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Like with all cuisines from countries with northern climates, what we eat changes with the seasons. Spring, summer, autumn, and winter all have their own characteristic tastes and this holds true for Danish smørrebrød.

For instance, some smørrebrød, like shrimp, are at their best in the spring. This is when the tiny shrimp are harvested. Tomatoes and chives are perfect in the summer when fruit and vegetables are plentiful and ripe. In the winter, I like something that provides warmth and comfort while whisking away the bone-chilling feeling that pervades our frigid nights. This week's blog post is dedicated to one such smørrebrød, a succulent and savoury meat treat that is perfect in the colder, dark months or winter. It is a true Danish comfort food made simply from roast beef, fried onions, sliced pickles and grated horseradish heaped high on buttered Danish rye bread.

A hyggelig cafe in Copenhagen. Where is it?

Speaking of comfort food, I should probably use this opportunity to introduce everybody to a very Danish concept called HYGGELIG (pronounced with great difficulty as something like hu-ger-li). This little word is used all the time in converesation by Danes and is often cited by foreigners as "the word" that can most quintessentially sum up the totality of Danish psyche - the never-ending pursuit of hyggelig. So what does it mean? Well, unfortunately it doesn't really translate to a single English word, but perhaps words like Cozy or Snug come close to capturing the meaning of hyggelig. For me, it simply means that something is enjoyable, pleasant, happy, fun, and cozy all at the same time. It is an adjective that can be applied to many nouns, but I find it is used most often by Danes to describe parties, dinners, homes, and other places where one has enjoyed themselves a great deal. So, with this concept in mind, I find that eating smørrebrød together with friends and family can be a very hyggelig thing.

Hyggelig homes near Roskilde. Where is it?

So, getting back to the subject of this week's post - roast beef. Yum!  In my opinion, what makes this smørrebrød so good is that the combination of ingredients are just so perfectly together, certainly in terms of the savory, tart and spicy flavours, but also in terms of the different textural components - tender beef, chewy rye bread, crunchy pickles and the silky smoothness of carmelized onions.

Sliced flank steak

Building the Open-faced Sandwich 

In terms of preparing the smørrebrød, there is not much to do. Of course, roast beef is the basis for this sandwich, so you want to make sure you have excellent meat. Roasting in the oven is an option, but I prefer to simply fry a thick flank steak until it is done to medium-rare (you know the steak is cooked when a meat thermometer inserted into the middle of the steak reaches a temperature of about 145 F). Once cooked, allow the meat to cool for about 15 minutes and then slice as thinly as you can. Place the slices of beef on a slice of buttered rye bread.

Place the following garnishes atop the sliced steak and you're ready to go: 3-4 rings of fried onion, 1 sliced dill pickle, 1 tablespoon of freshly grated horseradish (prepared horseradish will also work), and optionally a sprinkling of chopped chives.

The Danish Degree of Difficulty for this smørrebrød is Brigitte Nielsen Easy as no special ingredients are needed other than the Danish rye bread (recipe here) and Brigitte Nielsen probably loves to make it (I'm not suggesting she is easy). For those of you who were not alive in the 1980s, Brigitte Nielsen is a fantastisk Danish actress best known for her dramatic roles in great films such as Rocky IV and Red Sonja.

Brigitte Nielsen Shopping for Horseradish

If there is one ingredient that may pose problems for North American shoppers it's fresh horseradish. Horseradish is a perennial plant of the brassica family (like broccoli and mustard). The amazingly phallic-looking horseradish root has no aroma, however when grated, enzymes in the damaged root produce a compound called allyl isothiocyanate that can irritate the nose and eyes. This is what gives horseradish its punch. (You can read lots more about amazing horseradish at Wikipedia). If you can't find fresh horseradish, use the prepared variety instead. Personally, I think it works great here, too.

By the way, if you don't believe me about the phallic appearance of horseradish, check out the pics at the following blog.

Ida Davidsen's in Copenhagen

If you want to experience a wonderful roast beef open-faced sandwich in the most traditional of Danish sandwich establishments, you have to visit Ida Davidsen's Restaurant on Store Kongensgade in Copenhagen. The reference in smørrebrød for generations (since around the 1880s), this restaurant touts a list of sandwiches at least 250 long. While smorrebrod is an everyday food in Denmark, at Ida Davidsen's the presentation and ingredients are decidedly more fancy. Her philosophy on the presentation is very interesting - when it comes to smorrebrod in a restaurant, the rye bread must always be completely covered by the pålaeg (toppings). If you can see the bread, it's cheap - like something you would eat in the woods or when on a picnic with your hands - not something dignified that must be eaten with fork and knife! I confess that occasionally my bread is visible - which is something I'll have to work on - but Ida Davidsen's family have had five generations to perfect their art, so please don't judge me too harshly.

So delicious even with visible bread