How to cook mincemeat from herring according to an old Jewish recipe

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Forshmak is an invention of the Ashkenazi Jews, that is, those Jews who, after the great dispersion, settled in the Rhine Valley. Living among the peoples that sheltered them, they adopted much from German, Swedish, French and Slavic cuisines. Yes, and the climatic conditions of the new homeland dictated their conditions, forcing the Ashkenazim to cook dishes from those products that were available. Sephardic Jews who fled to the Iberian Peninsula and North Africa did the same. But here we will not talk about the vicissitudes of the fate of the Jewish people, but about how to cook mincemeat from herring.

Alas and ah, the tradition of preparing this tsimes (appetizer) according to all the rules of kosher is almost forgotten. The dish was adopted by hostesses of all nationalities. Even the word "forshmak" is German. It means "snack". And the authentic name is “gehakte gering”, i.e. chopped herring. It is clear that over time, the dish "overgrown" with various German, Polish and even Russian innovations. But still, yes - in Odessa, in the Rosemary restaurant, cookingforshmak from herring is carried out according to an old recipe. Religious dietary requirements are respected here. It's not for nothing that the restaurant was awarded the title "Glat Kasher".

In ancient Jewish cookbooks there are such entries about how to cook forshmak from herring: "You need to soak the fish in cold tea brew." This wish applies only to Ivasi canned herring, which were sold during the Soviet Union. Soaking in tea was necessary to remove excess s alt and make the fish tender. If you have a Norwegian herring carcass - silvery, fatty, slightly iridescent, then you can omit this appetizer overture.

How to cook Jewish mincemeat from herring, what products are needed? In addition to the Norwegian fish, the most domestic ones. Onions, garlic, butter or margarine (only parve - on vegetable fats). We also need a sour apple - it is best to take the Simirenka variety. You can not do without spices: coriander, black ground pepper, ginger powder. But adding hard-boiled eggs to a snack is a German or Polish addition.

Having stocked up with everything you need, we begin our culinary master class "How to cook mincemeat from herring." We select all the bones from the fish - a dreary, but necessary task. Next, grind two-thirds of the fillet in a blender, and cut the rest by hand into small pieces. We chop two cloves of garlic, peel the apple and free it from the fruitboxes. Puree apple, garlic, spices in a blender. Chop the onion separately. We combine these two components together with most of the herring. Beat butter or margarine in a mixer to make a sort of protein cream. Add it to the forshmak. Cut half an apple without the skin into small cubes. Now we should think about how to make the mincemeat airy. It should not be homogeneous; pieces of herring and fruit should be clearly felt in the mouth. The remaining fish, which is cut into pieces, and half of the apple are mixed into the total mass and beat. Now we s alt, but carefully. Now you know how to cook herring mincemeat.