Fresh Green Herring, Herring Fillets (untreated) – Pickled Sweet and Sour

Please always make sure that the cold chain between the work steps is only interrupted as briefly as possible and that it is important that the fillets always come in a cold brine and in a cold vinegar stock so that no cooking process starts! Let's go: rinse the fresh fillets with cold water, let them drain!

While the fish drips off in the sieve after rinsing, you put the 90 grams of sea salt (non-iodized) in 1.5 liters of cold water and dissolve it by stirring. I use a lockable plastic container of L30xW20xH15 cm for this. This box is then sufficient for the entire amount of fish and the abundant ingredients. Then pat the fish dry with kitchen paper, "layers" in the brine and seal. Please make sure that the fish is completely covered with the brine! The fish is now in this condition for 5 days in the refrigerator!

The vegetables: Cut the peppers in half, clean, wash and cut across into strips approx. 5 mm wide. Peel the carrot, cut in half and cut across into pieces approx. 3 mm wide or slice thinly. Peel the onions and cut into rings or half rings approx. 4-5 mm wide. Slice the garlic and ginger. Press the juniper berries down with the flat knife.

The vinegar stock for itself: Caramelize the 2 tablespoons of brown sugar in a large enough saucepan and deglaze with the white wine, then add the 750 ml mineral water and then the 750 ml white wine vinegar, as well as all the other ingredients for the vinegar stock including vegetables . Bring everything to the boil and let simmer for 5 minutes, set aside in the pot and later chill for the third day! Here you can get an idea of ​​what the brew and later the herrings taste like, plus the salty note from the brine that the herrings have already soaked up. It can also be adjusted to your taste at this point!

The third and last day of the entire preparation: We now have the fillets in the brine and the cooled and finished vinegar in the pot! Remove the herrings from the brine, rinse the herrings under running water, drain and pat dry. Wipe the container dry briefly and add a soup ladle of stock with vegetables. Place a layer of herrings on top and repeat the process until all the herrings are COVERED in layers and "float" in the vinegar stock! Then put the lid on and let everything ferment / steep in the refrigerator for about 4 days. It should be layered in such a way that the vegetables separate the herrings a bit in layers!

Finally: These ready-made herring fillets can be used wonderfully as a starting product for a cream herring (herring fillet or herring tip in dill - yogurt - cream sauce, with bacon potatoes) or as herring in tomato-basil or mustard-dill sauce. You have a lot of leeway here for the basic product, as far as the mixing ratio of the brine (salt and water) and the vinegar stock (vinegar, water and white wine) is concerned, after you have tried it once! If ginger or garlic are more critical to you, first add it to the cold brew and do not boil it ... You see, just "play" with this recipe and have fun with the preparation!

You also get good double fillets as frozen goods, which please then completely defrost them beforehand, otherwise the fine meat can tear when the halves are folded apart! My next project will be the herring in cherry vinegar, with a sweet note of port wine! best regards