Salată cu Scrumbie de Dunăre afumată IGP (Smoked Danube shad salad)

Salată cu Scrumbie de Dunăre afumată IGP is a measured home salad built around the Romanian protected product Scrumbie de Dunăre afumată. It combines flakes of smoked Danube shad with potatoes, red onion, pickled gherkins, olives and fresh herbs. Romanian food writing describes smoked shad with onion and pickles, and a local guide notes potato-and-dill salad variations. This version brings those documented pairings together in a four-serving side dish; its measured proportions are an editorial adaptation, not a single official or universal Danube Delta formula.

The protected name belongs to the smoked fish, not to every salad made with it. The European Union specification identifies whole Pontic shad from the Danube Delta, salted and cold-smoked in the defined area. The fish is sold whole, scaled and gutted, within a specified 250–400 g range. The registered product has a uniform golden metallic surface and a lightly salted smoked flavor. Buy a package bearing the exact IGP name and use it only if its label says it is ready to eat as sold. This recipe does not explain or reproduce the protected smoking process.

The published salad references provide ingredient patterns but not a standardized quantity list. The weights, yield and times below are therefore practical home measurements. One whole fish within the product's specified weight range is paired with 300 g potatoes and measured amounts of onion, gherkins, olives, herbs and dressing. Smoked shad, pickles and olives can all contribute salt, so the recipe asks you to taste before adding the small measured salt amount. Do not add an unlisted lemon, garnish or bread to the locked formula.

Keep the fish refrigerated according to its package while the potatoes cook. Check the label's use-by date and after-opening instructions; those directions control because retail packages can differ. Refrigerated smoked seafood also needs special care for people at increased risk of listeriosis. USDA FSIS advises those groups not to eat refrigerated smoked seafood cold unless it is included in a cooked dish. This recipe is served cold or warm, not cooked after assembly, so people in those groups should choose another dish.

Start the potatoes in cold water so they heat evenly. After the water boils, lower the heat to a steady simmer and begin checking at 15 minutes. The largest potato should be easy to pierce with a knife or fork but should still hold its shape. Drain promptly and spread the potatoes out so steam can escape. Cut them while warm; a warm surface takes up some dressing without turning the pieces to mash.

Remove the skin and backbone from the smoked shad, then inspect each piece for small pin bones before flaking. Work over a clean board and keep the fish cold until you are ready to assemble. The product specification describes a whole fish, so taking time to check the flesh is part of the preparation. Use clean hands and utensils, and wash the board and knife after handling the fish.

Slice the red onion and pickled gherkins thinly so they distribute through the potatoes; halve the olives and chop the parsley and dill. Whisk the measured olive oil, balsamic vinegar and pepper before dressing the salad. Taste the dressing with a small piece of fish and pickle first. Add up to 1 g salt only if the mixture needs it, then fold everything gently so the shad remains in large flakes and the potatoes keep their shape.

Serve the salad promptly while the potatoes are warm, or chill it if preferred, keeping it within the package's handling conditions. Do not leave the perishable salad at room temperature for more than two hours. Refrigerate leftovers in a shallow covered container within that limit and use them within 3–4 days, unless the opened fish package specifies an earlier limit. Keep the refrigerator at or below 4 °C. This recipe has no separate reheating or freezing step.