Iceland: Siltanews – News Desk
Hundreds of kilograms of skate—a fish in the ray family native to Icelandic waters—is being sold to Icelanders in Spain, spreading a festive tradition that goes back centuries.
Sigurður Garðar Stefánsson lives in Spain part of the year, and has been selling the fish to Icelandic ex-pats and holidaymakers for several years.
Come Christmas time, it is typical in Iceland to cook and feast on skate in large social gatherings, sometimes including hundreds of people.
Known largely for its foul smell, skate—or kæst skata as the Icelanders know it—is a fermented delicacy somewhat akin to Hákarl, the famously divisive fermented shark. Skates have thicker tails than stingrays, but they do not have barbs. “Skate is eaten everywhere. In the Canary Islands, for example, they eat skate, and in Tenerife too. This is just our tradition.” These islands are particularly popular among local Icelanders who enjoy direct flights from Keflavik.
When used in staple Christmas dishes, as has been the case across much of Iceland historically, many claim that the smellier the skate is, the better the taste will be. Sigurður transports the fish to Spain from Iceland, and are sealed in double-glued vacuum packaging to ensure freshness.
While it may still be popular among the older generation living in Spain, the taste for skate seems to be waning back home. Ten years ago, Iceland Monitor reported on a Maskína survey poll found that only a third of the country was planning to consume the fish as part of their holiday meals.
Typically, skate is served with boiled suedes, potatoes, a special sheep suet called hamsatólg, and rúgbrauð (rye bread.)