Smørrebrød

Classic Danish Smørrebrød

The soul of Danish lunch: a slice of dense rye bread, buttered generously, topped with pickled herring, remoulade, and fresh dill. Eaten with knife and fork as the Danes do, at midday, with a cold glass of beer or aquavit.

Prep

20 min

Total

20 min

Serves

4

Difficulty

Easy

Recipe ingredients

• •400 g (14 oz) dense Danish rye bread (rugbrød), sliced about 1 cm thick; a good sourdough rye is the closest substitute outside Denmark
• •60 g (¼ cup) soft salted butter, European-style cultured butter if possible
• •200 g (7 oz) pickled herring fillets in brine, traditional Danish marinated herring, drained and cut into 2 cm pieces
• •120 g (½ cup) remoulade, Danish-style with cabbage, gherkin, and curry if available; a good quality store-bought works
• •10 g (¼ cup loosely packed) fresh dill, fronds only, plus extra for garnish
• •1 whole shallot, very finely minced, or null
• •1 tsp capers, rinsed, optional but classic
• •1 whole hard-boiled egg, boiled 9 minutes from boiling, cooled, peeled and sliced; see steps for safety
• •1 whole lemon, cut into thin wedges for serving
• •flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Steps

1. 1 Make the safety-checked base. Hard-boil the egg by lowering it into already boiling water and cooking for exactly 9 minutes; transfer to an ice bath, then peel. Cooked yolk should be fully set with no soft centre.
2. 2 Prepare the toppings. Drain the pickled herring well and pat dry on paper towels; cut each fillet on the diagonal into pieces about 2 cm long. Finely mince the shallot. Pick the dill fronds from the stems. Slice the peeled egg into 4 mm rounds.
3. 3 Butter the bread. Lay the rye slices on a board and spread the soft butter generously right to the edges (about 15 g per slice). The butter seals the bread and prevents it from going soggy under the toppings.
4. 4 Lay the first layer. Spread a generous tablespoon of remoulade across each buttered slice, smoothing it to the edges with the back of a spoon.
5. 5 Add the herring. Arrange 2 to 3 pieces of herring per slice in a neat row down the centre, slightly overlapping.
6. 6 Garnish in the traditional Danish way: scatter a few minced shallot over the herring, dot with 2 to 3 capers, lay a thin slice of hard-boiled egg alongside, and crown with a small tuft of fresh dill.
7. 7 Season carefully with a light pinch of flaky sea salt and a grind of black pepper. The herring is already salty, so taste before salting.
8. 8 Serve immediately on a cold plate (Danish tradition) with a lemon wedge on the side and extra dill. Eat with knife and fork, cutting each bite from the front edge of the bread.