How to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner like a Viking to help you lose pounds and prevent dementia while STILL enjoying a glass of wine
- Recent research shows the Nordic diet is linked with a smaller decline in memory
- This is very high in fish, non-root vegetables, fruit, rice and chicken
- It also includes a light to moderate consumption of wine, and is high in water
- Followers avoid eating too many root vegetables, potatoes and refined grains
- MailOnline shares recipes from restaurateur and TV chef Claus Meyer
If you were intrigued by the latest findings about the traditional Nordic diet's health benefits but unsure how to go about it in practice, here's some inspiring meal ideas.
Recent research revealed that eating like a Viking can support brain health in old age and could help fight off dementia.
MailOnline is sharing tasty, healthy meal recipes from the man behind the Nordic food revolution - cookbook author, restaurateur and TV host Claus Meyer.
He is a leading advocate of the diet which is high in fish, non-root vegetables, fruit, rice and chicken, washed down with plenty of water and tea.
And it's positive news for drinkers, as the diet permits light to moderate consumption of wine.
Another principle is avoiding eating too many root vegetables, potatoes, refined grains, butter, sugar and fruit juice.
The Viking diet is high in fish, non-root vegetables, fruit, rice and chicken (file photo)
The Swedish study of 2,223 people carried out by the Karolinska Institute looked to see whether the diet had any effect on brain function.
The researchers found that being relatively good or very good at sticking to the diet was linked with a smaller decline in memory and thinking skills.
Breakfast: Omelette with new potatoes, spinach and hot-smoked salmon
This omelette fits in with the Viking diet and is bound to set you up for the day
1 onion
400g new potatoes, boiled
10g butter
Sea salt flakes and freshly ground pepper
50g fresh spinach
100g hot-smoked salmon
6 organic eggs
200ml low-fat milk
Peel and slice the onion finely, and cut the boiled potatoes into large cubes. Sauté the onion and potatoes in the butter in an ovenproof frying pan (see tip), then season to taste with salt and pepper. Rinse the spinach well, drain and add it to the pan.
Divide the hot-smoked salmon into smaller pieces, add to the pan and mix well. Crack the eggs into a bowl - one at a time so that you can check that they are fresh.
Add the milk and whisk together, then pour the mixture into the pan.
Fry the omelette for a few minutes in the pan so that it just sets before transferring it to a preheated oven at 200°C/Gas Mark 6.
Bake the omelette for 8–10 minutes or until it has set fully and is slightly golden on top.
Serve while it is warm with some wholegrain rye bread. Pickled beetroot is also a good accompaniment, and I personally have a weakness for mustard whenever there is an egg dish on the table.
Tip: If you don’t have an ovenproof frying pan, you can make the omelette on the hob and cover with a lid from a large saucepan so that the eggs get a little heat from above as well.
Lunch: Roast chicken and braised peas with baby onions, bacon and lettuce hearts
This roast chicken dish makes a delicious option on the traditional Nordic diet
1 large organic chicken, about 1.5kg
1 handful of fl at leaf parsley
1 lemon
20g butter
Sea salt flakes and freshly ground pepper
Check the chicken for any feather stumps and pluck them out. Remove any blood or intestine residues from the cavity and wipe with kitchen paper.
Pick off the leaves from the parsley sprigs and rinse them, and cut the lemon into quarters.
Stuff the chicken with the parsley and lemon, along with the butter, salt and pepper.
Tie the chicken up with kitchen string so that the thighs are hugging the breast - that way the chicken will be juicier.
Place the chicken on a roasting rack set over a roasting pan to catch the juices. Roast in a preheated oven at 170°C/Gas Mark 3½ for one hour, then turn off the oven and leave the chicken in the oven for a further 10 minutes.
Take the chicken out of the oven and leave to rest for 10 minutes before starting to carve it.
Serve the chicken with braised peas with baby onions, bacon and lettuce heart, boiled new potatoes and some good bread.
Braised peas with baby onions, bacon and lettuce heart
1kg peas in the pod (about 250–300g podded weight)
15g cold butter
150g baby onions
30g bacon, cut into small cubes
1 Little Gem lettuce heart
½ handful of flat leaf parsley, chopped
Sea salt flakes and freshly ground pepper
Juice of ½ lemon
Pod the peas, peel the baby onions but keep them whole.
Place the butter and bacon in a sauté pan and sizzle the bacon over a low heat until lightly golden.
Add the whole baby onions and sauté with the bacon for a few minutes so that they soften and absorb some of the fat.
Meanwhile, rinse the lettuce and parsley and leave both to drain thoroughly. Cut the lettuce into large chunks.
Check that the onions are soft inside before adding the peas and sauté them for about 30 seconds, then add the lettuce and parsley. Mix well and season with salt, pepper and the lemon juice to finish off.
Serve immediately to retain the beautiful colour, crispness and flavour of the peas.
Dinner: Pan-fried plaice with browned butter, parsley and new potatoes
Fish is a big part of the traditional diet so this plaice meal makes a perfect evening meal
Plaice
Plain flour, for dusting
Sea salt flakes and freshly ground pepper
100g butter
2 tablespoons elderflower vinegar
1 handful of flat leaf parsley, chopped
1kg new potatoes, boiled, to serve
Check that plaice is fresh, with beautiful clear, bulging eyes and a smell of the sea, not of the harbour. Clean the plaice, cutting off the head and fins, and remove the skin, then rinse the fish thoroughly in cold water, cleaning off all the blood and guts (or get your fishmonger to do all the work for you).
Cut an incision all the way down the line that the plaice naturally has down the middle, which will prevent the super-fresh fish from contracting too much and arching during cooking.
This cut has a second important function – while frying, you can spoon some of the hot butter from the pan on to the thick end of the plaice (where the head was) so that it penetrates the flesh and enables both the thick and thin parts to be cooked evenly in the same time rather than the thinner part drying out before the thicker part is properly cooked.
Chef Claus Meyer focuses on healthy, seasonal ingredients
Dust the plaice with flour and season with salt and pepper.
Melt the butter in a hot frying pan and let it bubble, then fry the plaice for about 3-4 minutes on each side or until they are beautifully golden on both sides.
You can probably only fit a single plaice in the pan at a time, unless you have a very large frying pan, so it may be a good idea to use two pans at a time.
A good trick to check whether the plaice are done is to find the pointed bone that sits just below where the head has been cut off. If it can be pulled out effortlessly, the plaice are finished; if not, they need a little more time in the pan.
Serve the plaice with the butter from the pan flavoured with the vinegar and chopped parsley, along with the boiled potatoes. This dish is simple and exceptionally good.
The Nordic Kitchen: One year of family cooking by Claus Meyer is published by Mitchell Beazley and is available for £25 here.
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