page_title: Finnish cuisine
section_title: Berries
hierarchical_section_title: Finnish cuisine / Finnish food / Berries
caption_attribution_description: Vaccinium vitis-idaea, photo taken in Sweden.
context_page_description: 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.
  Finnish foods often use wholemeal products and berries. Milk and its derivatives like buttermilk are commonly used as food, drink or in various recipes. Various turnips were common in traditional cooking, but were replaced with the potato after its introduction in the 18th century.
context_section_description: Arctic wild berries are distinctively featured in Finnish cuisine with their strong flavor and high nutrient content. Traditionally, they were eaten fresh in summer and dried at other times of year.  It is still quite common to go picking berries straight from the forests. Wild raspberries, bilberries and lingonberries (cowberries) are found in almost every part of Finland, while cloudberries, cranberries, arctic brambles and sea buckthorns grow in more limited areas. The intensely flavored wild strawberry (metsämansikka) is a seasonal delicacy decorating cakes, served alone, with cream, or with ice cream. Farmed strawberry is also very common.
  Today, berries are no longer dried for winter consumption but usually frozen. They may be used as ingredients, or eaten on their own, for example, with porridge and sugar. Kisel (a sweet soup of berry juice and berries thickened with potato starch) is a common dessert. Homemade berry juices and jams are common, especially among older people.  While berries are most often used for desserts, they are also served with meat, especially the sour lingonberry relish.
  Bilberry kiisseli and pie, made from wild bilberries (Vaccinium myrtillus), are traditional Finnish desserts. Bilberries are frequently used in Finnish cuisine, both as an ingredient, such as bilberry pie, and also served with cream or ice cream. They are often used on top of viili and other yogurt-type dishes.
caption: Lingonberries are common throughout Finland
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