Every Saturday when Lazy Penguin and I went to the open market with Mom, we would buy two herrings. One for Lazy Penguin to eat on the spot and one to take home for Dad. Dad is a big fan of herring, so whenever he is back in The Netherlands he will eat some herring. And of course he eats it the official way:
Have you ever tried the fatty pickled herring topped with raw onions, a ‘Hollandse Nieuwe’? I crave it so now and then. Especially when they are selling new ones again. Every year in June new herring will be sold again. That’s because the fishermen can get the most fatty (16%+) herring mid-May till the end of June. They will pickle them and we have a whole supply of herring for the rest of the year.
Taste
A herring can be salty, but that depends on how long is has been pickled in the barrel. The fresher the herring, the less salty. The texture is fatty and a bit fishy. The raw onions counters the fishy and salty taste.
Lazy Penguin and I also made a video about haring. We visited a fish store in Rotterdam and ate some herring.
Dutch Delights is a video series about all the delicious foods in the Netherlands. The next topic will be DROP aka licorice, my favorite candy in the world.
Have a good weekend my dear readers!
