Greenlandic Cuisine

Greenlandic cuisine is the hardy, resourceful food of the Arctic, drawn almost entirely from the land and the icy sea, reflecting a culture of hunting and fishing in a place where little can be grown. Traditional dishes centre on what the environment provides: fresh fish, cold-water shrimp and Greenland halibut, reindeer and musk ox from the tundra, and seal, the historic mainstay. The classic national dish is suaasat, a warming soup of seal, whale or seabird with rice and onion. Today, a wave of New Nordic chefs is elevating these wild Arctic ingredients into refined modern cuisine.

What you actually see

• Suaasat - the warming traditional soup of seal or whale.
• The seafood - the fresh halibut, cod and cold-water shrimp.
• Reindeer and musk ox - the game of the tundra.
• New Nordic cuisine - the modern take on wild Arctic ingredients.

When to go

Year-round; Nuuk in particular has a growing food scene, with restaurants showcasing wild Greenlandic ingredients in both traditional and modern New Nordic styles, and local markets sell the day's catch and game. Sampling musk ox, reindeer and fresh Arctic seafood is a highlight of any visit.

Honest expectations

Traditional Greenlandic food includes seal and whale, part of a sustainable subsistence hunting culture, which some international visitors may find uncomfortable and should approach with cultural understanding; such foods are eaten out of tradition and necessity, not novelty. Fresh produce is scarce and imported food expensive. For those open to it, though, the superb fresh seafood, wild game and inventive New Nordic cooking make Greenlandic cuisine a genuine and memorable discovery.

Nearby

Nuuk's restaurants and every town's markets are the places to eat.