Victor Sack wrote:
> Phred > wrote:
>
> > When you say "right out of the barrel", are you referring to salted
> > fish/fillets?
>
> Yes. It is a young virginal Dutch herring which is lightly salted and
> stored in barrels for a few days only, just enough to ferment the gut
> enzymes (it is only those enzymes that ferment, not the fish itself, as
> would be the case with the Swedish surstr=F6mming which many people
> consider just rotten :-). Matjes is still practically raw.
>
> > I notice that the restaurant you mentioned above says:
> >
> > "Matjes Herring fillets - salted herring with chopped onions, spelt
> > bread and salad"
> >
> > Assuming the possibility of finding them here in a deli or similar,
> > what preparation is needed of those "salted herring" fillets before
> > dining on it?
>
> Be sure it is indeed labelled "matjes", not just "salted herring" which
> is different. Matjes fillets need no preparation and can be eaten "as
> is" (it's the same with "salted herring", too). However, most often
> matjes is served with onion rings or chopped onions, and black rye bread
> of the pumpernickel type. You can also add sour cream. Or you can make
> a salad with matjes containing all or any of the following: pickled
> cucumbers, sour apples, boiled potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, boiled, baked
> or pickled beetroots, sour cream, mayonnaise, vinegar, salt and pepper.

Matjes simply means herring that has not yet spawned... young herring
that is less fatty and more tender than mature herring... the
antithesis of schmaltz herring... is prepared in as many ways as any
other herring, salted, brined, pickled, even cooked in cans. In the US
matjes is typically offered pickled in wine sauce, whole or fillet
halves. Nowadays in the US matjes is difficut to find other than cut
into small bits in a jar, and even jarred is becoming less available.
NYC appetizing stores usually carry matjes but there are fewer and
fewer of those now too... there are still some old fahioned appetizing
stores in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, the Russian enclave... there one
can still find the real deal matjes, imported in wooden barrels from
the Baltics. There they will slice and add the sauce, and onions too
if you ask. I don't much care for matjes with pickled onions, if I
have onions at all I prefer they be fresh sliced raw.... if you see
that the matjes is displayed mixed with the onions don't buy, the
pickled onions should be taken from their own separate container. I
also prefer the whole matjes, has better texture than the fillets
(firmer), and a whole matjes costs the same as a fillet so is a better
deal price wise too, a whole fish instead of just a half... I don't
mind working around the bones. I much prefer my bialy and a schmear
with matjes than lox.

Sheldon