2016-12-14

Hello my dear readers! Do you know what word is most often used when talking about a herring dish called forshmak? Granny! Our dear, dear, dear! Your buns, pies, borscht and forshmak accompany us through the thorny adult life in the form of aromas emerging from the bins of our memory. The smells of home, warmth, comfort, incredible security, universal love and care. Often, my friends' childhood memories begin with the words: "But my grandmother ..." This is followed by a story about her culinary and confectionery masterpieces, interspersed with sighs and ahs. In the narrative of at least one narrator, herring forshmak is always mentioned.

Our town has long been famous for its unsurpassed cooks. Jewish housewives were distinguished by their special inventiveness in cooking "from nothing". Once upon a time, many Jews lived here. The characteristic profiles of some residents of Beregovo still give out the origin of their owners. For by your face you will be recognized, and only then - by deeds. And there is no getting away from it!

I took you a long way, friends, but back to the recipe for the classic Jewish forshmak. I remember three neighbors who were constantly discussing about the traditional "Ashkenazi" cuisine, who cooked a real (each - their own) forshmak from authentic "rusty" herring. The neighbor's names were Rosa Katz, Deborah Katznelbogen and Feiga Eidelstein. Each of these venerable ladies claimed that only she knew how to cook forshmak in Jewish style from herring cut with her own hands.

The simplest and most popular foreschmak contains three components - herring, apple, oil (vegetable or butter, and sometimes both together).
Let's start with the "still grandmother's" traditional recipes, and then consider the modern, less well-known ones - with cheese, carrots and absolutely no apple.

Herring forshmak - a classic recipe in different versions

How to make a classic forshmak according to Rosa Katz

Ingredients

• 1 herring weighing at least 400 grams.
• One large sour apple (preferably green).
• 25-40 g butter.
• 2 hard-boiled eggs (do not overcook to prevent the yolk from turning green).
• Half a small onion.

Cooking technology

How to make the correct forshmak according to Dora Katznelbogen

Ingredients

• 2 not gutted herring carcasses (300 grams).
• Two or three hard-boiled eggs.
• 2 slices of white bread (Dora used slices of the “City” loaf - who remembers that?).
• A pair of small onions with a delicate character (not spicy).
• Water with vinegar and sugar (the latter is optional).
• One sour apple.
• 80-100 ml of vegetable oil.
• 2 teaspoons of 9% vinegar (lemon juice).

Cooking technology

How to cook forshmak from Feiga Eidelstein

Ingredients

• 2 fatty herrings.
• One sour green apple.
• 2-3 hard-boiled eggs.
• 100 g butter.
• One tablespoon of vegetable oil.
• One small onion.
• 1 teaspoon 9% vinegar (lemon juice).
• Several sprigs of dill.
• One potato boiled in its uniform.

Cooking technology

How to make forshmak in Odessa

Ingredients

• Fillet from two herrings (taken with your own hand, if you are attracted by the prospect of being up to your elbows in herring).
• Old unspoiled tea leaves.
• 3-4 pieces of white loaf (just don't say that the crust must be cut off - I beg you, Jews are a thrifty people).
• A little milk for soaking the roll.
• Three cool eggs.
• 1 teaspoon mustard
• 1 teaspoon vinegar
• 50-60 ml of good vegetable oil.
• Two small sweet and sour apples.

Cooking technology

Cooking forshmak without an apple

Ingredients

• Herring fillet (we shoot ourselves or buy ready-made - at your discretion).
• Two eggs "in a bag".
• A bunch of green onions.
• Small pickled cucumber.
• One tablespoon of cottage cheese.
• 80 g butter.

Cooking technology

My remarks

I myself cannot determine which of the presented recipes for herring forshmak (in some sources of “minced meat”) is the most popular from herring. I want to do this with your help, friends. Please express yourself in the comments which option you like the most.

Calorie content: Not specified
Cooking time: Not indicated

The classic Jewish herring forshmak recipe is quite simple, but at the same time it is distinguished by sophistication and aristocracy. A small amount of ingredients makes the appetizer easy to prepare, and the combination of flavors creates a unique taste. Sometimes you can hear that this dish belongs to Odessa cuisine. Yes, there is some truth here, but because a huge Jewish community has existed in Odessa for centuries. And the appetizer itself is an exclusively classic Jewish dish.
It is a forshmak - a typical dish, as mentioned above, belonging to the Jewish cuisine. It is made from herring fillets, boiled eggs, onions and butter. Sometimes, in some recipes, apples, stale bread or loaves, processed cheese and even nuts are added.
It is served exceptionally cold, laid out in a saucepan or spread on small brown bread toasts. That is, speaking in the modern language of philistine terms, we can say that forshmak is a "putty" for sandwiches. The assignment of "herring pate" to the category of appetizers does not mean at all that it is forbidden to serve it for lunch or dinner with. This can and should be done, because it is very tasty.

- herring - 1 pc.,
- eggs - 1 pc.,
- onions - 1 pc.,
- butter - 25-30 gr.,
- salt - as needed (but more often it is not needed).

How to cook from a photo step by step

Remove the film from the herring. Open up the stomach and remove the entrails. Cut off the head and tail. Divide the carcass into 2 fillets along the ridge.




Wash the fish under running water, remove the inner film on the abdomen, wipe dry with a towel and cut. The last option is optional though. If your blender or food processor is powerful, it can handle fish fillets easily.




Boil the egg hard. Cool and clean in ice water. Then you can cut it in half, or leave it intact, again based on the power of your device.






Peel the onion and chop. It can be preliminarily marinated in vinegar for a few minutes. But this is already a matter of taste.




Put all the products in a food processor, send the butter there, which you remove from the oven in advance, so that it reaches room temperature.




Grind all the products. Their consistency can be any. If you want to get a smooth smooth mass, beat the ingredients for longer, prefer the taste of food chunks, grind less time. Since in the preparation of forshmak, masses of different consistencies are allowed. You can even chop one herring and finely chop the rest of the ingredients. Also, in the absence of a food processor, you can use a meat grinder with a fine or large grate.






Chill the appetizer for about half an hour in the refrigerator and serve. Traditionally, it is laid out in a herring, shaped like a fish. Garnish the Jewish forshmak on top with a sprig of herbs or chopped green onions.

Mother used to cook forshmak, and it did not make the proper impression on me. In my opinion, she did not add any apples or potatoes there - only butter and eggs. Well, herring, of course. And I was impatient to cook forshmak according to the recipe of old Jewish cuisine, and so that this recipe must begin with the words: "But my grandmother Tsilya cooked like this ..."
Therefore, I quickly wrote a letter to my Israeli friend Kirula, and she, as a true friend, immediately answered me, and her recipe, imagine, began with the words "How my grandmother cooked forshmak in Baku ..."
How it all turned out - here ...
Before that, I had read a lot about forshmak. The fact that, according to some recipes, a soaked bun was added to it seemed strange. Kirulya also wonders how you can spread a roll on a roll, if forshmak is a snack that is put on bread? Kirulya alone puzzled me: she insisted that the herring and all other ingredients be scrolled not in an automatic meat grinder, but in a manual one. We have not observed such a thing within a radius of several kilometers ...
What's the trick? So that the mass of the finished product does not resemble mashed baby puree, as it happens if you use an electric meat grinder. The mass of forshmak, as another noble Jewish culinary specialist Roma Gershuni said, should be FACTORY! And I went even further - I chopped all the components with a knife! Yes, this is gimor, it takes a long time, but the result, I tell you, surpassed all my expectations.

This is the only way to get a real forshmak. If you make it according to the OLD Jewish recipe.

True, I did not come up with this myself, Roma Gershuni suggested it to me. By the way, I took another secret from him: add not raw onions to the forshmak, but lightly fried in a large amount of oil. Here's what happened as a result of this creative process:
You need: three large fat herrings. In no case, no fillets in oil, no fillets cut into pieces. Only whole herrings from the barrel, which we ourselves, relishly butcher with our hands.
Three boiled potatoes, three hard-boiled eggs, two sour green fresh apples, four onions. Gershuni makes it so that there are more potatoes than herrings. Then it turns out to be a potato salad, not a forshmak ...
Finely chop the onion and fry in olive oil plus 150 grams of butter. The onion should float in melted butter and brown. We clean the herring of bones (I do it badly, chopped small bones together with the fillet). In chopped herring we send potatoes, grated on a coarse grater, we do the same with eggs and apples. And then add the sautéed onion with butter to this mass. I added coarsely ground black pepper and a little lemon juice (Kiruli has vinegar).
To say that it turned out awesome is to say nothing. True, the appearance may not be very good, but I did not even have time to decorate with cherry tomatoes or lemon slices - everything was swept away by my family within a few seconds.

Forshmak is a herring appetizer, a national Jewish dish. Not very attractive in appearance, it won an army of thousands of fans not only among Jews, but all over the world. This appetizer goes well with various dishes, but is especially delicious with baked potatoes. Forshmak is irreplaceable in men's company, as it is an excellent snack with good vodka. How to prepare this dish yourself? What ingredients are added to the classic forshmak, and what to the Jewish?

A bit of history about forshmack

Herring Forshmak is an appetizer that causes controversy between peoples over its origin. Jews consider it a dish of their national cuisine, the same can be heard from Swedes, Germans and Finns. The thing is that initially forshmak was prepared from fish and meat, and served hot. The ancient Prussians called meat and herring baked in sour cream with spices "forshmak", that is, "appetizer".

Among the ancient Jews, the present forshmak had a name that literally meant “chopped herring”. Over time, this Jewish dish was also called an appetizer, and in addition to herring, other ingredients were included in its composition. The national Jewish dish of chopped herring has changed in composition, in addition, it acquired a name borrowed from the ancient Prussians. That is why there are now disputes about the origin of forshmak in the modern sense.

The current methods of preparing herring appetizers are varied. Many housewives put ingredients in it, taking into account their own taste preferences. They say that nothing can spoil a delicious herring. However, despite all the variety of allowed components, there are basic rules for its preparation. We will look at two forshmak recipes - Jewish and classic.

Which herring is best to use?

Since herring is the main ingredient in forshmak, its choice must be taken seriously. There is an opinion that before preparing this delicious snack, fish should be soaked in strong tea or even milk. Is it so? Housewives soaked herring in Soviet times. They did this solely for one reason - previously, the herring was so salty that it was simply impossible to eat it. To remove excess salt from the fish, it was soaked. Now there is no such problem - in stores they sell weakly salted herring, fat and tender. This is exactly what we need to prepare this snack.

Classic forshmak: how to cook with herring (classic forshmak recipe)

If you decide to cook forshmak according to the classic recipe, prepare the products you need.

Fat salted herring - 1.
1 head of onion.
Sour Apple - 1.
2 eggs.
Butter - 100 gr.

First you need to do fish. Cut off the head, fins and tail. Now we make an incision along the back and on the stomach, take out the insides. We remove the skin, starting from the head, grabbing it along the edge of the back. Now you need to carefully remove the ridge, trying to pull out the breast bones with it. Small bones can be left, they will be crushed in a meat grinder. Cut the fish fillets into small pieces.

Peel and core the apple, cut into slices. Divide the onion into convenient pieces for laying in a meat grinder. Hard boil the eggs. Set one of the yolks aside, it will come in handy later.

Grind all the ingredients, including the oil, through a meat grinder. To make it go well through the holes, it is better to lay it after the apple. Stir the resulting mass until smooth. If you like a spicy snack, add a little black pepper. There is no need to add salt, the herring will give exactly the taste that the dish should have.

Transfer the mass to a beautiful small salad bowl and, tamping it lightly, give the desired shape. Garnish the forshmak with herbs and grated yolk. Send the dish to the refrigerator to solidify the oil.

Real Jewish forshmak recipe

The traditional Jewish recipe differs from the classic one in that it also uses bread, potatoes and a little lemon juice. Such a set of products reflects the entire history of the wanderings of this people, their need to survive in conditions of need. At first glance, it may seem that bread and potatoes are unnecessary ingredients, but with them the dish will turn out to be thicker and more satisfying. Lemon will add some zest to the snack.

So, get everything you need ready.

1 potato.
2 testicles.
Sour apple - 1.
Good quality butter or margarine - 100 g.
Bulb.
Yesterday's loaf.
Milk (a little).
Slice of lemon.
Spices optional.

Cooking Jewish forshmak is just as easy. We clean the fish and cut it into fillets, divide it into pieces. Peel the apple, cut into slices, removing the core. Soak 2 slices of yesterday's bread in milk, squeeze. Boil the potatoes in their uniforms, peel them. Boil 2 hard boiled eggs.

When all the ingredients are prepared, we pass them through a meat grinder. Squeeze the juice of one lemon slice into the finished mixture. Stir the resulting mixture well so that it becomes homogeneous. At first it seems soft - the butter has melted a little. When the dish is in the refrigerator, it will grab and become thicker. Don't forget to garnish the appetizer with yolk and herbs.

How is forshmak served?

If you have prepared a herring appetizer for a festive table, then it is hardly worth serving it to guests just in a salad bowl. In this form, you can leave it if only household members will eat forshmak. Better to spread it on croutons or bread, and decorate the sandwiches with herbs on top. Another interesting way to serve a dish is to give it the shape of a fish or another (at your discretion) by putting it in a herring. Always sprinkle the prepared forshmak with herbs and egg yolk, as this appetizer needs to be garnished.

Now you know how to make forshmak according to two recipes - classic and Jewish. Choose whichever tastes best for you. You can experiment by adding carrots, beets, or cream cheese to your snack.

Herring Forshmak is a classic recipe with which you can taste the gastronomic subtleties of Jewish cuisine. Traditional minced fish, eggs and butter are filled with potatoes and cucumbers, apples and bread crumb, which adds a unique taste and flavor. The appetizer has dozens of options, each of which is simple and interesting.

Classic forshmak includes simple and affordable ingredients: salted herring, butter, boiled eggs, sour apples. The essence of the preparation is that all products are crushed to a coarse-grained pate. The mass is cooled and served with slices of black bread as an appetizer, making an excellent appetizer for main courses.

1. Despite the ease of preparation, the Jewish dish forshmak requires high-quality ingredients and strict adherence to proportions.
2. High-quality herring is the key to a successful meal. Do not use store-bought fillets or fish slices in oil. Whole fish must be peeled, pitted and cut into fillets. Very salted herring must be soaked in milk.
3. The appetizer should have a textured feel, so it's best to use a hand grinder.
4. The rough taste of raw onions can be changed by sautéing them in oil.

Classic Jewish herring forshmak - recipe

Forshmak in Hebrew, the recipe for which suggests different versions. In the classic version, the herring should be chopped by hand to convey its structure as best as possible. For a particularly delicate taste, the onion is fried in butter and added to the appetizer along with it. Traditionally, forshmak is served chilled.

Ingredients

• herring - 3 pcs.;
• potatoes - 3 pcs.;
• eggs - 3 pcs.;
• apple - 2 pcs.;
• butter - 150 g;
• onions - 4 pcs.;
• lemon juice - 40 ml.

Preparation

1. Boil potatoes and eggs.
2. Peel and chop the herring.
3. Fry the onions in oil.
4. Grate potatoes, eggs and apples, mix with herring and fried onions.
5. The most delicious herring forshmak is seasoned with lemon juice and cooled.

Odessa forshmak - recipe

Odessa Forshmak is one of the most colorful and simple recipes for the famous appetizer. Odessa housewives did not complain about the lack of some products and used everything that was at hand. Pieces of bread were used, which, after soaking in milk, added juiciness, and the dressing of vinegar and oil brought in a special piquant taste.

Ingredients

• herring fillet - 500 g;
• milk - 120 ml;
• loaf slices - 4 pcs.;
• egg - 3 pcs.;
• mustard - 10 g;
• vinegar - 10 ml;
• onion - 1 pc.;
• oil - 60 ml.

Preparation

1. Soak the loaf slices in the milk.
2. Boil the eggs.
3. Separate the white from the yolk. Rub the yolk with mustard and 20 ml of oil.
4. Chop herring, onion, whites and slices of a loaf and mix with the yolk.
5. Season with oil and vinegar.

Forshmak with potatoes - a classic recipe

Forshmak with potatoes is an appetizer that combines the satiety of the main dish. For cooking, you need only three components: potatoes, eggs and herring. To prevent forshmak from turning into potato salad, these products are used in equal quantities. They go well with a savory oil, mustard and vinegar dressing.

Ingredients

• potatoes - 3 pcs.;
• onion - 1 pc.;
• vinegar - 40 ml;
• oil - 50 ml;
• egg - 3 pcs.;
• mustard - 20 g;
• green onion feathers - 5 pcs.;
• herring fillet - 300 g.

Preparation

1. Boil potatoes and eggs.
2. Whisk together with herring, onion, oil, vinegar and mustard in a blender.
3. garnish with green onions and refrigerate.

Forshmak with cheese

The classic herring forshmak originally belonged to hot appetizers. A dish of herring, sour cream, eggs and potatoes was baked in the oven and served without cooling. Swedish cuisine to this day keeps the traditions of ancestors, diversifying the recipe with various components, even adding cheese. It refreshes the taste and gives a golden brown crust.

Ingredients

• herring fillet - 250 g;
• boiled potatoes - 2 pcs.;
• yolks - 3 pcs.;
• sour cream - 150 g;
• cheese - 100 g.

Preparation

1. Chop the potatoes and herring.
2. Grate the cheese on a fine grater.
3. Whisk the yolks.
4. Add sour cream and stir.
5. Place in a baking dish.
6. Baked herring forshmak - the classic recipe involves baking in the oven for 15 minutes at 180 degrees.

How to make herring forshmak with butter?

The classic herring forshmak is a recipe in which a unique dish can be prepared from a small amount of ingredients. This option is simple: you need to scroll the herring, boiled eggs, onion and butter in a meat grinder. The latter will make the snack soft and supple. A mixer should be used to get an airy texture.

Ingredients

• herring fillet - 200 g;
• eggs - 3 pcs.;
• onion - 1 pc.;
• oil - 120 g.

Preparation

1. Scroll the fillet, boiled eggs, onion and butter in a meat grinder.
2. Herring forshmak is a classic recipe in which the resulting mass should be whipped in a blender.

Forshmak with apple - a classic recipe

Herring forshmak with apple is a classic of Jewish cuisine. With the addition of apples, the appetizer acquires the same piquant taste for which it is appreciated by many gourmets. Apples must be sour and have a firm, non-starchy flesh - otherwise the dish will not work. As peeled apples darken quickly, sprinkle with lemon juice.