Recipe

Herring with Sweet Carrots

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Photo by Ausra

This recipe was entered in the contest for Your Best Carrot Recipe
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Ausra's Notes: It's a traditional Lithuanian dish that is usually prepared for Christmas Eve, when no meat or dairy dishes are allowed. It is important to use the best herring you could find; you might want...
It's a traditional Lithuanian dish that is usually prepared for Christmas Eve, when no meat or dairy dishes are allowed. It is important to use the best herring you could find; you might want to visit a Eastern European or Russian food store, if you have one in your area, as they usually have an abundance of good quality herring available.

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Serves 6

6 large carrots Ask a question about this ingredient

1 sweet onion Ask a question about this ingredient

4 herring filets Ask a question about this ingredient

2 tablespoons vegetable oil Ask a question about this ingredient

1 tablespoon brown sugar Ask a question about this ingredient

4 tablespoons ketchup Ask a question about this ingredient

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon Ask a question about this ingredient

pinch salt Ask a question about this ingredient

freshly ground pepper Ask a question about this ingredient

Peel and shred the carrots using large holes of box shredder or a food processor.
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Slice the onion in 3 mm-thick half-circle slices (or you can chop it, if you wish)
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In saute pan heat the oil on medium high heat. Add carrots, onion, sugar and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until carrots are soft and the onion is translucent, about 7-10 minutes.
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Add ketchup to the pan, stir well to incorporate. Add cinnamon. Season with more salt and pepper. Off the heat - let it cool completely.
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Remove the skin and thin bones from herring filets. Slice filets into 5 mm-wide slices and lay them snugly in a single layer on a large serving plate.
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Top the layer of herring slices with cool carrot-onion mixture.
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Best served with steamed buttered potatoes, potato latkes or with thick slice of hearty rye bread. Enjoy!
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5 Comments on Herring with Sweet Carrots

VanessaS added about 1 year ago

This looks so interesting - we always have herring on Christmas Eve too and this seems like a great way to make it a little more exciting!

Sagegreen added about 1 year ago

Lovely. This looks a little similar to the herring under a fur coat from Belarus with beets.

Ausra added about 1 year ago

Dear Greenstuff, I usually use brined herring (the one that comes out of the big wooden barrels), but you can successfully use pickled herring that is usually sold in jars, with white wine sauce, or with mustard seeds, or any other variety that you might like;
and about the use of ketchup in Lithuanian cooking - it is used EVERYWHERE, even on PIZZA!!!

Greenstuff added about 1 year ago

Thanks! I love herring. Ketchup, not so much, personally, but I had a feeling you might tell me it was a Baltic favorite!

Greenstuff added about 1 year ago

This recipe looks really interesting--I have a couple questions that I thought I'd post here rather than on Foodpickle. Is it with salt (brined) herring? Not pickled, canned, or fresh? And is ketchup used frequently in Lithuanian food? Thanks!