---
title: "Krondill: what it means in cooking — Tiny Plates"
description: "Krondill is dill gone to flower, with yellow seed crowns and tough stalks. It flavors Swedish crayfish and pickles. What to use instead abroad."
url: "https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/krondill"
---

# Krondill

Krondill is dill gone to flower, with yellow seed crowns and tough stalks. It flavors Swedish crayfish and pickles. What to use instead abroad.

Also called Crown dill, Dill crowns, Flowering dill.

_Krondill_ means "crown dill". It is dill that has been left to grow tall and flower, so it has thick stalks topped with flat, yellow-green umbrellas of flowers and young seeds, the "crowns". It smells and tastes stronger than leafy dill, sweeter and more like anise and caraway. In Sweden it is sold in large [bunches](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/bunch) in late summer, just in time for crayfish parties and pickling.

## How to use it

Krondill is used for its aroma, not eaten. Recipes use the crowns and stalks, and you take them out before serving.

* **Crayfish.** For the classic _kräftor_, boil water with salt, a little sugar, sometimes beer, and a big handful of krondill. Cook the crayfish in this [brine](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/brine), then let them cool in it overnight with more fresh crowns.
* **Pickles.** Put a few crowns in each jar of cucumber or beet pickles, with a vinegar brine made from [ättika](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/attika). See [pickle](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/pickle).
* **Boiled potatoes.** Add a crown to the water for new potatoes.
* **Shrimp and other shellfish.** Use it in the cooking water.

## Substitutes

Outside Scandinavia, look for flowering dill at farmers' markets in summer, or let dill in your garden go to seed. If you cannot find it:

* Use fresh dill stalks and fronds plus 1 teaspoon dill seeds for each bunch of krondill the recipe asks for. The stalks carry flavor through long cooking, and the seeds add the anise note of the crowns.
* Fresh dill alone is milder. Use plenty and add a little more at the end.
* A few fennel or caraway seeds can help, but use them sparingly.

## How to store it

Wrap krondill loosely in a damp towel and keep it in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. It also freezes well. Freeze whole crowns in bags in August and use them straight from frozen in stock or pickles.

## In recipes

Swedish recipes usually count krondill in crowns (_kronor_) or bunches. Leafy dill, _dill_, is a different item in the shop. Use leafy dill for sauces such as dill and [gräddfil](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/graddfil) dip, and krondill for brines and cooking water. Crayfish are [crustaceans](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/crustaceans), a common allergen.

## Related terms

* [PickleTo pickle is to preserve food in an acidic liquid, either vinegar or a salty brine that ferments. Quick fridge pickles are ready in an hour or less.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/pickle)
* [ÄttikaÄttika is Swedish 12 percent vinegar, more than twice as strong as US white vinegar. How to use it in pickles and herring, and how to swap it abroad.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/attika)
* [BunchA bunch is fresh herbs or vegetables sold tied together. Sizes vary from shop to shop, so here is roughly how much a recipe means by one.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/bunch)
* [BrineA brine is salt dissolved in water. Soaking meat in it for hours makes it juicier and seasons it through. Here are the ratios, times and safety rules.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/brine)
* [CrustaceansCrustaceans are shellfish with jointed shells, such as shrimp, crab, lobster and crayfish. They are a major allergen in both the EU and the US.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/crustaceans)
* [GräddfilGräddfil is Swedish sour cream, thick and tangy with about 12 percent fat. Use it in dips and toppings. What to use instead outside Scandinavia.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/graddfil)

[More in nordic ingredients](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/category/nordic-ingredients)[Every term from A to Z](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary)