My wonderful boyfriend spent the last week in Iceland doing a tour with his comedy group. I really hoped that he would bring me some Hákarl, but he couldn't find any, so he brought me a jar of Jólasíldin instead.
Jólasíldin translates to Christmas herring. It looks similar to Vita pickled herring: Bite-sized pieces of fish floating in a clear wine brine, but it is far, far more delicious. Along with the fish there are bay leaves, onions, and what appear to be red peppercorns and cranberry/lingon berries.
The flavor is sweet, sour, and savory with a little kick from the pepper. The fish is tender but not slimy, and seems to make a good sandwich. Because of the strong flavors, however, I don't think it's something I could eat too much of at a time.
I would love to know how this is supposed to be eaten (if there is a way.) But for now I'm happy eating it on toast!
Merry Christmas everyone! :D
i spend a holiday in copenhagen, and they serve something very similar (if not exactly the same) for breakfast. they eat it on a dark rye bread. delicious! in germany we also have pickled herring, and we eat it with boiled potatoes and a green salad for a very simple dish.
ReplyDeleteOooh thanks for the info! I can imagine the pickled herring tastes great both ways.
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