Category Archives: Pori Tori

Nutrition at the Pori Jazz festival 2012.

I went out to the Jazz festival to see what types of activities were on, and what kind of food venues, food service and snacks was available for the public at the market streets.

As usual the Pori market square (Pori tori) had a vast supply of fresh fruit and vegetables available, for everyday nutritional needs, and fresh fish and cooked fish products.  Many fresh flower stalls, craft and art items, and household items and summer wear also.

I found a lot of a lot of information on government services and local business, as a trade show there was a lot of brochures, refreshments and information packs, ranging from the Custom services to the protected National parks and wild life.

At the jazz street, on the south bank of the Kokemaki River, there are many food stalls and services, one in particular has fine dried berries and fruits, large range of nuts.  Also marinated and stuffed olives, and many great flavor filled items to add to your summer salad ingredients, available from the Pori farmers market.  Natural candy cherries, candied cranberries, dried strawberries, mango, kiwi fruits, sour cherries and pineapples, is a great good health alternative to the common food additive and color lollies, natural fruit and berries dried for snack foods.

Fresh salad ingredients, and marinated ingredients, add them to your summer salad table daily. Tomato salad, with fresh basil, Feta cheese and vinaigrette dressing.  Boiled new potatoes, fresh mint, boiled eggs, dried apricot pieces, and mixture of almonds and hazelnuts, with a french dressing and a baguette.  Many other suggestions by adding fruit and nut ingredients to a fresh fruit salad.

Pori Jazz week offers many family activities and entertainment, free concerts at various stages during the day time,  As always at the same time pick up some fresh fruit and vegetables, fresh fish products and flowers at bargain prices from the Pori Tori. By doing this you are supporting the local farmers markets, local food producers and small business operators, all in the name of Traditional Culture, Health and Nutrition.

Pori Tori.

The Pori Tori is a market square in the city of Pori, on the west coast of Finland.

There are various types of stalls at the Pori tori, depending on the season and the time of the year.  It is open through the year, there are many flowers stalls, fresh fish, fruit & vegetables, handcrafts, second-hand items/books, baked goods, and a cafe.  It is open Mon-Saturday; morning 7:00 am until noon, pack up/closing time about 2:00 pm.

I visited the Pori Tori today, and it was good to see that the new products in this spring season are well on their way.

Already there were new season local fresh herbs and local tomatoes available for sale at the Pori tori, and as usual, the quality was excellent.  There was an excellent supply of fresh fish and also smoked fish products.  Potatoes and carrots also available from the previous season at the Pori tori, the quality of the vegetables looks excellent, I was told by one vendor that the potatoes are stored underground in a cellar, that is the traditional storage method of fruit and vegetables here in the Nordic region of Finland.  The beauty of an underground cellar is that no electrical motors are running 24/7 12 months of the year (e.g., cool rooms/fridges), so there is no energy consumption, other than lighting, e.g., when fetching supplies from the cellar.

Pori Tori, market square.

As the spring warms up and the summer arrives the fresh ingredients will continue to build up and increase at the Pori Tori.

The season usually peaks in the middle/end of summer as the berry and mushroom season peaks and tapers down in August-Sep.  The new potatoes season that comes onto the market at Pori tori is a Menu favorite for many; e.g., Boiled new potatoes (halved), boiled eggs (9 minutes), chives with tomato, cucumber (seeded), red onion salad and citrus chive olive oil vinaigrette. Served with pieces of smoked salmon or Baltic herrings, yum yum.

Recipe Idea:

New potatoes start in cold salted water, bring to simmer, turn off heat allow to soften with a lid on until just perfect al dente. Allow cooling a few minutes and portion the potatoes into1/4 pieces. Add some olive oil and toss lightly, let the potatoes absorb the olive oil for a few minutes. Crack some pepper as well if so desired.

Salad:  Dice cucumber 1cm x1 cm (remove seeds), tomato 1cm x 1cm, red onion 5mm x 5mm, chop chives into 1mm bits,  add some dressing to it when ready for service.

Eggs: Bring water to boil, prick the end of each egg with the point of a sharp knife (to let air out as they cook). Place the eggs into the boiling water, cook for 9 minutes sharp. Remove eggs and place into cold water, refresh.  Peel eggs after about 5-10 minute wait, then cut the peeled eggs into 1/2, lengthwise.  Use a little Turku mustard to add flavor to the eggs.

Smoked fish:  Salmon; break up the fillet along the grains into 2-3 cm pieces.  Smoked Baltic herrings; peel off the skin, remove the sides from the backbone, remove the stomach cavity.

Dressing: Place lemon juice, sugar, salt, and vinegar into a blender, run the mixer and add the olive to it slowly so that the emulsion becomes light.

Presentation:

Place potatoes onto a clean plate, add the salad (ready dressed) on top, followed by the egg halves, and the portions of the smoked fish.  Garnish with some chives and a lemon wedges.