Eat yourself happy in these countries
This week saw the release of the annual ‘happiness report’, the 2018 World Happiness Report. Last year, it inspired food magazine Food & Wine to compile a list of happiness-inducing foods in the ten happiest countries. Because it’s not only love, but also happiness, that goes through the stomach. Here’s our selection for 2018.
1. Finland
It is striking that the top ten has been dominated by the Scandinavian countries since the first report in 2012, with five of the ten spots going to them again this year. Could that be why Scandinavian, or Nordic, cuisine is so popular? Because it makes people happy? Our Finnish favorite is dark rye bread. Maybe there’s something odd about us. But the smell, the crumb, the crust, the flavor and the versatility of bread make us instantly happy. Especially when it’s rye bread. And especially dark rye bread with another lovely Finnish happiness ingredient: smoked and dried reindeer and moose.
Braised pork cheeks make us very happy too. Check out the recipe here.
2. Norway
In Norway, you see them everywhere, hanging from the façades of those typical houses or on wooden ‘clotheslines’: cod or skrei dried in the wind, known as stockfish. Tørrfisk is the country’s most important export product. They are hugely popular in Africa and Mediterranean countries such as Portugal. For example, they use them to make brandade. First, you have to soak the stiff-as-a-board fish in milk, after which there are various ways to cook it. The result is always comfort-food-like.
3. Denmark
Denmark is the motherland of Nordic cuisine, led by René Redzepi. Still, we’re going for traditional smørrebrød. The so-called ‘open-face sandwich’ made with rye bread and a generous amount of delicious toppings. Yes, indeed. Bread again. And yes, it is still far too hard to order in our country.
4. Iceland
In Iceland, they eat fermented shark, but are we really going to be happy about that? We’ll have a bowl of skyr instead, that thick, creamy yogurt-meets-cottage-cheese that pairs so well with blueberries and other berries for breakfast. Or lunch. Or, why not, dinner.
5. Switzerland
We did it just last weekend: cheese fondue. Of course, the warm creaminess of the melted Swiss cheeses, the stretchiness when you dip a piece of bread into the caquelon of melted cheese and then lift it up, and naturally the creamy, tangy flavor all contribute to the feeling of happiness. But what may make us happiest of all is the social aspect of everyone dipping pieces of bread into one pot together with friends and/or family.
6. The Netherlands
Hmm, hard to choose. Really, everything from the Netherlands is naturally deliciously happiness-inducing. From our licorice to pancakes with bacon or syrup, and aged crumbly cheese. But let’s go with fries with toppings. Food & Wine goes for the stroopwafel, after cheese the only Dutch edible product that seems to be known beyond our borders. Even though we’ve held firmly at number 6 on this list for years.
7. Canada
Canada is one of the most popular emigration destinations among the Dutch. Could it have something to do with our shared preference for fried potatoes? That’s why it makes us fries lovers all the more unhappy that the Canadian kapsalon, poutine, is still such a rarity here. And fries covered with cheese curds and plenty of gravy are such perfect festival food. Should we emigrate too?
8. New Zealand
A juicy, fresh and lively New Zealand sauvignon blanc on the terrace definitely makes you happy. And not just because of the alcohol. And as strange as it may sound, New Zealand is also the place to go for really good coffee—especially a flat white.
9. Sweden
The health benefits of the Indian spice cardamom are endless. But was that the reason Sweden decided to put it in kanellbullar (cinnamon buns)? They’re delicious in any case, and that definitely makes you happy. Just like the fact that these buns are now widely available here.
10. Australia
Australians eat around four million of them a year: Tim Tams, the layered biscuit with a cream filling and a coating of chocolate. And chocolate is known to make you happy. So it’s an obvious choice.
