Icelandic cuisine is certainly not among the best known and most renowned in the world, quite the contrary.

Iceland is an arctic and inhospitable land, unsuitable for agriculture due to its climate. For this reason, over the centuries its inhabitants have had to adapt, feeding on what the island had to offer and inventing ingenious methods of preserving food.

Everything that was edible had to be exploited and, consequently, some typical Icelandic dishes are quite special and not easy to appreciate for those who are not used to it. If you have heard of it, it is most likely because of hakarl, the famous dish based on rotten shark as loved by Icelanders as it is hated by tourists. Yet, beyond its more extravagant and hardcore components, the gastronomy of this small island may reserve some welcome surprises.

In fact, Icelandic food is simple and genuine, characterized by a large use of fish, sheep meat, and sea birds. On the contrary, vegetables are almost non-existent in traditional dishes, due to temperatures that are too low for cultivation.

10 typical dishes not to miss in Iceland

Þorramatur

Is a selection of traditional Icelandic food, consisting mainly of meat and fish products cured in a traditional manner, cut into slices or pieces, and served with rúgbrauð (dense and dark rye bread), butter and brennivín (an Icelandic akvavit). It consists of:

• Kæstur hákarl, fermented Greenland shark.
• Súrsaðir hrútspungar, the testicles of rams pressed in blocks, boiled and cured in lactic acid.
• Svið, singed and boiled sheep heads, sometimes cured in lactic acid.
• Sviðasulta, head cheese or brawn made from svið, sometimes cured in lactic acid.
• Lifrarpylsa (liver sausage), a pudding made from liver and suet of sheep kneaded with rye flour and oats.
• Blóðmör (blood-suet; also known as slátur lit. ‘slaughter’), a type of blood pudding made from lamb’s blood and suet kneaded with rye flour and oats.
• Harðfiskur, the wind-dried fish (often cod, haddock or seawolf), served with butter.
• Rúgbrauð (rye bread), traditional Icelandic rye bread.
• Hangikjöt, (hung meat), smoked and boiled lamb or mutton, sometimes also eaten raw.
• Lundabaggi, sheep’s loins wrapped in the meat from the sides, pressed and cured in lactic acid.
• Selshreifar, seal’s flippers cured in lactic acid.

Pylsur

Hot dogs made from lamb, beef, and pork with optional accompaniments of onions, mustard, and tomato ketchup.

Ein með öllu

A pylsa (lamb hot dog) dressed in ketchup, sweet brown mustard, raw onions, fried onions, and remoulade (a sauce made with mayonnaise and relish).

Kjötsúpa

A lamb soup made with cabbage, root vegetables, and occasionally a handful of oats or rice.

Skata

Skate fish, a delicacy with a sweet taste but a strong, putrified smell, usually served with boiled potatoes and brown rye bread.

Svið

A sheep’s head cut in half, singed, de-brained, and boiled

Vínarterta

Desser consisting of thin shortbread layers that are coated with rhubarb, prune, strawberry, or apricot.

Skyr

A smooth and creamy kind of yogurt made from pasteurized skimmed milk.

Brennivin

A potent variation of aquavit made from potatoes.