MFA: The century-old Finland gets its own menu

MINISTRY FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS
http://formin.finland.fi/english

Press release 153/2016
24 August 2016

The century-old Finland gets its own menu

A special menu designed in honour of Finland’s centenary celebration will be served in the diplomatic missions of Finland during the jubilee year 2017. All of the courses feature Finland’s pristine nature and its offerings, from wild food to grain. In planning the menu, consideration has been given to our country’s long food and drink culture and to Finnish flavours.

The menu is designed by chefs Kim Palhus and Arto Rastas and was published at a lunch served by MTK, the Central Union of Agricultural Producers and Forest Owners, on 24 August 2016, in association with the Annual Meeting of Heads of Mission. It was prepared by the chefs of Finland’s diplomatic missions, who have a one-week course in Helsinki.

The Finland 100 menu has many uses

The festive menu is planned so that it can be implemented in diverse cultural environments and different countries where the availability of the ingredients may be variable, Arto Ratas says. The Finland 100 menu brings people together to share a meal and also exports the message of Finnish food and drink culture. 

The Finland 100 menu includes starters that are enjoyed with mead. The first course combines refined tastes that are both dear and well-known to Finns. The salmon of the first course is salt cured and then infused with an emulsion made from tar pastilles. The fish is served with green potato salad, dill cucumbers and beetroot purée. The ingredients of the main course are sirloin of lamb, cabbage rolls stuffed with oats and lamb sausage seasoned with pine tip powder. Dark allspice gravy completes the dish.

“The festive menu now designed is a good base that both professional chefs and home cooks can vary according to the situation and the season. The menu provides a springboard for interesting stories about food and for discussions round the table,” Kim Palhus states.

Celebrating the century-old Finland by eating together

Festivities for the centenary of Finland’s independence bring Finns together to savour good Finnish food. For a year now, MTK and the ELO Foundation for the Promotion of Finnish Food Culture have gathered actors together under the banner of the project #syödäänyhdessä, included on the Finland 100 programme. 

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs is an active participant, exporting the message of food and drink culture by means of food diplomacy. “Finnish food and drink are a fabulous export product, with much potential for our country,” says Ambassador (Finland 100) Pekka Huhtaniemi. Together we also communicate about the Finland 100 menu.

Let’s all cook!

The Finland 100 menu is easily adapted to a variety of events. The dishes can be served both in the home and at large receptions. The instruction videos on how to prepare the different courses of the menu include the recipes. Create a festive mood by preparing the Finland 100 menu at home with friends, and raise a toast to the century-old Finland! You can enjoy the delicious starters or to prepare the entire menu while at the same time learning about the soul of Finnish food.

Finland 100 menu

• Finnish titbits: Salted fillet of beef, sea buckthorn jam; Forest mushroom salad on rye crisps; Horseradish mousse and smoked vendace, rainbow trout roe; Lingonberry bun
• Tar-marinated salmon, dill cucumbers and green potato salad
• Sirloin of lamb, cabbage rolls stuffed with oats, lamb sausage and allspice gravy.
• Brita cake

Video links: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuucpJS3Ow1qmgaH4LC7PJpTRvum8yosz

Pictures of the dishes: https://www.flickr.com/photos/ulkoministerio/

Inquiries: Finland 100 menu: Kim Palhus, tel. +358 40 744 0373, kim.palhus@tarinapata.fi

Finland 100 events, food diplomacy: Ambassador Pekka Huhtaniemi, tel. +358 295 351 110, pekka.huhtaniemi@formin.fi

Finnish food: Anni-Mari Syväniemi, Ombudsman for Finnish Food Culture, MTK, tel. +358 50 511 8909, anni-mari.syvaniemi@mtk.fi