>> THIS PROGRAM IS FUNDED BY THE FOLLOWING... [ PIANO MUSIC PLAYING ] [ ETHEREAL MUSIC PLAYING ] [ FUNKY MUSIC PLAYING ] [ THEME MUSIC PLAYING ] >> HI, AND WELCOME TO "NEW SCANDINAVIAN COOKING" FROM FIMMVORDUHALS ON ICELAND.

I'M ANDREAS VIESTAD.

ICELAND IS AN ISLAND STILL IN THE MAKING, SO YOUNG THAT IT STILL BOILS AND SMOKES, AND NOT THAT INFREQUENTLY ERUPTS IN MASSES OF ASH AND MOLTEN LAVA.

THIS NOT ONLY MAKES LIFE HERE IN THE FAR NORTH MUCH MORE DRAMATIC THAN IT WOULD OTHERWISE HAVE BEEN, IT BECOMES WARMER, AND IT ALSO CREATES A LOT OF INTERESTING CULINARY OPPORTUNITIES.

IN TODAY'S PROGRAM, WE'LL COMBINE NORDIC INGREDIENTS WITH THE WARMTH FROM WITHIN.

AND I'M GOING TO START RIGHT HERE, ON THE VOLCANO, OR ON THIS GIGANTIC STOVE, AS I SEE IT, WHERE I'M GOING TO COOK LAMB STRAIGHT ON THE ROCKS.

THEN WE'LL GO EVEN FURTHER NORTH TO THE NORTHWESTERN TIP OF ICELAND, WHERE THEY USE THE COLD, CLEAR ARCTIC WATERS AND THE HEAT OF THE EARTH TO CREATE ARTISANAL SALT.

I'LL COOK A GLORIOUS, AROMATIC, SALT-BAKED TROUT WITH ANGELICA, RHUBARB, AND HERBS.

THEN I'LL VISIT A MAN WHO HAS A HOUSE WITH MANY GREAT AMENITIES, MOST NOTABLY A RIVER FULL OF FISH AND A PRIVATE GEYSER IN WHICH TO COOK IT.

FIMMVORDUHALS IS IN THE SOUTH OF ICELAND, IN AN AREA WITH LOTS OF VOLCANIC ACTIVITY.

YOU MAY REMEMBER A FEW YEARS AGO WHEN AIR TRAFFIC OVER THE ATLANTIC WAS DISRUPTED FOR NEARLY A MONTH BECAUSE OF ASH FROM AN ICELANDIC VOLCANO.

WELL, THAT WAS EYJAFJALLAJOKULL, WHICH IS JUST OVER THERE.

AND THEN, OF COURSE, YOU GOT HEKLA AND KATLA, THE TWO BIG ONES THAT WERE REFERRED TO AS "THE GATEWAYS TO HELL" DURING THE MIDDLE AGES.

AND NOW EVERYONE IS WAITING FOR BIG ERUPTIONS FROM THEM.

NO ONE KNOWS WHEN, WE JUST KNOW IT'S NOT GOING TO BE PARTICULARLY PLEASANT.

WELL, THIS ONE IS COMPLETELY SAFE, I'VE BEEN TOLD, "SO DON'T WORRY, JUST GO UP THERE," AND THEN THERE WAS A LITTLE WARNING, "IF YOU SEE MOLTEN LAVA, RUN."

THE INTERESTING THING IS THAT YOU HAVE THESE CRACKS IN THE GROUND.

IN HERE, IT'S MORE THAN 500 DEGREES CELSIUS, AROUND 1,000 FAHRENHEIT.

IT'S A PRETTY GOOD STOVE, ISN'T IT, SO I'M GOING TO COOK HERE.

I'VE GOT SOME LOVELY, ICELANDIC LAMB AND A LEEK, AND I'M GOING TO JUST CLEAN THE OVEN A LITTLE BIT.

IT IS JUST SO REALLY UNCOMFORTABLY HOT.

LET'S JUST SEE HOW HOT IT IS REALLY.

THAT IS PRETTY HOT, WHEN PAPER CATCHES FIRE BY ITSELF.

I'M GOING TO START BY COOKING THE LEEK IN A QUITE BRUTAL WAY.

I'M GOING TO STICK IT WHERE IT'S AT ITS HOTTEST, SO THE LEEK WILL BE PRETTY WELL CHARRED.

AND I'M JUST GOING TO SCORE THE FAT SIDE OF THE MEAT.

THIS IS THE TOP SIRLOIN PART OF THE LAMB, WHICH IS QUITE TENDER AND AT THE SAME TIME QUITE FLAVORFUL.

THIS IS A NICE PIECE.

IT IS REALLY INCREDIBLY HOT IN THERE.

I PLACED THE MEAT WITH THE FAT SIDE FACING THE CENTER OF THE EARTH, WHERE THE MOST INTENSE HEAT COMES FROM.

IF YOU DON'T HAVE YOUR OWN VOLCANO, YOU CAN ALSO COOK THE MEAT IN YOUR OVEN.

THEN SET IT AT ITS HIGHEST SETTING.

MINE GOES TO 300 CELSIUS -- THAT'S NEARLY 600 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT -- AND THAT WILL REALLY SCARE THE MEAT.

THERE'LL BE A LOT OF SMOKE, BUT THAT REALLY GIVES THE MEAT SOME REALLY NICE TEMPERAMENT, ALMOST LIKE A GRILL.

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU'RE PLAYING WITH FIRE, BUT IT'S NOT REALLY AS BAD AS IT SEEMS, BECAUSE THIS ASH FROM THE LEEK IS REALLY QUITE FLAVORFUL, AND AS YOU SEE, IT'S NOT CHARRED ALL THE WAY THROUGH.

AND NOW IT LOOKS LIKE THE MEAT IS READY.

IT'S COOKED MOST OF THE TIME WITH THE FAT SIDE FACING IN, AND THEN I JUST FLIPPED IT OVER AND COOKED IT FOR ANOTHER MINUTE AND A HALF.

IT LOOKS AND SMELLS FANTASTIC.

THE MEAT IS PERFECTLY COOKED, AND IN ADDITION TO THE LEEK AND THE MEAT, I'VE PREPARED A LITTLE BIT OF HERB OIL.

THIS IS MADE FROM WILD THYME, WHICH IS KIND OF LIKE YOUR NORMAL THYME, BUT A LITTLE BIT MORE PEPPERY.

AND SOME PICKLED ANGELICA, WHICH IS VERY, VERY AROMATIC.

YOU COULD ALSO USE SOME JUST FINELY CHOPPED DILL OR FINELY CHOPPED FENNEL WITH A LITTLE BIT OF LEMON JUICE.

WE DON'T HAVE PEPPER, BUT WE DO HAVE SOMETHING THAT IS VERY NICE AND PEPPERY WITH A SMOKY FLAVOR, NAMELY, THIS CHARRED LEEK.

MM!

THIS IS JUST SO INCREDIBLY TASTY, WITH THAT BIG, RICH, I WOULD NORMALLY SAY GRILL FLAVOR, BUT VOLCANO FLAVOR.

AND IT'S SUCH A PRACTICAL WAY OF COOKING, I CAN'T UNDERSTAND WHY THE PLACE IS NOT TEEMING WITH ICELANDIC FAMILIES WHO ARE HAVING THEIR SUNDAY LUNCHES HERE.

BUT I GUESS THE ICELANDERS HAVE BECOME BLASé ABOUT THEIR VOLCANOES.

THEY DON'T APPRECIATE THEM ENOUGH.

IF YOU WANT TO MAKE THIS DISH WITHOUT HAVING TO PURCHASE A VOLCANO, SEE THE RECIPE AT newscancook.com.

IF YOU LOOK AT THE WORLD MAP, YOU'LL IMMEDIATELY SEE THAT ICELAND IS REALLY FAR NORTH.

BUT IT'S ACTUALLY EVEN FURTHER NORTH THAN MOST OF THE OTHER PLACES THAT WE THINK OF AS WAY UP THERE.

IF YOU PUT YOUR FINGER AT ANCHORAGE, ALASKA, AND YOU FOLLOW THE SAME LATITUDE, YOU'LL FIND YOURSELF IN THE ATLANTIC OCEAN, HUNDREDS OF MILES SOUTH OF ICELAND.

THE CAPITAL, REYKJAVIK, IS SITUATED AT 64 DEGREES NORTH, AND IT'S THE NORTHERNMOST CAPITAL OF ANY INDEPENDENT COUNTRY.

STILL, COLD IS NOT REALLY A PROBLEM.

THE ICELANDERS HAVE FOUND A WAY TO UTILIZE THE HEAT FROM THE EARTH AND HARNESS IT.

MOST PLACES, WATER FROM HOT SPRINGS IS USED TO HEAT HOUSES.

IT'S ALSO USED TO GENERATE ELECTRICITY.

AND ALL OVER THE ISLAND THERE ARE A GREAT MANY GREENHOUSES WHERE THE ICELANDERS GROW MUCH OF THEIR OWN FOOD, STUFF THAT THEY WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO GROW OUTDOORS.

AND, OF COURSE, THERE IS MORE THAN UTILITY.

THERE ARE ALSO PLEASURES TO BE EXPLOITED.

THE HOT SPRINGS CAN BE USED FOR SWIMMING.

THE MOST FAMOUS EXAMPLE OF THIS IS THE BLUE LAGOON OUTSIDE OF REYKJAVIK, EACH YEAR VISITED BY HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE -- TOURISTS AND ICELANDERS ALIKE.

THERE ARE A GREAT MANY CULINARY POSSIBILITIES IN THIS SURPLUS OF HEAT.

IN THE NORTHWEST OF THE COUNTRY, AT THE SALTVERKER REYKJANES, HOT WATER FROM LOCAL SPRINGS IS USED TO EVAPORATE SALTWATER FROM THE SEA AND CREATE ARTISANAL SALT THAT'S USED BY MANY OF THE COUNTRY'S BEST RESTAURANTS.

SALT IS MORE THAN JUST AN INGREDIENT, MORE THAN WHAT YOU USE A SPRINKLE OF, IN ORDER TO MAKE THE FOOD TASTE MORE AND A LITTLE BIT BETTER.

IT CAN ALSO BE THE ACTIVE PART IN A COOKING PROCESS, THE ANCIENT COOKING PROCESS OF SALT BAKING.

IT'S REALLY INCREDIBLY SIMPLE, BUT IN ORDER TO COOK A FISH LIKE THIS -- HERE I'VE GOT A LOVELY THREE-POUND RIVER TROUT -- THAT'S A LITTLE MORE THAN 1.3 KILOS -- YOU'VE GOT TO USE NEARLY THIS MUCH SALT.

SO...

HERE I HAVE COARSE SEA SALT, AND THEN I ADD THE FISH ON TOP.

AND VERY OFTEN WE CUT A LEMON AND PUT SOME LEMON WEDGES INTO THE FISH IN ORDER TO HAVE SOME ACIDITY.

WELL, THERE ARE NO LEMONS HERE, BUT THERE IS PLENTY OF RHUBARB, WHICH IS VERY, VERY ACIDIC AS WELL.

STUFF IT INTO THE FISH.

AND I ALSO WANT TO FLAVOR THE FISH WITH SOME WILD HERBS, AND WHAT WE HAVE GROWING HERE IS ANGELICA.

ANGELICA IS A NORDIC HERB THAT HAS BEEN USED BOTH FOR MEDICINAL PURPOSES AND CULINARY PURPOSES.

IN ITALY, THEY'RE WILD ABOUT ANGELICA.

THEY HAVE CANDIED ANGELICA, WHICH IS INCREDIBLY SWEET, A SORT OF OLD LADY SWEETS.

SO I STUFF THIS, TOO, INSIDE THE FISH.

COVER COMPLETELY IN SALT.

AND THERE IS, OF COURSE, A LOT OF SALT IN HERE, AND IT SEEMS DRAMATIC, BUT IT HAS TO BE PLENTIFUL IN ORDER TO COVER THE FISH COMPLETELY.

BUT WHEN WE HAVE SO MUCH, WE CAN ALSO BAKE OTHER THINGS IN THE SALT AT THE SAME TIME, SO I'M JUST PUTTING IN A COUPLE OF ONIONS AS WELL.

THEY WILL BE REALLY NICE AND SWEET, AND THAT'S A BIT OF A PARADOX, ISN'T IT?

THAT YOU COVER THEM COMPLETELY IN SALT AND THEY END UP BEING MUCH, MUCH SWEETER THAN THEY WOULD OTHERWISE HAVE BEEN.

I'VE SET THE OVEN AT A VERY HIGH TEMPERATURE, 250 CELSIUS, 480 FAHRENHEIT.

AND IT SHOULD COOK FOR ABOUT 35 TO 40 MINUTES.

I'M GOING TO SERVE THE FISH WITH SOME OF THE SAME FLAVORS THAT I ADDED TO THE FISH THAT IS NOW BAKING IN THE SALT.

HERE I'VE SAUTEED SOME ONIONS, AND I'M JUST GOING TO COARSELY CHOP SOME RHUBARB.

AND I'M JUST COOKING THE RHUBARB FOR A FEW MINUTES, UNTIL IT STARTS TO COLLAPSE.

I WANT TO KEEP A LOT OF ITS TEMPERAMENT AND INTEGRITY.

NOW IT SHOULD BE DONE.

THEN WE CAN JUST OPEN UP AND HAVE A LOOK.

BEST WAY IS TO WHACK IT WITH A WOODEN SPATULA.

AND THEN OPEN THE CRUST.

THE SKIN IS MORE OR LESS INEDIBLE, BUT WHAT'S UNDERNEATH IS FANTASTIC, SO YOU'VE JUST GOT TO BASICALLY UNDRESS THE FISH.

AND LOOK AT THIS.

YOU CAN FIND ALL THE RECIPES AT OUR WEB SITE, newscancook.com.

AND THE RHUBARB HERE STILL HAS A BIT OF STRUCTURE TO IT.

SOME TINY ICELANDIC POTATOES THAT HAVE OBJECTED A LITTLE BIT TO GROWING A PLACE SO FAR NORTH AND SO BARREN, BUT THE RESULT IS ALSO POTATOES THAT ARE WONDERFULLY SWEET AND FLAVORFUL.

I'M GOING TO SERVE WITH A LITTLE BIT OF DILL, FLOWERING DILL.

I'VE ALSO MADE AN HERB OIL FROM THE TOP SHOOTS OF ANGELICA AND MIXED IT WITH RAPESEED OIL.

YOU CAN ALSO USE DILL HERE, OR EVEN LOVAGE.

THE FISH LOOKS SO INCREDIBLY TENDER... AND JUICY.

MM!

IT'S REALLY EXTRAORDINARILY FLAVORFUL, VERY, VERY JUICY.

YOU WOULD BE HARD-PRESSED TO FIND A MODERN TECHNIQUE TO MAKE A MORE JUICY FISH.

THE ONLY THING LACKING IS A LITTLE BIT OF SALT.

THAT'S A BIT OF A PARADOX, ISN'T IT?

I'M USING JUST A SPRINKLE OF SALT FROM SALTVERKER.

IT JUST WASN'T ENOUGH WITH THESE EIGHT TO TEN POUNDS OF SALT, JUST NEEDED A LITTLE EXTRA SPRINKLE.

[ COW MOOING ] HOT SPRINGS GENERATE ELECTRICITY, IT GENERATES INTEREST FROM TOURISTS.

BUT EVEN HERE, FAR OFF THE BEATEN TRACK, THEY DO THEIR THING WITHOUT ANYONE COMING TO VISIT.

HERE ON THIS FARM, THERE ARE AT LEAST A DOZEN DIFFERENT HOT SPRINGS AND EVEN A SMALL GEYSER.

ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT DEVELOPMENTS IN COOKING THE LAST COUPLE OF DECADES IS THE INTRODUCTION OF SOUS-VIDE COOKING.

IT IS A TECHNIQUE THAT IS TODAY USED AT MOST HIGH-END RESTAURANTS.

IT'S WHAT ENABLES YOU TO GET A PIECE OF MEAT THAT IS SO PERFECTLY COOKED THAT IT SEEMS OUT OF THIS WORLD.

WELL, THE TECHNOLOGY BEHIND IT IS THAT THE FOOD IS PLACED IN A PLASTIC BAG, VACUUMED AND SEALED, AND THEN COOKED AT VERY PRECISE TEMPERATURES.

THIS ALLOWS YOU TO REALLY TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION WHAT PROTEINS AND WHAT FATS AND, YOU KNOW, THE DIFFERENT COMPONENTS OF THE FOOD YOU'RE EATING.

I THINK THAT IT'S A TECHNOLOGY THAT HAS GREAT POTENTIAL.

IT CAN BE OVERUSED, BUT THERE ARE CERTAIN THINGS THAT REALLY BENEFIT FROM SOUS-VIDE COOKING.

ONE OF THEM IS COOKING WILD SALMON.

WILD SALMON CAN BE A LITTLE BIT TRICKY TO COOK, MORE DIFFICULT THAN FARM-RAISED SALMON, SINCE IT IS LEANER, SO IT CAN END UP BEING ON THE DRY SIDE.

I'M GOING TO COOK MY SALMON SOUS-VIDE, BUT I'M NOT GOING TO USE ANY TECHNOLOGY.

YOU SEE THESE HOT SPRINGS HERE.

HERE, OBVIOUSLY, THE WATER IS BOILING, SO IT'S 100 DEGREES CELSIUS, 212 FAHRENHEIT.

BUT AS IT GOES DOWN, IT COOLS OFF, AND THEN IT'S LED IN TO THIS LITTLE EXTRA CHAMBER HERE, AND THERE ARE DIFFERENT TEMPERATURE ZONES ALL OVER THE PLACE, AND WE'VE SPENT SOME TIME MAPPING THIS, AND WE'RE GOING TO UTILIZE THAT IN COOKING TODAY.

WELL, I START OFF WITH THIS BEAUTIFUL FILET OF WILD SALMON.

IT'S ABOUT 450 GRAMS -- IT'S ABOUT A POUND -- THAT I CUT IN THREE PIECES, SPRINKLE WITH A LITTLE BIT OF SALT, SEASON WITH BAY LEAF, PLACING ONE BAY LEAF ON TOP OF EACH PIECE OF FISH.

THEN I'M ADDING THE FISH TO A PLASTIC BAG, SEALABLE PLASTIC BAG LIKE THIS, AND AS YOU SEE, I'VE GOT TWO STONES IN THE BAG.

THAT'S JUST TO WEIGH IT ALL DOWN -- IT HAS NO GASTRONOMIC PURPOSE.

[ VACUUM WHIRRING ] AND NOW ALL THE AIR IS OUT.

I HAVE TRIED AN EXTREMELY LOW-TECH VERSION OF THIS, JUST TAKING A FOOD-SAFE PLASTIC BAG AND... SUCKING OUT ALL THE AIR.

IT'S NOT PERFECT, BUT IT KIND OF WORKS, STILL.

I'M GOING TO SERVE THE FISH WITH SOMETHING THAT'S SWEET AND TART AT THE SAME TIME.

HERE I'VE GOT JUST A NORMAL GREEN APPLE THAT I'VE PEELED AND HALVED AND PLACED TOGETHER WITH THE TWO OBLIGATORY BLACK STONES, TO WHICH I'M GOING TO ADD SOME ICELANDIC HONEY, NOT TOO MUCH, JUST A COUPLE OF TEASPOONS.

[ WHIRRING ] THE LAST THING THAT I'M GOING TO EXPOSE TO THIS METHOD IS CARROTS.

IF YOU COOK THE CARROTS AT SOMEWHAT LOWER TEMPERATURE, LESS THAN BOILING, THEY WILL ACTUALLY BECOME AS SWEET AS THEY ARE WHEN THEY'VE BEEN COOKED, BUT THEY STILL KEEP THEIR CRUNCH.

I'M GOING TO FLAVOR THE CARROTS WITH A LITTLE BIT OF ANISEED, ABOUT A QUARTER OF TEASPOON, A LITTLE BIT OF SALT, AND A LITTLE BIT OF BUTTER.

[ VACUUM WHIRRING ] NOW IT'S GOING TO BE INTERESTING TO SEE HOW THIS MODERN-DAY COOKING PROJECT WILL FARE IN THIS RATHER ANCIENT KITCHEN.

HERE IN THE OUTSKIRTS OF THIS THERMAL BATH AREA, THE WATER HAS COOLED OFF QUITE A BIT -- I'D SAY 140 FAHRENHEIT, 60 CELSIUS.

NOW IT'S ACTUALLY 62 CELSIUS, 131 FAHRENHEIT.

I'M COOKING THE SALMON AND THE APPLE HERE, AND I'M LEAVING IT FOR ABOUT 20 MINUTES.

AND HERE WE'RE A LITTLE CLOSER TO THE SOURCE, SO HERE THE TEMPERATURE IS 80 CELSIUS, OR 175 FAHRENHEIT, AND THAT'S PERFECT FOR COOKING CARROTS.

AND I'M GOING TO LEAVE THE CARROTS IN JUST AS LONG AS THE FISH, SO ABOUT 15 TO 20 MINUTES.

WHEN IT COMES TO BROCCOLI, I DON'T REALLY HAVE TO BE THAT SCIENTIFIC.

I'LL COOK THE BROCCOLI IN NORMAL, BOILING WATER, JUST AS I'VE ALWAYS DONE, EXCEPT THIS TIME I'M DOING IT IN THE GEYSER, AND IT'S SAID THAT A BROCCOLI OULD COOK FROM ONE ERUPTION TO ANOTHER.

IT'S PERFECTLY COOKED AND WITH JUST A SMALL HINT OF SULFUR.

SO HERE IT IS.

THE RESULT OF A SCIENTIFIC EXPERIMENT, DONE WITH VERY UNSCIENTIFIC METHODS, BUT IT LOOKS VERY, VERY NICE.

AND LOOK AT THESE CARROTS, THEY LOOK AMAZING, AND THEY'RE STILL QUITE CRUNCHY, SO IT'LL BE INTERESTING TO SEE WHETHER THEY'RE SWEET OR NOT.

[ CRUNCHING ] THEY ARE CRUNCHY, LIKE A COMPLETELY RAW CARROT, BUT WITH THIS DEEP SWEETNESS TO IT, AND OF COURSE THIS HINT OF ANISE AS WELL, WHICH GOES VERY WELL WITH CARROTS.

IT LOOKS ALMOST RAW IN THE MIDDLE HERE, BUT IT'S NOT.

WHEN YOU TASTE IT, YOU WILL NOTICE THAT IT IS ACTUALLY COOKED, IT JUST HASN'T LOST A LOT OF MOISTURE, AND IT HASN'T CHANGED COLOR.

WHAT IS MISSING, THOUGH, IS THAT BIG FLAVOR IT GETS WHEN IT'S FRIED.

AND HERE I HAVE SOME OF THAT LEEK ASH THAT I'VE MIXED WITH A LITTLE BIT OF GROUND CORIANDER, SO THAT'S WHAT I'M GOING TO SEASON THE FISH WITH.

REMEMBER THAT YOU CAN FIND ALL THE RECIPES AT OUR WEB SITE, newscancook.com.

I'M GOING TO SERVE WITH SMASHED POTATOES, AND THAT'S BASICALLY JUST BOILED POTATOES THAT I'VE SMASHED WITH MY HAND, FRIED IN A LITTLE BIT OF BUTTER, AND SERVED WITH DILL.

AND HERE IT IS, A DISH MADE WITH WATER FROM THE CENTER OF THE EARTH, AND IF ONLY THE WATER HAD STOPPED COMING FROM THE OTHER DIRECTION, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN PERFECT.

ALFRESCO DINING, WHAT A LOVELY DAY TO DINE OUTSIDE.

[ CHUCKLES ] >> THANK YOU.

>> FOR MORE OF THE "NEW SCANDINAVIAN COOKING" EXPERIENCE, VISIT OUR WEB SITE OR FACEBOOK PAGE.

>> THIS PROGRAM IS FUNDED BY THE FOLLOWING... [ PIANO MUSIC PLAYING ] [ ETHEREAL MUSIC PLAYING ] [ FUNKY MUSIC PLAYING ]