We dare say that the best Scandinavian season is not spring, summer, autumn or winter. It's grillsäsongen (bbq season). Grillsäsongen is strongly associated with the Scandinavian summer and its holidays and many Scandis state that they grill at least once a week during the barbecue season which normally runs from May to August. This is tradition. The religion, however includes barbecues in rain and snow. The motto here is:

"Det finns inget dåligt väder, bara dåliga kläder".  (There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes)

What we nowadays associate with summer and garden barbecues actually dates back to the 1950's. It was then that the American BBQ was introduced in Scandinavia. For Scandinavians it was a new way of doing things and with the American BBQ culture the Scandinavian food culture got three new additions: grilling of finer pieces of meat, fish and poultry, but also by combining the meat with colourful and fresh green salads and barbecue sauces. 

But maybe the most important part of this new way of doing things and one that is the most cherished is the interaction around the grill and the guests standing around watching and socialising while the food is being prepared. This had never been done before but quickly became the best part of the whole experience. 

BBQ season in Scandinavia is said to start on the first Friday in May so bring out the grill and start celebrating this most beautiful of seasons. We're already two days in! 

So what do Scandinavians prefer to put on the grill? Here’s the list!

1. Pork

2. Beef

3. Grillkorvar (BBQ sausages)

4. Chicken

5. Spicy sausages eg. Schorizo, Salsiccia, Bratwurst

6. Vegetables

7. Hamburgers

8. Fish and seafood

9. Pre-marinated BBQ meat

10. Lamb