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Type | Savoury pie |
---|---|
Place of origin | Finland |
Region or state | Northern Savonia |
Main ingredients | Bread (rye flour), fish (usually vendace, European perch, or salmon) |
Kalakukko is a traditional Finnish dish from the region of Savonia made from fish (e.g., perch, vendace, loach, smelt, or salmon) baked inside a loaf of bread. Kalakukko is especially popular in Kuopio, capital city of the Northern Savonia region. Kuopio is home to many kalakukko bakeries. The city also hosts an annual kalakukko baking contest. [1]
Traditionally, kalakukko is prepared with rye flour (like ruisleipä ), although wheat is often added to make the dough more pliable. The filling consists of fish, pork and bacon, and is seasoned with salt (unless the pork is already salted). After being baked for several hours, traditionally in a masonry oven, kalakukko looks much like a large loaf of rye bread. If prepared correctly, bones of the fish soften and the meat and fish juices cook thoroughly inside the bread. This results in a moist filling.
Traditionally, the fish used in kalakukko is either vendace (Finnish : muikku), or European perch (Finnish : ahven). Sometimes salmon is used. In southern Savonia the vendace is advocated as the only fish for the true kalakukko whereas in the northern parts of the province the same is said about the perch. Instead of fish, combinations of potato and pork or rutabaga and pork are also used. The appropriate drink to accompany kalakukko is buttermilk or piimä .
Kalakukko will keep for a long time when unopened. It used to be a practical lunch for workers away from home.
Kalakukko can be reheated in an oven. It takes about one hour in 130 °C (266 °F) if the size of the kalakukko is about 1 kilogram (2.2 lb). It can also be eaten cold. The usual way to eat kalakukko is to open the top with a sharp knife, eat the top with butter, and then slice some of the bread making the hole on the top larger and eat it with the filling.
Some Finnish speakers today find the name kalakukko somewhat amusing, as kala is Finnish for "fish" and kukko is "rooster", leading to the often used but non-morphological translation, "fish cock". Previous theories suggested that the archaic form of kukko is derived from the same root as kukkaro (purse). Kukko also might come from a Finnish word of kukkula, hill, because the dish is elevated. However, in 2008 new research demonstrated that kukko is a loan from Low German and shares the same origin as modern German küchen (to cook) and English cake. [2]
Kalakukko obtained Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG) status in Europe in 2002. [3]
Hanna Partanen's (1891–1969) kalakukko bakery in Kuopio, Northern Savonia was Finland's most famous kalakukko bakery at its time. Famous guests have included American presidents and Soviet leaders along with President of Finland Urho Kekkonen. The bakery still bakes kalakukko by hand from Finnish materials in the same central location at Kasarmikatu 15 in Kuopio. The bakery is currently run by Hanna's grandson Lauri Partanen and employs 10 to 20 people depending on the season. [4]
Finnish cuisine is notable for generally combining traditional country fare and haute cuisine with contemporary continental-style cooking. Fish and meat play a prominent role in traditional Finnish dishes in some parts of the country, while the dishes elsewhere have traditionally included various vegetables and mushrooms. Evacuees from Karelia contributed to foods in other parts of Finland in the aftermath of the Continuation War.
Meatloaf is a dish of ground meat that has been combined with other ingredients and formed into the shape of a loaf, then baked or smoked. The final shape is either hand-formed on a baking tray, or pan-formed by cooking it in a loaf pan. It is usually made with ground beef, although ground lamb, pork, veal, venison, poultry, and seafood are also used, sometimes in combination. Vegetarian adaptations of meatloaf may use imitation meat or pulses.
North Savo is a region in eastern Finland. It borders the regions of South Savo, Central Finland, North Ostrobothnia, Kainuu, and North Karelia. Kuopio is the largest city in the region and Lake Kallavesi is the largest lake in the region.
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A loaf is a (usually) rounded or oblong quantity of food, typically and originally of bread. It is common to bake bread in a rectangular bread pan or loaf pan because some kinds of bread dough tend to collapse and spread out during the cooking process if not constrained; the shape of less viscous doughs can be maintained with a bread pan whose sides are higher than the uncooked dough. More viscous doughs can be hand-molded into the desired loaf shape and cooked on a flat oven tray.
Siopao, is a Philippine steamed bun with various fillings. It is the indigenized version of the Fujianese baozi, introduced to the Philippines by Hokkien immigrants during the Spanish colonial period. It is a popular snack in the Philippines and is commonly sold by bakeries and restaurants.
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Ruisreikäleipä is a kind of Finnish bread, a flat rye flour loaf with a hole in the middle. It is sometimes referred to as reikäleipä, shorter term without ruis (rye) which applies also to the oat loaf with a hole.
Bread is a staple food throughout Europe. Throughout the 20th century, there was a huge increase in global production, mainly due to a rise in available, developed land throughout Europe, North America and Africa.
A babka is a sweet braided bread which originated in the Jewish communities of Poland and Ukraine. It is popular in Israel and in the Jewish diaspora. It is prepared with a yeast-leavened dough that is rolled out and spread with a filling such as chocolate, cinnamon, fruit, or cheese, then rolled up and braided before baking.
Kainuu people are Eastern Finnish inhabitants of the Kainuu region.