Pickling Your Own Herring Food

PICKLED HERRING

Steps:

• Soak the herring in the milk for at least 12 hours or up to 24 to draw out a lot of the excess salt. Drain the herring, rinse, and pat dry. Cut off the fins and fillet the herring, leaving the skin on. Cut the fillets crosswise into 2-inch strips.
• In a saucepan, combine the water, sugar, vinegar, allspice, mustard seeds, caraway seeds, and peppercorns. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat and cool the pickling mixture completely.
• Arrange the herring fillets, onion, carrots, dill, bay leaves, and horseradish in a glass dish or funky Mason jar. Pour the cooled pickling mixture into the jar so that all the ingredients are completely covered with the liquid. Cover and refrigerate overnight or up to 2 days before serving.

PICKLED HERRING

Steps:

• Soak the fillets in a bowl of cold water in the refrigerator for 12 to 24 hours.
• Change water twice.
• To make the pickling solution, combine water, vinegar, seasonings and sugar in a saucepan; bring to a boil.
• Stir to dissolve sugar; let cool.
• Rinse the fillets with cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
• Cut fish in 1-inch pieces removing bones.
• Peel and slice onion.
• Separate slices into rings.
• Arrange herring and onion rings in alternate layers in sterilized jars.
• Cover with pickling solution and cap.
• Refrigerate at least 3 days before serving.
• The herring will keep up to 3 weeks refrigerated.

PICKLING YOUR OWN HERRING

Steps:

• 1. Remove the heads from the herring and scale the fish. Wash well, open them, and remove the milt (roe of male fish). Clean the fish well, drain. Lay the herring and milt in water to cover in the refrigerator overnight.
• 2. The next day rub the milt glands through a sieve or mash them well, and mix with 1 tablespoon of the sugar and a few tablespoons of the vinegar.
• 3. Place in a 1 1/2-quart jar in layers the herring, onion, lemon slices, cloves, peppercorns, and bay leaves.
• 4. Add the milt gland mixture, the remaining vinegar, and as much of the remaining sugar as your taste dictates.
• 5. Cover the jar and keep in the refrigerator for at least 4 days.

PICKLED HERRING

Steps:

• Put some salt in bottom of small bowl. Place fish skin down. Continue layering fish and salt finishing with a layer of salt. Put weight (dish or plate) on top and refrigerate for 4 to 5 days. Wash herring well and skin. Soak in cold water 1 hour, changing 3 to 4 times. Cut in 1-inch pieces. Drain and pat dry. Boil 3 tablespoons water with 1 teaspoon allspice. Add sugar, vinegar, bay leaves and pepper. Mix until sugar is dissolved. In a one quart jar put 2 cups pickling solution, some onions and herring pieces, laying them and topping with onions. Fill to top with solution. Keep in tightly closed jar in refrigerator 2 to 3 days until ready to serve.

PICKLED HERRING

Steps:

• Dissolve 3 tablespoons of the salt in 3 cups of cold water.
• Put the herring in the salt water, cover and refrigerate for 12 hours.
• Put the remaining salt, the vinegar, sugar, allspice berries, peppercorns, and bay leaves in a small saucepan with 1 cup of water.
• Stir this mixture over med/high heat until the sugar dissolves, then remove from the heat and cool.
• Remove the herring from the salt water and put in a shallow baking dish.
• Put the onions on top of the fish, then pour in the pickling mixture.
• Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• Serve right from the dish, yum!

PICKLED HERRING CANAPES

Steps:

• Spread the bread with the butter, cut into twelve 2-inch squares, and press the buttered side of the bread gently into the parsley to coat it. In a small bowl combine well the radish and the onion and divide the mixture among the bread squares. Roll up each herring strip into a coil and arrange the herring and the capers decoratively on the bread.
• The canapés may be made 30 minutes in advance and kept covered and chilled. Arrange the canapés on a platter.