Matjes salad with apple and fennel

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 4 herring fillets, e.g. Glückstädter
• 1 small fennel bulb(s), approx. 100 – 150 g each
• 1 large spring onion(s)
• 1 green apple, e.g. Granny Smith
• 1 tbsp, heaped dill, fresh, finely chopped, out of season frozen
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• ½ lemon(s), organic, zest
• 100 ml orange juice
• 1 tbsp sugar, brown or white, depending on your preference
• 2 pinches of cayenne pepper
• n. B. Sea salt and black pepper, freshly ground, to taste
• 1 tbsp rapeseed oil, high quality
• 1 tbsp butter for frying

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Rest time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 15 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 5 minutes

a fresh, fruity, fennel-flavored and light matjes salad in northern German

Halve the fennel and cut out the tough stem. Remove any dry bits and trim the tips, if necessary. Cut the fennel into small pieces, ideally 5 x 10 mm in size. Separate and trim the green and white parts of the spring onions. Halve the white part lengthwise and cut into thin strips. Cut the green part into medium-sized rings. Do not peel the green apple; cut it into eighths and remove the core. Cut the eighths into thin slices, approximately 3-4 mm thick. Wash the lemon thoroughly. Place the apple slices in a small bowl and grate the lemon zest over them. Add the tablespoon of lemon juice and toss the apples thoroughly. This will, among other things, prevent the apple from turning brown. Briefly rinse the herring fillets, dry them with kitchen paper, halve them lengthwise, and cut into bite-sized pieces. Set the fillets aside for a moment. If fresh dill is available, finely chop it, including the stem. This retains most of the flavor. Melt the butter in a non-stick pan over 3/4 heat. Add the fennel and the white strips of the spring onion. Sprinkle the sugar over the vegetables and let them caramelize briefly, tossing the vegetables. Deglaze the pan with the orange juice and add the cayenne pepper. Continue simmering the vegetables until the orange juice is almost completely evaporated. Turn off the heat and add the apple slices. Toss everything thoroughly in the warm pan. Remove the pan from the heat and let the contents cool. Add the green leek rings, herring, and dill to the now-cold ingredients. Drizzle over the rapeseed oil and toss the salad. Season the salad generously with black pepper and carefully with freshly ground sea salt. Please be careful with the salt, as depending on the quality of the herring, the saltiness can vary from “mild” to “extreme.” We serve this with hearty, crusty brown bread with plenty of butter. Toast is a lighter option. A fried egg always goes with it and a homemade gherkin tops it all off.