Surstromming - fermented herring

The strongest flavoured roe available is perhaps the roe of herring after it has undergone the fermentation process which is neccessary to produce that famous and traditional Swedish delicacy, Surstromming.

April to May the herring are caught shortly before spawning in the Baltic, where they are relatively small fish compared to other herring fisheries. The roe is especially left in the otherwise gutted and headless herring as it is barrelled up in weak brine, and left somewhere warm for 2 or 3 months in order to ferment.

The surstromming tradition is at least 500 years old, which means its production now adheres to specific laws pertaining to its manufacture and sale. Natives and enthusiasts must wait until the third Thursday of August before the bulging tins go on sale. These days most surstromming is canned a month or so before the season begins. Often the recommendation is to endulge the fermentation process a little further, perhaps another month, before eating.

Various techniques have developed for serving surstromming, which does appear to demand an aquired taste. The common denominator is that eating Surstromming outside is a good move. Opening the tins must be done with extreme care and respect - at the moment of first puncture, there should at least be some form of protection such as a cloth over it, others go so far as to insist that the operation must be conducted underwater!

Like the Durian, that pungent fruit of South East Asia, surstromming is occasionally barred entry at certain US custom points, as it is classified as rotten, rather than fermented. However, most out of country sales are processed online and exported by post.

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