Grillimakkara sausage over an open fire

Grillimakkara - The Grilled Sausage that's part of Finnish cultural heritage

Sausage can be viewed as part of Finnish cultural heritage, as culinary culture is close to people’s identity and roots.

Food and flavours are all part of our memories. Take the classic thick grilled sausage that we eat with mustard, for instance. But there’s also “karjalanpiirakka” (Finnish rice pies). Memories of years gone by, our memories of our childhoods – they can fade over time. But memories of smells and flavours often stay with us for a lifetime. The scents and flavours of summer. The smell of grilled sausage intermingled with the scent of a wood-fired sauna, the taste of Karelian rice pies and egg butter early in the morning. Smoked fish in the late evenings, with memories of fishing trips, wellies and life jackets. 

Most Finnish midsummer traditions can be enjoyed here in Sweden. The midsummer bonfire, if you have your own little piece of shoreline to use. You can enjoy a sauna if you know where to look – and of course, if you have your own sauna then you’re all set. But if not, food and drink are the easiest things to organize.

Midsummer Sausage

A thick, juicy sausage with a crispy skin, enjoyed with just mustard. But you don’t want a roll with it – just wind some kitchen paper round it so that you don’t burn your fingers. Sausage in one hand, a tube of mustard in the other – then just apply a dollop of mustard to your sausage with every bite. And not forgetting an ice-cold beer or a nice cocktail with ice. 

This sausage is the perfect complement to midsummer. A sauna evening with the summer’s first outing for your bundle of birch twigs. A fabulous long sauna session with the scent of birch makes most tummies rumble. And of course, the only answer to that is to head for the barbecue and enjoy some Finnish sausage. 

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