Danish Food: 11 Traditional Dishes to Try in Denmark

Danish cooking manages something few cuisines pull off at once. It has farmhouse recipes inherited from centuries of long winters, and it also has one of the most advanced restaurant scenes in Europe, with Copenhagen leading the way. Both sides are worth your attention, and they turn up on the same street more often than you’d expect.

So what is the typical food of Denmark? Smørrebrød, a kind of open sandwich on rye bread, is the country’s most international dish. Behind it come stegt flæsk, the crisp pork belly voted national dish, and Danish pastries like wienerbrød. Then there’s Danish beer, with Carlsberg as the name everyone knows.

1. Smørrebrød

Smørrebrød is without question the Danish dish most recognizable beyond the country’s borders. It’s a slice of dark, dense rye bread topped with ingredients like pickled herring, remoulade, or roast beef with crispy onion. It’s always served open-faced, with no second slice on top.

The tradition of preserving fish and meat on bread goes back to the Viking era, when it was central to getting through winter. Thanks to the historical ties across the region, the dish has a Norwegian version too, smørbrød, and a Swedish one, smörgås.

2. Stegt Flæsk

Stegt flæsk is the official national dish of Denmark, and it holds that title because the public voted for it. The Danish Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries ran a nationwide poll in 2014, and this is what won.

The dish is crisp pork belly served with boiled potatoes and a rich parsley sauce. Its origins lie in 19th-century farm kitchens, when using every part of the pig wasn’t optional.

You’ll find it in any kro, the traditional Danish inns scattered across the country. Plenty of Copenhagen restaurants serve it too, often in more modern interpretations of the original recipe.

3. Frikadeller

Frikadeller are the definitive Danish meatball, made from a mix of pork and veal and seasoned with nutmeg and onion. They’ve been a regular fixture since the 18th century, and some historians point to German immigrants as the influence behind the Danish version. If you thought meatballs were a Swedish thing, this is the correction.

They turn up constantly at Christmas dinners and family gatherings, usually served with a sharp redcurrant sauce that cuts against the spiced meat.

4. Fiskefrikadeller

These fish cakes, usually made with cod or plaice, came out of Danish fishing communities as a way of preserving the catch before refrigeration existed. They’re still hugely popular, normally served with a fresh salad and remoulade, a sauce of mayonnaise and white mustard.

The seafood stalls along the Nyhavn waterfront in Copenhagen are a good place to try them. They tend to serve them freshly made, with a cold Danish beer alongside.

5. Flæskesteg

Flæskesteg, roast pork with the skin turned into golden crackling, is another centerpiece of Danish Christmas dinners. It’s seasoned with bay leaves and cloves and served with caramelized potatoes and a dark meat gravy. It’s a substantial plate of food with a lot of flavor.

Consumption spikes in December, but you’ll find it year-round in traditional restaurants in Copenhagen and other cities like Odense, birthplace of Hans Christian Andersen.

6. Pølser

Pølser is the Danish take on the hot dog, built around a sausage of an intense red color served in a soft roll with mustard, ketchup, remoulade, and crispy onion. It caught on in the early 20th century, inspired by German sausages, and today it’s sold from the distinctive pølsevogn, the hot dog carts you’ll spot in all the country’s major cities.

You can also order it without the roll, which is common among people who’d rather the toppings and the sausage do the talking.

7. Wienerbrød

Despite a name that literally means Vienna bread, wienerbrød is now thoroughly Danish. It’s a pastry of thin buttery layers filled with custard, jam, or almond paste. The recipe arrived in the 19th century when Austrian bakers came to the country during a local labor strike. The ingredients shifted a little to suit Danish tastes, and that’s the version that survives today.

8. Kanelsnegl

The kanelsnegl, Denmark’s cinnamon roll, differs from the Swedish version by being flatter and generously filled with cinnamon and butter. It’s a breakfast classic and one of the clearest expressions of hygge, the Danish idea of comfort and wellbeing that has traveled so widely in recent years.

It’s best straight out of the oven, still warm, with a coffee in any local bakery in the morning. Hard to walk past.

9. Rødgrød Med Fløde

This dessert of cooked red berries served with pouring cream is a favorite of the Danish summer, when fresh berries are everywhere in farming areas like the island of Samsø. Its name is also a classic tongue twister that Danes use to test any foreigner brave enough to attempt it.

It’s served cold, almost always to close out a light summer meal, and its texture somewhere between soup and compote surprises most people the first time.

10. Koldskål

Koldskål is a cold soup of buttermilk, egg, vanilla, and lemon, a Danish summer staple since the 19th century. It’s served with kammerjunkere, crisp little biscuits crumbled over the top just before eating, and sometimes with fresh berries or a splash of elderflower cordial.

It’s the ideal way to cool down on the warmest days of a Danish summer, which are rarely as stifling as southern Europe but still make a cold dessert welcome.

11. Æbleskiver

These small balls of fluffy batter, somewhere between a doughnut and a pancake, are the definitive Christmas sweet in Denmark. They’re cooked in a special pan with hemispherical molds and served hot, dusted with powdered sugar and served with jam.

Consumption is concentrated in December, and Copenhagen’s Christmas markets are the place to find them freshly made, usually alongside a glass of gløgg, the hot spiced wine of the season.

What Is the Most Famous Danish Beer?

Beyond the food, Danish beer has been part of the country’s culinary identity for well over a century. Carlsberg, founded in Copenhagen in 1847, is its most international name. The original brewery site is now open to visitors, walking you through the brand’s history and how the beer is made.

You can book tickets to Home of Carlsberg in the Vesterbro neighborhood, where interactive exhibits trace the story from J.C. Jacobsen through to the Carlsberg of today. If you’d rather see the wider area first, the Carlsberg District free tour walks the neighborhood the brewery built.

Frequently Asked Questions About Danish Food

What Is the National Dish of Denmark?

Stegt flæsk, crisp pork belly with potatoes and parsley sauce, has been the official national dish of Denmark since 2014, when it was chosen by public vote from a shortlist of traditional recipes.

What Exactly Is Smørrebrød?

It’s an open sandwich on rye bread topped with ingredients like pickled fish, cold cuts, or cheese, always without a second slice on top. There are dozens of different combinations, and it’s normal to eat several kinds in one sitting.

What Do Danes Eat at Christmas?

Flæskesteg, roast pork with crackling, and frikadeller are the centerpieces of a Danish Christmas dinner, almost always served with caramelized potatoes and redcurrant sauce.

Eat your way through even half of this list and Danish food stops being a single famous sandwich. To build the rest of your trip around it, browse the full range of tours and activities in Copenhagen, or start with a free walking tour of the city to get your bearings before lunch.