Focus On: The New Nordic Diet
When I first heard of the Nordic Diet, I couldn’t help but think of the Maelstrom ride in Norway at Epcot. It has trolls and scares the life out of me. But that doesn’t say much because we all know I’m a huge chicken.
Never been on it? Here ya go:
Random side note: does anyone else love to YouTube amusement park rides? It confirmed that I will never, ever go on the Jurassic Park ride.. and also made me even more excited to go on Harry Potter. Moving along…
About a year ago, I read a blip in US Weekly (substance reading, my friends) about how Nordic cuisine (flavors and eating strategies from native Norway, Finland, Sweden and Denmark) was becoming a trendy staple in LA restaurants. Appetizers featuring thinly-sliced beets, yogurt sauce, cucumber and fresh salmon, desserts of fresh berries, and an emphasis on vinegars and honey. Immediately I was intrigued, as these are all foods that I love. I went to Barnes and Noble to see what it was all about.
It actually inspired my favorite Carrot, Bean, Beet burgers:
The staples of the Nordic Diet:
-Fruits and berries (particularly local berries, such as cloudberries, cowberries and blueberries)
(source)
-Local fish (salmon, herring, cod)
-Nuts
-Legumes
-Leafy greens (especially kale and cabbage)
-Raw, seasonal veggies
-Game meat (elk and lamb)
-Nordic grains (oats, barley, rye)
(source)
Meal and flavoring strategies:
-Instead of focusing on fat to add flavor, sweetness and natural taste of the food is emphasized. Instead of using a large drizzle of olive oil, you’ll use a larger amount of vinegar and a small amount of oil. Honey, yogurt and citrus are also commonly used to flavor foods, along with herbs.
-Add condiments on the side, but not the kind we’re more familiar with (ketchup, mustard, mayo, HOT SAUCE). Thinly sliced beets, gherkins and rhubarb are interesting complements that be served along with the meal.
-Have small plates of different dishes, to create variety and prevent palate boredom. Instead of one large plate with a hefty serving of the main course, try to have little bits of different (mostly veggie) dishes. Moderation is key, but the emphasis is on bold, fresh flavors.
-Cooking the food at home. Half of the enjoyment of a meal is the act of preparing it, and taking 30 minutes to an hour to prepare the food can help make it part of your lifestyle. This can lead to a healthier attitude towards food, instead of the “grab and go” mentality.
While it’s just now gaining popularity in the United States, this style of eating has obviously been a way of life in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark for hundreds of years. Another concept that’s newer to us and ancient to them? The importance of locally-sourced products, sustainable fishing and farming habits. The principles of ethics, simplicity and sustainability are deeply ingrained in their culture. According to the author, there is historical evidence that our species thrived on the food that was locally available to them and in season, instead of packaged, processed food that was shipped to the grocery store. It’s just a matter of being creative with what you have access to in your region.
According to fairly recent studies, as far as health benefits go, the Nordic diet can be a fantastic alternative to the Mediterranean diet. Participants in the 26-week study either focused on Nordic staples, or portion-controlled plans of so-called standard foods (like spaghetti), and the Nordic diet participants lost twice as much weight.
Some Nordic Diet-friendly recipes:
Broiled salmon with citrus yogurt sauce
8 Nordic recipes (the fish cakes and spring salad sound amazing)
Any faves to add?
Have you heard of the Nordic diet? Is this something you’d be interested in? I think the principles behind it are fantastic, and can definitely recommend the book to anyone who is looking to clean up their eats.
Speaking of clean eats, don’t forget to check in and leave a comment with your workout (steady state today!) and eats. Lots of water, fruits and veggies 🙂
Have a great day!
xoxo
Gina
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I have not heard of the “Nordic Diet” before this post but I’m certainly glad I have now! I love the foods it emphasizes (especially salmon) and the lifestyle, too. Thanks for sharing!
I’ve never heard of this diet before. It sounds interesting – enough to research a little more. I’d be interested to know if anyone has used it and if they were successful!
It sounds great. Basically getting back to whole foods and focusing on what is local in your area – can’t be a bad thing! I also love pickles/condiments like that. I’m half Indian, and when serving a meal, you’d be bonkers if you didn’t serve it with several different chutneys and pickles. They make the dish!
Thanks for this review!
I recently spend 10 days in Denmark. While the principles of the diet you listed are true, almost every dish was served with cheese, butter or remoulade. The dishes were pretty rich! And I didn’t notice many legumes or green vegetables on the menu at all. The focus on seafood was amazing though.
So while the Nordic Diet sounds like an ideal plan, it doesn’t really correlate with the eating habits that I observed in Denmark. Having said that, I had some amazing meals and really appreciated their eating style… not enough vegetables for me but their attention to detail and use of local, organic ingredients was great.
Never heard of that. There seems to be a new diet weekly, at least this one sounds better suited to health than, say, the dukan diet or atkins (not knocking them, but being an MD that learns as much as possible regarding nutrition due to lack of training in most med schools, they aren’t the best way to go to be optimally healthy).
I love beets, but only in juices. Can’t stand them cooked or raw alone. They are amazing for health, though.
Interesting review! It definitely makes us want to research this more, though we do like the idea of eating locally and adding punches of flavour to our meals. Thanks for the review!
Sounds like a sensible diet…i’m not big on meats except chicken, turkey, and fish–occasionally a steak or burger gets thrown in there though! This is one thing I need to work on is expanding my range of food choices…though almond butter was a stretch for me and now I love it.
I was going to hit the pavement early this AM before the heat set in but, I opted for more sleep! My cardio will be a mix of the treadmill and elliptical this afternoon! I love having a plan and now I’m about to go print off all the other shape ups to get me going for a while
I HAVE heard of this! And, I <3 Maelstrom… it's my favorite Epcot ride 🙂 My diet is basically a gluten-free Nordic diet without the game meat. We're planning on vacationing to Norway in 2014!! Supes excited!
Hi
I will like to try the fish cakes! I use tahini a lot- as a spread…. on my pita cinnamon egg white wrap or over crackers, rice cakes, veggies etc. Also as a salad dressing ….so yummy with lemon or lime and cilantro!
thanks
I have heard of this diet, but never looked into it before! It sounds great! Similar to how I already eat…berries, salmon, greens, legumes, greek yogurt etc! I’ll have to check out some more Nordic recipes 🙂
I’ve never heard of this diet, so coming from Finland, I’m intrigued as to whether this will actually catch on. However, there are many points that are not true for the Nordic diet at all.
We eat a lot of berries, but it’s mostly blueberries, strawberries and raspberries, although you can find cloudberries and such quite easily. Salmon, yes. Nuts and legumes, well, I don’t think we those eat any more than any other nation. Cabbage is quite common, but although I live in the capital, I can never find kale anywhere. Game meat is pretty much a luxury. Oats and rye belong to every household, barley is more rare. I have pretty much never heard of beets, gherkins and rhubarb as condiments and using vinegar, honey and citrus for flavoring sounds quite foreign as well.
What was forgotten was the fact that milk is drunk at every single meal here, consumption of cheese, yogurt and ice cream is huge and we’re the biggest coffee drinkers in the world. Maybe these are more traditional elements but today, this diet simply does not reflect Finland and I would like to consider myself pretty knowledge on the food here. 🙂
Just wanted to chime in here – I just read an article on this diet, and they were saying that it’s not necessarily based on the “modern” Nordic diet, which they say does have a heavier emphasis on dairy and pastry, but rather on a more “ancient” version of the diet, focusing on foraged foods.
Yeah, for some reason I couldn’t open Gina’s links at first but now that I could I saw that they only talk about Denmark (didn’t see the other countries mentioned anywhere), and I also think that they kinda just invented a “diet” and named it Nordic. In no way is this representative of what most of the people here (or in Denmark) eat today. 🙂
that’s really interesting- thank you so much for chiming in, as i have no way to compare what the book says and what the eating styles are actually like. i just wanted to focus on what’s being publicized and the book details, since many people may see “nordic-inspired” dishes popping up everywhere.
so cool to hear what true nordic eating entails 🙂
xoxo
The closest I’ve come to eating “nordic” was buying a jar of fresh gooseberry jam at the farmer’s market! On the workout front, I went for a 36 minute run this morning – at 5:45am! I’m inspired with your summer shape up plan and and *trying to mix it up more. I’m SUCH a cardio junkie…I wish I had a personal trainer come to my apartment every other day for a bootcamp. Getting into a strength program is really really hard and it’s difficult to know how/where to start.
As a mostly dairy-free vegetarian, this diet doesn’t really speak to me, but on the whole it sounds healthy. I don’t think I could do without hot sauce, however!
I’m a week behind, but I did Workout 1 this morning and will do the HIIT after work. Breakfast was tofu scramble in corn tortillas with cherries. I’m excited about my eats for the rest of the day, too!
Check in: I spent my first morning with a legit stress fracture doing things like punches and no impact jumping jacks (obvi that means no jumping) and managed to keep my heart rate at a 150 average for the 50 minutes. I used the timer and hrm on my treadmill and kept an eye on it that way. BTW- working out with a boot sucks! And it’s sweaty and makes my leg itch 🙁 But I know that if I didn’t do ANYTHING I’d be a REAL cranky pants…so it’s good that I broke a sweat;)
:(! i’m proud of you for still safely getting in a good workout!
Never heard of it but sounds good! About condiments, in Switzerland we’re not really into ketchup, mayo, hot sauce etc… as in America and i think it’s great because (except ketchup sometimes) i just don’t like it (maybe it’s only because i’ve never tasted THE hot sauce you eat all the time ;))!
I just finished workout: i did 35 minutes on my bike in front of the Tv (makes it more fun i think ;)) xxx
Ironically, I had the best mayo of my life from a grocery store in Murren. It was Thomy with horseradish. But maybe they just stock lots of mayo since they get some many tourists during ski season. 🙂
Maybe 😉 but maybe i just don’t buy the good mayo…
Let me just confirm that the Jurassic Park ride is the worst thing ever created on Earth! Never go on it. Ever! The one and only time I rode it, I was 19 and I was screaming louder than the little kid in front of me. That was 12 years ago and the thought of it still freaks me out! Who knew you could You Tube rides?! Amazing!
i would have a heart attack. no joke.
I’ve heard of it before, but didn’t know details. Thanks for sharing ’em. I too love flavoring food with Greek yogurt and eating lots of berries. Already had some today!! 🙂 YUMM
Interesting! I haven’t heard of it being specifically labelled ‘The Nordic Diet’ but like you mentioned, I’ve seen a couple of menu items popping up that are rather Nordic-inspired. I think it’s great that fresh veggies are emphasized, as well as whole grains (locally grown ones too!), fresh berries, and local fish. It mentions dairy, which is different from a lot of the other ‘trendy’ diets out there, but cool to see that not all cultures consider it something that should go by the wayside after breastfeeding years!
When did you go to Norway? That ride reminds me of Pirates of the Carribean. I got up and ran at 5:30 this morning and now I’m headed to Zumba. 🙂
the only norway i’ve been to is at epcot center in orlando 😉
have fun at zumba!
I had never heard of this diet but have definitely noticed a growing popularity in some of the foods you listed in local restaurants. Beets especially have been a huge salad fixture in restaurants over the last couple of years. I’ve also noticed a huge growth in yogurt (especially Greek) in the last few years. Even though I’ve been eating it since I was a kid, I don’t remember seeing it all over the place like I have recently. I’m all for some of these items being included but don’t do well following set diets!
This diet is very close to what I already eat (except the exotic berries). I looooooove vinegar or fermented foods! They have so much more complex flavors that just plain sweet or salty dishes.
As for the word “diet,” can you please do a post (or another post, in case it was before some of us started reading the blog) explaining that a diet is a style of eating, not a short-term change in eating patterns to lose weight? Not every “diet” exists to help shed the pounds, but to maintain a lack of disease. “Success” should be defined not only by a smaller waist, but also greater overall health. 🙂
Did a 4 mile run this morning for SS cardio – luckily the Texas heat was a bit milder today. That diet plan definitely sounds similar to the Mediteranean eating style, just with more condiments!
I’ve never heard of this diet, but it’s interesting.. I’d have no clue where to get game meat in the middle of D.C. where I live though haha.
HAHAHA The Norway ride at Epcot is actually one of my families favourite rides! “Back, back over the falls!!” I’m not really sure why it is but we would go on it over and over again while we waited for the fireworks to start. I’ve never attempted to do any kind of diet but the Nordic way of thinking is one that I can defintiely agree with!
My family is Norwegian (parents immigrated to Alaska) and we eat very similar to what you have described. I never thought of it as a “Nordic” diet but I guess that makes sense. Alaskan climate supports the same type of ingredients: caribou and moose game, lots of fresh fish, tons of wild blueberries in the fall and not a ton of grains (unless imported). Very cool and thanks for sharing!
Thanks for featuring the Nordic Diet! It sounds like a good read to reinforce clean eating habits and get some new ideas. I’ll be checking it out!
I am switching things up a bit this week. I was not feeling well yesterday, so I took a rest day. Today was steady state — 35 mins on the treadmill and tomorrow I will do Workout 2 + HIIT + Ab burner! Can’t wait! 🙂
I’ve heard of it, but there are so many specific diet “types” out there that I sort of tune them out and just do my best to get fruits, vegs, whole grains, lean protein, and not over-do it on the desserts (as best as possible :))
i have never ever heard of the nordic diet, although i have to say that i’m a bigger fan of that than of paleo since it doesn’t cut out complete food groups. i still say eat what you want in moderation, but focusing your diet around these principles sounds not only healthy but doable!
Just rode the Jurassic Park ride, Harry Potter, and The Revenge of the Mummy last week. Loved it all especially the Mummy, woah! This diet sounds doable; I’ve been eating salmon, veggies, and berries for three days; detoxing after vacation.
I broke up my steady state to keep things spicy.. Erg, treadmill, elliptical & stairmaster for a total of an hour!
My husband is of Finnish heritage, so we eat a lot of things on your list – fresh fish, berries, and rye bread especially. He loves rhubarb pie. We went to Finland last year and we ate a lot of those things. Although I have to say that cloudberries are an acquired taste, they are expensive, and hard to get. The neat thing about Finland is that they do a lot of berry and mushroom picking themselves. I also had some moose stew while I was there, and it was delicious!
Oh, and I should say that milk and cheese is missing from the diet. His family has a lot of milk and cheese. And, coffee!
Jamie Oliver once did a really nice show on cooking in Sweden with the local ‘nordic’ diet (the latest of his cooking show, in which he travels to Spain, Italy and other countries to cook with locals). Lots of berries, simple cakes with berries, wild mushroom, marinated herrings, etc. It was pretty cool!
Check-in: Did 30mins at 6mph run, plus finished it off with 10 mins elliptical!
Gina, the amount of strength training we are doing, is that enough to maintain good muscle mass and tone up? I’m trying to lose the last 8lbs from a 15lb weight gain this year and was told to increase my strength training. I think I’m stuck at a certain weight now beause on my non-cardio days I was doing about 45 mins of strength with Brooke Burke’s new DVD’s- which i really like and I felt great and started to see some tone, but missed the cardio. Thoughts on that? How much strength training are we talking about to build good bone density and muscle mass yet still want to lose some belly fat?
I went and did an hour long Cardio Kickboxing class at my gym, then had your fabulous breakfast cookie after. It was actually my first time making it, yum! I even sprkinkled some funfetti on top =)
Now I’m eating pineapple tofu stir-fry over a cold bean salad and coconut-ginger roasted carrots!
Hi Gina,
I have been a loyal bloglovin follower of your awesome blog – and inspirational life – for a couple of months now and well, I guess it’s time to say hello. 🙂
I’m from Denmark so why not use this post to write my first comment? (Being from a small country, it always surprises me, when someone from the big world knows about DK. So cool!)
I’m a rather normal 25-year old university student with a “thing” for workout and eating well.
What I like about your blog? Everything! The workout posts, your gorgeous family and the fact that you are so honest and “there” in your posts. Keep it going!
I agree, the berry-wild salmon-kale-rhubarb-in season-slow cook-organic-kind of food is pretty in overhere but I guess we could always get better at knowing and enjoing our nordic/locally produced food. 🙂
Have a great day!
Johanne
thank you so much for saying hi! very nice to meet you 🙂
i’m always amazed (and so excited) when readers all over the world say hello. thank you so much for reading and hope to see you around here more often <3
xoxo
g
Your very welcome! Love the fact that people from everywhere around the can get something from your blog. <3
Trust me, I read (almost) all of your posts 😀
However, I agree with Tiia that this way of eating is kind of a generalization – pastry, pork, cream and not a lot af veggies is also a very common eating style. Maybe especially in the older generations?
Johanne: I agree that many Scandinavians do not eat exactly as described in this post, but it could be mentioned that the way of eating Gina describes as “the nordic diet” (not necessarily the way northern people eat today) is certainly very trendy both in Scandinavia and the rest of Europe right now!
For instance, Noma in København (Copenhagen) is a restaurant with values very closely resembling this philosophy, and it is has topped most of the “world’s best restaurant” lists during the last few years (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/30/worlds-50-best-restaurants-2012_n_1464035.html).
In Oslo (the capital of Norway), a rather new restaurant called Maaemo has become immensely popular very quickly as well. They harvest many of their ingredients in the woods just outside the city centre, they focus on seasonal and very local foods, and present them with very “cleanly”, focusing on the taste of the main ingredients to let them really shine.
So while the average Scandinavian may not live and breathe the so-called nordic diet, I would say that the diet seems to be a mix of how Scandinavians used to eat quite a while back, and the new-ish ecological/local restaurant trend.
My biscuits are uber sore from yesterdays workout! I love it! Thank you so much for putting the summer shape up together, its been awesome so far!
I’ve never heard of the ‘Nordic diet’ before today, but I am intrigued! I will absolutely be making the lemon gremolata (grape seed oil, shallot, lemon zest almonds) and yogurt sauce (yoghurt, lemon juice, parsley) all summer long.
As a Swedish girl I found that very interesting! I never knew there was an actual diet based off of it. I was born and raised in Massachusetts so but I’ve been exposed to the way they eat from my family members and the Swedish au pairs that I had for 10 years. I dip a lot of meats in lingonberry jam, I eat rye crackers and rye bread. We do eat a lot of fish, even for New Englanders. My mom has this fish paste that she puts on her toast every morning that completely grosses my friends out haha. I’m pretty sure its just mashed up roe but its bright pink and in a tube similar to toothpaste. My grandmother serves sill pickled herring and puts anchovies in the potatoes at Christmas. It is definitely a different way of eating.
I went and did 40 minutes on the AMT today at the gym. It might just be in my head but I feel like I can see a difference in my body already, my stomach seems flatter! I’m naturally pretty skinny but this has been the kick I needed to get back into my usual shape!
Last week when you asked what we love about your blog well I forgot to mention your focus on posts about “diet”. I think one of my fav posts of your to date is still the paleo diet focus on. you trull are remarkable Gina and I love how you provide us with knowledge that you have carefully read about. i actually thought about emailing you this week to ask you what some of your favourite nutrition books are. i am going in for an RD, but would like to read something other than a textbook and i am sure you have some great suggestions
I’d never heard of the Nordic Diet before. The thing I like is how it doesn’t seem like another “fad diet” but rather simple changes to the way you prepare the foods you already eat, yes?
What a great post! i have never heard of this diet before, but it’s actually pretty close to the way i eat! i’m a vegan that eats wild caught fish and pastured, farm eggs! i’ll have to look into this more! thanks for sharing!
My husband is Swedish, so we eat ‘nordic’ food quite a bit. Meatball sandwiches are fantastic if you like Swedish meatballs. Dark bread topped with lettuce, halved meatballs and beet salad, served open faced. I love Swedish food, but plates can also often be loaded with potatoes and creamy sauces, so not all Scandinavian dishes are healthy. We’re going there this summer and I’m excited about the food already!!
I posted some Swedish recipes on my blog, if you’re interested.
Meatball Sandwich:
http://susonia.com/2011/06/funky-food-friday-swedish-meatball-sandwich-kottbullsmacka/
There’s also oven pancakes (super easy):
http://susonia.com/2012/05/swedish-thursday-split-pea-soup-oven-pancakes/
And for dessert, Kladdkaka (sticky chocolate cake) is one of my all-time favourites:
http://susonia.com/2012/02/its-chocolate-week/
I haven’t heard much about this diet but it sounds pretty great! I like that it is all clean, unprocessed foods!
Loved this Focus On post! I thought it was really interesting – and definitely sounded like your style of eats, Gina. 🙂 A lot of those foods are ones I enjoy also. Checking in: taught an a.m. Zumba class and then rocked 1 circut of Workout 2 + Ab Burner. The “T” side planks KILLED me! Holy guacamole…my arms were shaking like jelly. Then they started cursing me out with the side to side jumps!
Check In: I am a week behind but completed Steady State yesterday. I’m eating the tempeh tacos leftovers for lunch, I must say these are so tasty! I love the meal plan so far, not hungry at all 🙂 Looking forward to Work out #1 and HIIT tonight!
This morning I did a 45 minute spin class and then some arm weights. I love getting my workout in before work in the mornings! Also, I LOVE the workout tank you have on in the pictures for Summer Shape Up. Where is that from?
Very interesting! I’d never heard of the Nordic Diet. I think it just further supports what Michael Pollan says about eating traditional foods. 🙂
Checking in! I moved my HIIT and ab burner from yesterday to this morning…tomorrow is my last day of work so it has been a busy week! I tried out the interval function on my Garmin this morning and loved it! I just went running outside and sprinted for 30 seconds/walked for 1:30, repeated 10 times. Great workout. I’m leaving for the beach on Thursday and I feel better than I ever have about a bikini! (Not just summer shape up, but it’s helped :))
Checking in for today. Got in a 3 mile run/walk today.
Had to get a Tdap vaccination in my arm today, already sore, don’t know how I’ll do with any lifting the next couple days.
Wow, interesting- I haven’t heard of the “Nordic diet” before! I travel to Oslo quite a lot for business, and the staples there are definitely different to what I’m used to. There’s certainly a lot of fish, which I don’t eat- I’m sure I’m missing out! I do love their bread- it’s always really fresh and full of lots of grains and extras!