Everything You Need To Know About Dutch Herring

Eating Dutch herring in Amsterdam is a must-do for anyone visiting the Netherlands. There are herring stalls on street corners across the country, where you can purchase different types of herring. Together with the Dutch Expat Store we decided to go in to the story behind the infoumous herring. The Dutch have been eating and trading herring on a large scale since the golden age (1588-1672). People now savour this iconic delicacy all across the globe.

“Hollandse Nieuwe Haring” is a specific Dutch delicacy made from young herring. The Dutch food herring must be caught between mid-May and September to be considered Hollandse Nieuwe Haring. This ensures that they have a high-fat content of at least 16%. 

To legally count as Hollandse Nieuwe Haring, it must also be cleaned and prepared in a specific way. The cleaning method is known as gibbing and involves the following steps:

• The fish is cleaned. Part of the head and the entire intestines, heart and gills are removed. The pancreas and liver are both left in. These help during the curing process. 
• The fish is then lightly salted and left to season for a few days in big wooden barrels. The enzymes in the pancreas help this process, making the herring tender and flavourful. 
• The herring is frozen for at least 24 hours at -20℃ to kill parasites and meet health regulations. 
• Once the herring thaws, it is ready to be eaten. 

Since January 2016, Hollandse Nieuwe Haring has been designated as an EU ‘Guaranteed Traditional Speciality’. This designation means that the process and composition of the food are protected.  

The word maatje comes from the Dutch word maagd, which means virgin. Maatjesharing are young herring that do not yet contain a roe. In other words, they are virgin herring. This means that they are not yet ready to be eaten. Maatjesharing may not be sold under the name Hollandse Nieuwe Haring. 

Dutch herring is such an important part of Dutch culture that there is an entire day set aside to celebrate fishing for herring. This is known as Vlaggetjesdag, which translates to Flags Day in English. Flags Day has a long history that goes back to the 18th century. 

In the 18th century, due to overfishing of herring, there was a ban on the amount of herring that fishermen could catch. During that time, only ten boats were allowed to fish for herring each day. The first herring to be caught by any of these ten boats was traditionally awarded to someone with a high rank, for example, the mayor. 

The fishing villages enjoyed the presence of these high-ranking officials and would decorate the towns and the harbours with flags to welcome them. This explains the use of the word ‘flag’ on Flags Day. 

Flags Day is traditionally celebrated on the first day of the new herring catch. Harbour towns such as Scheveningen, Vlaardingen and Ijmuiden are typically decorated with the Dutch red, white and blue flags, and there are big auctions for the first barrels of Hollandse Nieuwe Herring. 

It is a Catholic tradition in the Netherlands, particularly in the South of the country, to eat herring during Carnival. Ash Wednesday is traditionally the beginning of Lent, after which no meat may be eaten until Easter. Herring was a good replacement for eating meat, so many families would eat herring during this time. Nowadays, the tradition of eating herring to usher in lent lives on. 

The most traditional method of eating herring is to pick it up by the tail, dangle it over your mouth and let it slide in. However, many people, especially tourists, turn their noses up at this. Nowadays, herring is often served in bite-sized pieces with pickles and onions. You are given a toothpick to eat this with. 

Eating herring with pickles and onion has a long history that goes back to the days when fish was not transported in refrigerators. The strong taste of the pickles and onions was intended to cover the taste of old fish. 

If you don’t fancy eating an entire raw fish by itself you can usually order a broodje haring instead. This is essentially herring in a bread roll. Not only does it cover the taste, but it also provides a more filling snack. 

Hollandse Nieuwe Herring only accounts for one-twentieth of the total permitted catch in the North Sea. This goes to show how popular herring is in many different forms. Some popular ways of processing herring include the following:

The vast majority of the permitted herring catch in the North Sea is turned into smoke herring. Cold-smoked herring is known as spekbokking in Dutch and can easily be ordered from the fishmongers. 

Canned herring accounts for a large part of the herring catch. There are so many different types of preserved and canned herrings, including: 

• Haringmootjes – herring picked in vinegar. This is typically used in a traditional salad that contains pickled herring, apples and onions1 
• Braadharing – fried herring in vinegar
• Bakbokking – lightly smoked herring perfect for frying and baking
• Schmaltz herring – a term once reserved for the fattiest of the herring catch is now used to mean herring preserved in oil
• Herring rolmops – this refers to herring fillets that are wrapped around a pickle sphere or gherkin.
• Herring in tomato sauce

Herring is an ingredient often found in Dutch salads. Dutch salads are typically made from a combination of finely chopped ingredients mixed in a creamy or mayonnaise-type sauce – reminiscent of potato salad or egg mayonnaise. They are spreadable and smooth. The Dutch use these salads in sandwiches or on crackers to provide a nutritious but delicious snack. 

Herring is used in several of these salads, with popular flavours including herring in dill sauce, a herring and beetroot salad, and simply chopped herring salad. 

The idea of the Dutch eating Dutch. Eating herring does not appeal to everyone. However, if you are in the Netherlands, it is worth giving this delicacy a try. Not only is it a beloved food globally, but it is also one of the most quintessentially Dutch foods to eat. So why not taste some and try it out? you can even order online by clicking the button below!