by Badger's mate » March 12th, 2020, 3:38 pm
I remember years ago the original guys at Cley smokehouse telling me they used Icelandic herring.
The article on the British Sea Fishing website is interesting, but red herrings are a real thing. They are (or at least were) a very heavily salted and smoked cure that preserved the fish for a prolonged period. I bought one maybe 30 years ago, in Yarmouth or Lowestoft iirc. It resembled a bloater in that it was intact and had the surprised look on its face, but was drier, firmer and indeed reddish.
There was in more recent times an inshore herring fishery on the Blackwater in Essex. It was MSC certified but I don't know if it's still going.
If I could choose only 8 species of animal to eat on my desert island, herrings would definitely be on the list, and quite possibly be the one if I were forced to be so limited. The wonderful array of smoked and pickled varieties, fresh fish, roes - I can't think of anything more versatile.