Russians loves herring. Maybe not as much as the Scandinavians, but the herring is a frequent guest at our table. Best herring – from the barrel, salted or spiced cured. Herring fillet with lots of onions and unrefined sunflower oil – one of the best appetizer (zakuska) to vodka. Another popular dish – herring under a fur coat, I was preparing to celebrate the New Year’s Day in Russian style. This version of the marinade for salted herring, I found the Russian-language blog, therefore I can not vouch for the authenticity, but this is great thing anyway.

Yield: 3 servings

large salted (not marinated!) Herring, fillet (about 6 oz.)
1 small carrot, grated
1 small onion, finely sliced, I used red onion
half of lemon
1 tsp. sugar
10 peppercorns
3 bay leaves

Cut herring fillet in bite-size pieces. Place in a jar in layers: bay leaf, slice of lemon, about 1-2 tbsp. of grated  carrot, a couple onion rings. Sprinkle with peppers and half teaspoon of sugar, puts a layer of herring pieces. Repeat. Cover with lemon and bay leaf. Order of layers does not matter, everything can be simply mixed together. Close the lid tight and put jar  in fridge. The herring will be ready in 2-3 days.

1 serving equals 150 calories