A customer service representative with Automated Health Systems (AHS) in East Providence, Rhode Island, Ian Chinich played a key role in the rollout of the Affordable Care Act. In July 2021, Ian Chinich traveled to Iceland, where he visited various attractions and sampled culinary traditional dishes such as hakarl, or fermented shark.
Iceland’s national dish of Kæster Hákarl (shortened to hakarl) has deep roots in the country’s traditions and history. Centuries ago, the country’s cold temperatures made fresh food scarce. Looking for an alternative to fish, Iceland’s earliest residents discovered the Greenland shark, which weighed an average of 1,700 pounds and measured roughly 24 feet. Unfortunately, the shark contains high concentrations of uric acid and trimethylamine oxide, which are toxic for human consumption.
Early Icelanders developed a method of preservation that neutralizes these chemicals. After beheading the animal, they place the shark in a shallow hole in the sand, then cover it with stones and gravel to drain liquid from the body. For six to 12 weeks, the meat marinates in its own ammonia and uric acid, before being cut into strips and hung to dry. Several months later, the hakarl should smell like rancid cheese, which indicates it is ready to eat.
