Food & Drink

What Is Kalles Kaviar?

For Americans, one of the most popular things that comes in a tube is toothpaste – but for Swedes, that’s the vessel for Kalles Kaviar. But Kalles doesn’t come with a minty fresh smell, oh no. Creamed fish eggs in a tube? Consider your gag reflexes warned.

Unlike it’s fancier, whole-roe egg counterpart, Kalles Kaviar is a spreadable, creamed, smoked-cod roe product with such a strong acquired taste, the company created an ad leaning into the fact that many American consumers would gag at the taste (the ad’s tagline: “A very unique Swedish taste”).

How to Eat Kalles Kaviar

If you’re brave enough to try Kalles, we’ve got a few recommendations for you. Scandi Kitchen outlines basic, fancy and healthy ways to eat the creamy fish egg paste – if we had to pick, we’d go the fancy avocado toast route.

And if one of those options didn’t jump out at you, it seems like there is only one rule when it comes to Kalles. According to the food website Ateriet, the egg paste goes best with…eggs. Preferably boiled eggs. Take a cue from Alexander Skarsgård and Stephen Colbert. They paired Kalles with a slice of hard-boiled egg on a cracker.

Abba (not that ABBA), the Kalles Kaviar manufacturer, also makes a salmon pate in the same recognizable tube, and pickled herring (in a jar, phew!). You can buy Kalles Kaviar on Amazon or at specialty retailers like Swedish Sweets & More or other stateside Swedish spots.