In Nova Scotia, Solomon Gundy is a cold appetizer of pickled herring and onion. A local herring processor has described its Solomon Gundy as made with locally caught herring, and a Lunenburg-area home recipe pairs salt herring with onion, vinegar, sugar and pickling spice. Family and producer methods vary. This quick home version starts with commercially prepared, ready-to-eat pickled herring, then adds onion and a lightly sweet spiced dressing.
The name is also used in Jamaica for a smoked-herring spread. This recipe is the Nova Scotia-style pickled-herring dish. Using ready-to-eat fish keeps the preparation straightforward and avoids treating a quick vinegar mixture as a safe way to cure raw fish. Serve chilled with crackers as a Maritime-style appetizer.
Step 1Keep the ready-to-eat pickled herring refrigerated at or below 4°C. Drain it, reserving 30 ml of the marinade, and cut the herring into bite-size pieces with clean utensils.
Step 2Put the vinegar, water, sugar and pickling spice in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stir until the sugar dissolves, then simmer for 2 minutes. Remove the spice or strain the dressing. Cool it completely; do not pour warm dressing over the fish.
Step 3Place the onion and drained herring in a clean bowl or glass dish. Pour over the completely cooled dressing and reserved herring marinade, then fold gently to coat.
Step 4Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes so the flavours combine. Keep the dish at or below 4°C; this short rest seasons ready-to-eat fish and is not a curing or preservation step.
Step 5Serve chilled with crackers, using a clean serving utensil. Return leftovers to refrigeration within 2 hours, follow the herring package's after-opening instructions, and do not keep the assembled dish longer than the product label allows.
Keep the unopened and opened herring refrigerated as directed on its package, and check the best-before date before buying. Prepare the onion and dressing with clean utensils, and do not return served food or a used utensil to the product container. Refrigerate the assembled dish within 2 hours and follow the package's after-opening storage directions. This is a same-day serving preparation, not a shelf-stable preserve. Do not substitute fresh raw herring or try to cure or bottle fish with this quick dressing.
Rounded generic ingredient estimate using pickled herring and crackers. Brands vary, especially in sodium; use package labels when precision matters. These values are not a laboratory analysis.
Herring is fish, and saltine crackers contain wheat/gluten; check all package labels for additional ingredients and cross-contact warnings. Buy commercially prepared ready-to-eat pickled herring and follow its package date and after-opening directions. Keep the fish and finished appetizer at or below 4°C, use clean utensils, and limit room-temperature exposure to 2 hours. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours and follow the product label for how long opened fish may be kept. Vinegar and a short refrigerator rest do not safely cure raw fish or make seafood shelf-stable. Do not use fresh/raw herring, can or bottle this recipe, or store it at room temperature.
No. The Nova Scotia preparation is pickled herring with onion, while the Jamaican dish with the same name is a smoked-herring spread. This recipe follows the Nova Scotia style.
