Prinskorv, köttbullar, lammstek and salmon fillet. Several of Sweden’s prisons serve really good food during the Christmas and New Year holidays. Samnytt has the menu for Sweden’s largest high-security prisons.

On Friday, we emailed and called all security class 1 facilities in the country, talked to the kitchen managers and asked about their weekend menus. And now we can tell you what is served at five of the seven.

Deer stew for New Year’s

Robin Hagman is the head chef at Kumlaanstalten. With over 700 places, it is Sweden’s by far largest high-security institution, more than twice as large as the next largest class 1 institution Hall.

– On Christmas Eve, the inmates get spaghetti and meat sauce for lunch. For the evening, they get prinskorv, meatballs, potatoes, herring and a little sour cream. A little warm Christmas food, he tells when Samnytt calls.

Unlike other institutions, Kumla serves Christmas-themed food throughout the Christmas weekend. Janssons frestelse is on the menu on Christmas Day and rice pudding on Boxing Day.

And the New Year’s menu makes your mouth water.

– For the New Year’s lunch, we have deer stew with parsnip puree, reveals Robin Hagman.

Three dietary options

Ronny Segevall is the head chef at Norrtäljeanstalten.

– The only days during the year that break the regular routines are Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve, he explains and explains that the inmates get Christmas food on Christmas Eve and lamb roast on New Year’s Eve.

Unlike the inmates at Kumla, the inmates have to settle for the regular menu on other days.

– The Correctional Services have three dietary options. We have what is called regular diet, pork-free diet and vegetarian diet. Those are the three options to choose from, he says.

– Then we consider allergies. Otherwise, there are three dietary options. You cannot switch between them, but you belong to one option.

Self-management

Marie Zetterström is the head chef at Salbergaanstalten. She explains that the institution applies self-management for most of its nearly 300 inmates.

– This means that the inmates themselves decide what food to cook and eat. Then we have a couple of institution houses that have food from us, she says.

The inmates who do not cook their own food get a Christmas buffet with Christmas food on Christmas Eve.

And on New Year’s Eve, it’s kebab stew with rice for lunch, and then chicken fillet with pepper sauce, potato gratin and cake for dinner in the evening.

– Normally they don’t get cake and chicken is quite popular, says Marie Zetterström.

Samnytt has not received a response from the Hällby and Saltvik institutions.