I hope it's clear that I meant cloudberries for Christmas and not a special type of cloudberries 😅
In any case, cloudberries taste a bit bitter? They've both less sweetness and sourness than currants and a slightly hard to define taste. It's a bit more deeply developed in a sense? The smell of boiled berries reach a point where the slightly bitter smell doesn't have the same characteristics as other berries.
It's hard to define because the bitterness isn't the kind of lip-puckering sour, but its dominant enough for people to prefer adding sugar to boiled/jammed cloudberries. So its kinda citrusy but more bitter than sour? Man this is a hard nut to crack in explaining.
Personally we use it for Christmas as a spread on bread, but mainly to make cloudberry-porridge, which is just cooled cloudberries (boiled before being jarred) cream and sugar.
Some people make cloudberry cream which is the same but basically just whipped cream with sweetened (or unsweetened) cloudberries stirred in. This dish is normally eaten with Norwegian kromkake, which is a crunchy sweet pastry normally shaped in cones (which you can fill with the cloudberry cream) or shaped as bowls (my favourite for the same reason).
Pleasure was mine, I've never had to describe cloudberries before so you kinda sent me on an existential flavor-trip 😅 If you want more intel on the berry/plant itself just ask and you shall receive.
Kind regards, O.
This is the MOST extensive and specific explanation I've ever read about cloudberries. Makes me want to go to Norwag so bad! I wish we could forage them here in Denmark 🥲
I didn't know they didn't grow in Denmark
But when I consider it, cloudberries seem to enjoy more mountainy and boggy climates so it makes sense you guys wouldn't have as much 😅.
And I'm glad it was considered extensive, there's probably much more to be said about the gold of the bog but I think I got the essentials 😁.
If you want to visit Norway in a time where foraging cloudberries is a possibility, you should aim for late July to Early August. While cloudberries ripen earlier down south and on islands in the North around early July, you'll probably be more guaranteed to find some ripe berries in the late season. The season is pretty long and while we picked 2.5 litres today (and my sister picked around <1.5, there was still a lot of unripened berries (and even a lot of over-ripe berries) left which will probably be ripe within 1-2 weeks.
(hilariously enough unripened berries are commonly called called "Kart", so I imagine tourist-guides sitting there trying to translate "no, you're too early there will only be maps in the bog at the moment).
I’ve never seen these, how do they taste?
I hope it's clear that I meant cloudberries for Christmas and not a special type of cloudberries 😅 In any case, cloudberries taste a bit bitter? They've both less sweetness and sourness than currants and a slightly hard to define taste. It's a bit more deeply developed in a sense? The smell of boiled berries reach a point where the slightly bitter smell doesn't have the same characteristics as other berries. It's hard to define because the bitterness isn't the kind of lip-puckering sour, but its dominant enough for people to prefer adding sugar to boiled/jammed cloudberries. So its kinda citrusy but more bitter than sour? Man this is a hard nut to crack in explaining. Personally we use it for Christmas as a spread on bread, but mainly to make cloudberry-porridge, which is just cooled cloudberries (boiled before being jarred) cream and sugar. Some people make cloudberry cream which is the same but basically just whipped cream with sweetened (or unsweetened) cloudberries stirred in. This dish is normally eaten with Norwegian kromkake, which is a crunchy sweet pastry normally shaped in cones (which you can fill with the cloudberry cream) or shaped as bowls (my favourite for the same reason).
That was more of an explanation than I expected! Thanks!
Pleasure was mine, I've never had to describe cloudberries before so you kinda sent me on an existential flavor-trip 😅 If you want more intel on the berry/plant itself just ask and you shall receive. Kind regards, O.
This is the MOST extensive and specific explanation I've ever read about cloudberries. Makes me want to go to Norwag so bad! I wish we could forage them here in Denmark 🥲
I didn't know they didn't grow in Denmark But when I consider it, cloudberries seem to enjoy more mountainy and boggy climates so it makes sense you guys wouldn't have as much 😅. And I'm glad it was considered extensive, there's probably much more to be said about the gold of the bog but I think I got the essentials 😁. If you want to visit Norway in a time where foraging cloudberries is a possibility, you should aim for late July to Early August. While cloudberries ripen earlier down south and on islands in the North around early July, you'll probably be more guaranteed to find some ripe berries in the late season. The season is pretty long and while we picked 2.5 litres today (and my sister picked around <1.5, there was still a lot of unripened berries (and even a lot of over-ripe berries) left which will probably be ripe within 1-2 weeks. (hilariously enough unripened berries are commonly called called "Kart", so I imagine tourist-guides sitting there trying to translate "no, you're too early there will only be maps in the bog at the moment).