Lohikeitto: Finnish salmon and potato soup

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Lohikeitto is the kind of meal we associate with a Finnish winter evening: hot soup with potatoes, leek, cream and salmon. It is straightforward and filling, and guests often ask us for the recipe.

Ingredients for four

• 400 g skinless salmon fillet
• 6 medium potatoes
• 2 carrots
• 1 leek or a small onion
• 1 litre water
• 1 fish stock cube
• 200 ml cream, or milk with a little butter
• Salt and pepper
• Fresh dill, if available

Method

1. Peel the potatoes and carrots and cut into cubes or slices. Slice the leek into rings.
2. Bring the water and stock cube to the boil. Add the vegetables and simmer for about 15 minutes.
3. Cut the salmon into bite-sized pieces. Add when the vegetables are almost tender.
4. Simmer gently for another 5–7 minutes, until the fish is cooked. Avoid a rolling boil.
5. Stir in the cream, season with salt and pepper, and finish with chopped dill.

Serving

Serve with rye bread, crusty sourdough or buttered bread. Take the pot straight to the table, perhaps after the sauna.

You can prepare the soup in Mökki Tikka’s equipped kitchen. Kristian also makes a very good version; ask him about it if you would like to learn from someone local.

For us, the warmth, aroma and simple flavour are part of settling into the cottage. A good meal need not be complicated.