, vanilla sugar and cinnamon and pour over the apples. Bake the pie at 200 degrees Celsius for approximately 30 minutes.
Blueberry Pie
Ingredients:
Dough:
- 5 dl milk
- 2 dl sugar
- 50 g yeast
- 200 g butter or margarine
- approximately 1 kg flour
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbs ground cardamom
Filling:
- 1 liter blueberries
- 1 ½ dl sugar
- 3 tbs potato starch
Dissolve the yeast into lukewarm milk in a mixing bowl. Add the sugar, salt, cardamom and egg and stir ingredients together. Add half of the flour and knead into a soft dough. Mix the soft margarine or butter into the dough and add as much of the remaining flour as is needed. The dough is ready when it no longer sticks to the bowl or to your fingers. Cover the mixing bowl with a kitchen towel and prove in a warm place for approximately 30 minutes.
Pour the dough onto a floured baking board, knead and roll out with a rolling pin into a thin sheet (slightly bigger than a baking tray). Place the sheet onto a baking tray covered with a greaseproof paper. Trim the edges. (From the extra dough you can form crosswise strips to decorate the top of the pie). Prove for 30 minutes.
Mix together the blueberries, sugar and potato starch in a mixing bowl and pour the mixture onto the sheet. Raise the edges. Decorate the top of the pie with crosswise stripes. Brush the dough with a beaten egg. Bake the blueberry pie at 175 - 200 degrees Celsius for approximately 30 minutes, until the crust is golden brown.
Salmon Pie
Ingredients:
500 gr puff pastry (voitaikina)
Filling:
- 500 gr sliced salmon fillet (without bones)
- 1 dl short-grain rice
- 4 dl water
- salt
- 4 boiled eggs
- ½ dl cream
- 1 dl shredded dill
- ½ tsp ground white pepper
Glazing:
- 1 egg
Prepare the rice. Add 1 dl short-grain rice to 4 dl salted boiling water and allow to simmer at a low heat for approximately 30 minutes. Set aside to cool.
Boil the eggs in water for at least 8 minutes. Rinse the boiled eggs under cold water and remove the shell from them. Mash the eggs finely with a fork, in a mixing bowl. Add the boiled rice, cream, shredded dill and white pepper, and stir well.
Thaw the pastry sheet at room temperature. With a rolling pin, roll the pastry into a thin rectangular sheet, on a floured baking board. Place the sheet onto greaseproof paper.
Spread the rice-egg mixture over one half of the sheet, and place the salmon slices over the mixture. Turn the other half over, and close the seam well, using a fork. Brush the pie with beaten egg and with a fork, poke holes on the surface. Bake at 200 degrees Celsius, on the bottom rack of the oven, for approximately 30 – 40 minutes.
Finnish pastry recipes
Butter buns (Voisilmäpulla)
Ingredients:
Dough:
- 5 dl milk
- 50 gr yeast (one packet)
- 1 ½ or 2 dl sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 egg
- 150 or 200 gr margarine or butter
- 14 or 15 dl flour (about 1 kg)
Topping:
- butter
- sugar
- 1 egg
Dissolve yeast into lukewarm milk in a mixing bowl. Add sugar, salt, cardamom and egg and mix ingredients together. Add half of the flour and stir into a soft dough. Mix soft margarine or butter into the dough and add as much from the rest of the flour as is needed. The dough is ready when it no longer sticks to the bowl or to your fingers. Cover the mixing bowl with a kitchen towel and leave the dough to rise in a warm place for approximately 30 minutes.
Pour the dough onto a floured baking board, knead and cut it into 20 pieces. Roll pieces into buns and place on baking trays, which are covered with greaseproof paper. Leave the buns to rise for 30 minutes.
Brush the buns with beaten egg. Press the centers of the buns lightly with your thumb to form a hole. Fill the holes with ½ tsp of butter and ½ tsp of sugar.
Bake the buns at 225 degrees Celsius, on the middle rack of the oven, for 10 – 15 minutes, until golden brown. Set aside to cool, and cover the buns on the baking trays with kitchen towels.
Buttermilk Cake
Ingredients:
- 3 dl buttermilk
- 2 dl melted butter
- 2 dl sugar
- 1 dl dark syrup
- 6 dl flour
- 1 ½ tsp ground clove
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 2 tsp cardamom
(Cinnamon)
- 1 ½ tsp baking soda
Melt the butter in a saucepan and then pour into a mixing bowl. Add buttermilk, sugar and syrup and stir together. Mix together the flour, soda and seasonings and add to the mixing bowl. Stir into a smooth batter.
Butter a ring cake tin and sprinkle it with breadcrumbs. Spoon the batter into the cake tin and bake at 175 degrees Celsius for approximately one hour (until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean).
Turn the cake onto a serving dish and set aside to cool. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.
Cinnamon Buns
Ingredients:
Dough:
- 5 dl milk
- 50 gr yeast (one packet)
- 1 ½ or 2 dl sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 egg
- 150 or 200 gr margarine or butter
- 14 or 15 dl flour (about 1 kg)
Filling:
- butter
- cinnamon
- sugar
Topping:
- 1 egg
- coarse sugar
Dissolve yeast into lukewarm milk in a mixing bowl. Add sugar, salt, cardamom and egg and mix ingredients together. Add half of the flour and stir into a soft dough. Mix soft margarine or butter into the dough and add as much from the rest of the flour as is needed. The dough is ready when it no longer sticks to the bowl or to your fingers. Cover the mixing bowl with a kitchen towel and leave the dough to rise in a warm place for approximately 30 minutes.
Pour the dough onto a floured baking board, knead for a while and then halve the dough. Roll out one part of the dough into a rectangular sheet (approximately 1 cm thick), with a rolling pin. Spread soft butter onto the sheet, and then sprinkle plenty of sugar and cinnamon on top of it. Roll the sheet up tightly, starting from the longer side.
Cut the bar into even, triangular pieces. Turn the pieces upwards and press down the centers of the buns with your finger, so that the cut edges bulge out on both sides.
Repeat the process with the other half of the dough.
Place the buns onto baking trays covered with greaseproof paper and prove for 30 minutes. Afterwards brush the buns with beaten egg and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
Bake at 225 degrees Celsius, on the middle rack of the oven, for approximately 10 – 15 minutes, until golden brown. Set aside to cool, and cover the baking trays with kitchen towels.
