Lutefisk

Lutefisk (Norwegian) or lutfisk (Swedish) (pronounced [lʉːtfesk] in Northern and Central Norway, [lʉːtəfɪsk] in Southern Norway, [lʉːtfɪsk] in Sweden and in Finland (Finnish: lipeäkala)) is a traditional dish of some Nordic countries. It is traditionally part of the Swedish julbord.

It is made from aged stockfish (air-dried whitefish) or dried/salted whitefish (klippfisk) and lye (lut). It is gelatinous in texture. Its name literally means "lye fish".

Preparation

Lutefisk is dried whitefish (normally cod, but ling and burbot is also used) treated with lye. The first step is soaking the stockfish in cold water for five to six days (with the water changed daily). The saturated stockfish is then soaked in an unchanged solution of cold water and lye for an additional two days. The fish swells during this soaking, and its protein content decreases by more than 50 percent, producing a jelly-like consistency.

When this treatment is finished, the fish (saturated with lye) is caustic, with a pH of 11–12. To make the fish edible, a final treatment of yet another four to six days of soaking in cold water (also changed daily) is needed. Eventually, the lutefisk is ready to be cooked.

Lutefisk (band)

Lutefisk was an American alternative rock band based in Los Angeles. It was active in the 1990s as part of LA's "Silver Lake" alternative music scene, during which time it released two studio albums on Bong Load Records and recorded a third unreleased record for A&M Records.

History

Lutefisk's frontman, Don Burnet, was formerly the frontman of the band Plain Wrap during the 1980s, and led the band 3D Picnic from 1986 to 1992. Burnet had also played drums for Beck before becoming Lutefisk's guitarist. The founding of the band was related to the curing of a "premature midlife artistic crisis", faced by Burnet the age of 30. The name of the band refers to lutefisk, a dried fish dish prepared with lye of Scandinavian origin, which 'window of success' as a recipe is, according Garrison Keillor's book Pontoon rather small. According Burnet, the band's name is about playing pop songs hard to stomach.

Lutefisk released its first album, Deliver From Porcelain: Theme and Variations, in 1995 on Bong Load Custom Records. It was named the 10th best local album of the year by Mike Boehm in the Los Angeles Times. In 1996, Lutefisk performed at Lollapalooza on the indie stage.