If there’s one fish which symbolises the downfall of the British consumer’s seafood eating culture, it’s the herring. Most definitely. An affordable protein staple for centuries, whole communities were founded on its capture, processing and sale. The very coastline and infrastructure that we enjoy today has in places been heavily influenced by this ‘King of the Sea’ from the Shetlands to Lands End. Indeed, so abundant were the glistening, dense shoals that migrated on their seasonal journey southwards to spawn, that a colossal industry was born and the rights to the landings protected fiercely.

The British herring industry reached its nadir in the early 1900’s with the Herring Industry Board regulation production and volume across the UK (https://eastcoastavocet.com/2018/03/31/the-fish-that-made-history) with over 12000 fishermen actively engaged in its harvest. Legions of Scottish fisher girls would follow the fleets as they steamed after the ever-moving fish; gutting, cleaning and packing.

The herring was an institution. Whether smoked, baked, pickled, salted or dried, the nutrition afforded by this iconic species, allowed everyday folk to eat wildly and well. Over time however, technology improved, efficiency doubled and by the end of the Second World War catches were going into decline. Overfishing eventually took its toll and by the late 1970’s a total ban on landing herring was introduced in the North Sea to allow stocks to recover. However, a whole generation would miss out on the opportunity to enjoy herring, as silently they disappeared from fishmongers’ slabs across the UK.

So to celebrate this incredible nutritious ‘superfish’, here’s a recipe to tempt your taste buds, using a gem of a cook book that was bought for me and that describes just how important this fish was to the national diet back in the pre-war 1930’s.

I was given this book, (well, more of a pamphlet) - The New Herring Book, published in 1938, which is full of ‘scores of nutritious herring recipes.’ Here’s just one, which really brings out the flavour and uses the whole fish in a lovely hour of easy to prepare, seafood theatre.

Baked Herring with Lemon and Tomatoes

Serves 2

Ingredients

4 whole new season herrings, (gutted and cleaned)

2 lemons, cut into wedges

4 large tomatoes (halved)

2 tsps butter

Sea salt

Black pepper

4 cocktail sticks

Method

Take the herrings and if necessary, clean further by washing in cold water and removing any remaining scales with a scaler or the back of a kitchen knife.

Score the flanks of the herring each side and spread a little butter in the body cavities. Squeeze a little lemon over the fish and season well with salt and pepper. Skewer the heads and tails of the herring together using the cocktail sticks and place in a foil lined baking dish with enough foil to create a parcel.

Tip

If using whole fresh herrings that you need to gut, keep the roes back, then dry them and add a squeeze of lemon juice and little ground nutmeg. Replace in the body cavity to bake - delicious!

Now season the tomatoes and place around the herring with the remainder of the lemon wedges. Cover with the sides of the foil to create the parcel and bake under a moderate heat - 180C Gas 4 for 15 mins.

Take out the herrings and open up the parcel and bake for another five minutes.

Remove from the oven and serve immediately with the tomatoes, lemons and some wholemeal or granary bread.

A very fine dish indeed and so incredibly healthy for mind body and soul……