Danish Smorrebrod with Shrimp

May 19, 2012 Katja Presnal

Danish Smorrebrod with Shrimp

Swe-DISHES: Danish Smorrebrod

Swe-DISHES with Skimbaco is our new Nordic food special series focusing on bringing you recipes and culinary inspiration from Scandinavia, and my cooking adventures in Sweden. We are kicking off the series with a non-Swedish dish – with a dish Denmark is more known for – a Danish Smørrebrød. Basically Danish Smørrebrød is an open faced sandwich, and it dates to 1840s when workers would take sandwiches to work, consisting of dark rye bread and assorted toppings such as thin slices of cold cut meats, fish, cheese and homemade bread spreads and liver pate. Basically smorrebrod means buttered bread, and like your typical lunch sandwich the Danish kind also comes in several different types. While smorrebrod started as a worker’s lunch, in 1883 the famous Restaurant Nimb in the Copenhagen Tivoli put this sandwich on the menu, and rest is history as they say. Smørrebrød is now known world wide, and regardless it’s long history, it’s actually quite trendy right now. These Danish open sandwiches are easy to make and are great for entertaining, while they are a typical lunch dish, you can also make mini versions for parties. You can find small sliced bread typically in the cold cut meat section at your grocery store, perfect for mini-smorrebrods. Danish Smørrebrød open faced shrimp sandwich, smorrebrod, shrimp sandwich, party food

Danish open sandwich (smørrebrød) with shrimp

You will need: (makes one) 1 slice of bread, preferably dark rye, but any will work lettuce 1 hard boiled egg 5 oz s of cooked shrimp (frozen shrimp works just fine) Mayonnaise (or I use sour cream) dill lemon wedges salt and pepper You can also add fish like cold smoked salmon for this sandwich. Danish Smørrebrød open faced shrimp sandwich, smorrebrod, shrimp sandwich, party food Danish Smørrebrød open faced shrimp sandwich, smorrebrod, shrimp sandwich, party food 1. If you purchased fresh shrimp, peel and cook the shrimp, let cool down. I just used frozen cocktail shrimp, it works just fine. Thaw the frozen shrimp in cold water and rinse well. 2. Boil the egg. Let sit in cold water before peeling. Peel and slice. I recommend using an egg slicer. 3. Assemble the sandwich. Layer the ingredients on the slice of bread: lettuce, egg slices and shrimp. Add a dollop of of mayonnaise or sour cream and garnish with fresh dill. 4. Serve with lemon and snaps, Danish like their akvavit, but as a Finn I say vodka will work as well. Champagne or dry white wine aren’t bad companions for the Danish smorrebrod either. Danish Smørrebrød open faced shrimp sandwich, smorrebrod, shrimp sandwich, party food , , , , , ,

Katja Presnal

Katja Presnal shows how to live Nordic inspired life to the fullest and plan your dream life. Katja owns Presnal5 strategic marketing intelligence agency and wants to help marketing professionals to combine a dream career and dream life via freelance work. Katja is an award-winning marketing strategist, and a well-known speaker. Katja has lived in five different countries, and seven states in the USA. Her three children were all born in different countries within three years. When not working or jet-setting the world, Katja is at home cooking big family dinners. She has been featured in NY Times, Glamour, Redbook, Fodor's, Forbes and Woman's Day magazines among many other national and international publications and written for MTV3 and Lifetime TV networks.

Comments (7)

  1. Sue Marttila

    I was born in Stockholm, fathers parents from Copenhagen, now live in Michigan. These are foods I grew up on and love! All but Janssen’s Temptation, my mother’s favourite at Christmas.

  2. Naomi

    I’m such a huge fan of finger foods from different cultures! One of the great tragedies of my life, though, is that Bob is allergic to rye. I miss it!

    • Enjoy Life Oils

      Rye bread freezes well if you want to buy a large bag, but you are the only one eating it and never finish the entire bag before it dries out. And you can make this with any bread ;)

    • Enjoy Life Oils

      I cheat a little… most people use mayo – I like sour cream or Crème fraîche to be exact ;) And I just ate one of these today, they are so good!

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