Skrei Season

Skrei is Atlantic cod that has spent years feeding in the Barents Sea and returns to spawn along the northern Norwegian coast, arriving off Lofoten from January into April; the swim makes the fish lean and firm, quite different in texture from coastal cod. The fishery is the oldest continuous economic activity in Norway, the basis of the stockfish trade to Europe from the Viking age onward, and the racks along the Lofoten shores fill through the same months. The traditional plate, skrei molje, is poached cod with its liver and roe, potatoes and flatbread, eaten during the season and rarely outside it. A quality mark identifies fish caught and handled to standard.

What you actually see

• The drying racks - Lofoten shores hung with split cod through the season.
• The molje plate - poached skrei with liver, roe and potato.
• The fishing fleet - boats working the spawning grounds in winter.
• The quality mark - a label identifying properly handled skrei.

When to go

January to April, the migration season, with February and March the peak; the World Cod Fishing Championship is held at Svolvaer in March. Outside the season the fish is not available fresh.

Honest expectations

The liver and roe are the part that divides visitors, and molje is a strong plate for anyone unused to offal. Winter in Lofoten is dark, wet and windy, and fishing trips are cancelled frequently. Fresh skrei is genuinely seasonal and absent the rest of the year.

Nearby

Svolvaer, Henningsvaer and the Lofoten fishing villages are the centre of the season.