Learn all about Fårikål Feast Day
Now Playing: Lesson Audio
Get this lesson’s key vocab, their translations and pronunciations. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
| Hello, and welcome to the Culture Class- Holidays in Norway Series at NorwegianClass101.com. In this series, we’re exploring the traditions behind Norwegian holidays and observances. I’m Michael, and you're listening to Season 1, Lesson 13 Fårikål Feast Day. In Norwegian, it’s called Fårikålens dag. |
| “Fårikål”, or lamb stew, Norway’s national dish, is |
| so important that Norwegians have a specific day just to celebrate it. Fårikål Day is always celebrated the last Thursday in September, and in this lesson we will discuss how Norway celebrates this day. |
| Now, before we get into more detail, do you know the answer to this question- |
| Where in Norway do you think fårikål is the most popular? |
| If you don't already know, you’ll find out a bit later. Keep listening. |
| Recipes for this lamb stew can be found in cookbooks, or kokebøker, from as early as the seventeenth century and it has been a popular dish ever since this period. In the 70s, fårikål was voted Norway’s national dish by listeners of the then popular radio show “Nitimen”. The reason fårikål is appreciated by so many people is because it is so simple to make. |
| In Norwegian, fårikål simply means “lamb in cabbage”. Cabbage, or kål, and lamb meat, or lammekjøtt, are layered in a casserole with salt and whole peppers in between the layers. After this, water is poured over the cabbage and meat, and then left to simmer for about two hours. The dish is served with Norwegians' favorite side dish, boiled potatoes, or kokte poteter. |
| Norwegians use the fårikål feast day as an opportunity to invite friends and family over for a relaxed dinner party. Fårikål is an unusual dish for regular dinners or parties, but it easily suits simple yet cozy gatherings. |
| Though all students in elementary school learn to make fårikål, the art of making this dish has disappeared over the years. A survey shows that sixty-five percent of Norway's population under thirty years old has never tried to make fårikål on their own, or cannot make it at all! |
| Now it's time to answer our quiz question- |
| Where in Norway do you think fårikål is the most popular? |
| Fårikål is mostly popular in Northern Norway. Eighty percent of all northerners eat fårikål on Fårikål Day, or sometime later in the fall. |
| So listeners, what did you think of this lesson? Did you learn anything interesting? |
| Have you ever tried fårikål? |
| Leave us your comments at NorwegianClass101.com, and we'll see you in the next lesson. |
Comments
Hide