April 21, 2023

Not Your Mother's Herring


Not Your Mother's Herring
Dressed herring. Wikimedia Commons.

Herring under a fur coat, a revered and traditional Russian dish, is savored by the masses on both extraordinary and everyday occasions. In honor of the iconic delicacy, RIA Novosti reported how renowned chefs at Moscow's finest eateries have put their unique spin on the beloved fish dish.

Uley: Denis Korolkov's stove-smoked herring under a fur coat

Ingredients:
Boiled potatoes - 60g
Homemade mayonnaise - 50g
Boiled carrots - 30g
Herring fillet - 80g
Garlic - 2g
Black caviar - 5g
Red onion - 1g
Dill - 1g
Oil with herbs - 1g

For decoration:
Black caviar - 10g
Parsley, dill - 2g
Butter with herbs - 5g

Directions:
Place the chopped, boiled vegetables, herring, and egg into a glass jar in this sequence: potatoes, carrots, herring fillets, potatoes, herring fillets again, then beets. Separate each layer with a layer of mayonnaise.

Decorate with shredded egg in a pyramid shape, and pile caviar, dill, parsley, and green oil on top. Before serving, fill the jar with smoke from the stove and roll.

On a separate plate, make three canapés with the herring on buckwheat toast, decorating them with caviar, onions, and herbs.

Dizengoff/99: Viktor Sinelnikov's forshmak

Ingredients:
Herring fillet - 250g
Red onion - 50g
Apple - 200g
Butter - 70g
Eggs - 3
Mayonnaise - 70g

Directions:
Chop up the boiled eggs and dice the remaining ingredients. Combine everything with room-temperature butter.

For the mayonnaise, whisk an egg with mustard, salt, lemon juice, and vegetable oil. The mixture should turn thick. You can season it with olive oil, salt, and lemon juice to your liking.

Plate the mixture with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of green onions. Serve with slices of Borodinsky bread

Expedition: Yuri Sysoev's herring with warm potatoes and horseradish

Ingredients
Olyutorskaya herring - 4 pieces
Potato - 500g
Horseradish - 10g

For the brine:
Water - 2L
Sugar - 60g
Sea salt - 140g
Bay leaf - 3 leaves
Sweet pea pepper - 4 peppers
Cloves - 3 pieces
Cinnamon - to taste

Directions:
Rinse and dry the Olyutorskaya herring. Bring the water to a boil, and add all of the spices. Let it cool and then pour over the fish. Leave the dish in the refrigerator for five days.

Fillet the herring into chunks and serve with chopped horseradish and fresh, warm potatoes.

You Might Also Like

Eat. Bake. Protest.
  • January 25, 2023

Eat. Bake. Protest.

How a woman from Moscow turned a cake business into an anti-war protest and helped charities.
Food, Dance, Poets
  • January 25, 2023

Food, Dance, Poets

In which we review books about food, dance, poetry, and Stalin.
A Glutton's New Year Feast
  • January 01, 2022

A Glutton's New Year Feast

The pirog is quite capable of holding the flag as the most important dish in Russian cuisine. It is a filling, generous, and hearty meal, containing all the major food groups (vegetables, animal protein, grains, and bread) rolled up in one.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Bilingual series of short, lesser known, but highly significant works that show the traditional view of Dostoyevsky as a dour, intense, philosophical writer to be unnecessarily one-sided. 
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
Fearful Majesty

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.
How Russia Got That Way

How Russia Got That Way

A fast-paced crash course in Russian history, from Norsemen to Navalny, that explores the ways the Kremlin uses history to achieve its ends.
Jews in Service to the Tsar

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.
Russian Rules

Russian Rules

From the shores of the White Sea to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus, Russian Rules is a high-speed thriller based on actual events, terrifying possibilities, and some really stupid decisions.
Driving Down Russia's Spine

Driving Down Russia's Spine

The story of the epic Spine of Russia trip, intertwining fascinating subject profiles with digressions into historical and cultural themes relevant to understanding modern Russia. 
Okudzhava Bilingual

Okudzhava Bilingual

Poems, songs and autobiographical sketches by Bulat Okudzhava, the king of the Russian bards. 
At the Circus (bilingual)

At the Circus (bilingual)

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.
Woe From Wit (bilingual)

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.
A Taste of Russia

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.
Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka
November 01, 2012

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.

A Taste of Russia
November 01, 2012

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.

Russian Rules
November 16, 2011

Russian Rules

From the shores of the White Sea to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus, Russian Rules is a high-speed thriller based on actual events, terrifying possibilities, and some really stupid decisions.

White Magic
June 01, 2021

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.

Frogs Who Begged...
November 01, 2010

Frogs Who Begged...

The fables of Ivan Krylov are rich fonts of Russian cultural wisdom and experience – reading and understanding them is vital to grasping the Russian worldview. This new edition of 62 of Krylov’s tales presents them side-by-side in English and Russian. The wonderfully lyrical translations by Lydia Razran Stone are accompanied by original, whimsical color illustrations by Katya Korobkina.

At the Circus
January 01, 2013

At the Circus

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.

Steppe
July 15, 2022

Steppe

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.

The Moscow Eccentric
December 01, 2016

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955