Technically, there is no such thing as National Herring Month.

That said, if herring were to have its own month, it would be June, which marks both the beginning and end of the all too brief New Catch Holland herring season. New Catch Holland herring, or Hollandse Nieuwe, are raw, barely cured herring caught at their fatty peak and prized for their rich, buttery texture: they're like the sushi of Northern Europe.

The New Catch season lasts only a few precious weeks, and functions almost as a PR campaign for the homely, humble herring. While our own country has never given the silvery fish the love it deserves, it has been a staple of the Northern European and Scandinavian diet for centuries, and instrumental in the waxing and waning fortunes of kingdoms and nations.

And fourth-generation co-owner of New York's Russ & Daughters Niki Russ Federman (pictured after the jump) knows from herring (Holland and otherwise). Besides being a shrine to smoked salmon, her family's shop functions as the U.S.'s ground zero for New Catch Holland herring, which they import directly from Holland.

We asked Federman for a Herring 101 and she complied, describing everything from the fish's storied health benefits to its place in European history after the jump.



Why should people eat herring?
First, it's delicious -- it's probably one of the most underrated foods in this country. The rest of the world, especially Scandinavia and Northern Europe, has caught on, but in the States we've been slow to appreciate this food.

Second, it's one of the healthiest foods you can eat because it has one of the highest contents of omega-3s, which are prescribed in high doses for depression, and [used to treat] arthritis and cardiovascular disease. Herring also has the lowest mercury levels, so it's a double bonus.

Three, it's inexpensive -- it costs an average of $3 -- and you don't have to cook it, either. Today, it's all I've been eating, and I feel totally energized. In the store, when I get low energy and feel shaky from running around, I'll have a herring and it will give me a boost.

Why have we been so slow to appreciate herring?
I think it could be that people have had bad experiences with it because herring in this country ended up being mass produced and bottled, and frankly, it looked a little scary. Also, people think of herring as an immigrant food, and as a taste they left behind when they made it in America.

It's gotten a bad rap: If you say the word to people who haven't had it, they have this kind of instant response but it's not based on anything. I think it's very much like sushi before sushi became popular: It's raw fish, why would you want to eat that?



What is Holland herring, specifically?
There's Holland herring and New Catch Holland herring. Holland herring is herring that's caught in the North Sea and fished all year round. It's basically an unadulterated [raw] herring that just has a little bit of salt. It's eaten as two fillets that are touched at the tail. [Meaning the fish's two boned fillets are connected at the tail - Ed.] You can have it as is or with chopped onions, parsnips or pickles.

New Catch Holland herring is fished when the herring reach their optimal omega-3 fat content, which is about 16 percent. That generally happens around May or June, depending upon the concentration of plankton and temperature and whole bunch of factors. When the fish are determined to have reached their optimal fat content, they're caught within the next three to four weeks. So that's the best time to appreciate that herring. After that, the fish are still great, but not as buttery or fatty and can't be called "New Catch."

Isn't the herring presented to the Dutch queen?
Yes. She's presented with the first herring and has to approve it. Then the royal family buys the first barrel for something like 50,000 euros and donates the money to charity. And that is the official start of the herring season.

How do you bring Holland herring to the U.S.?
We are direct importers. We work primarily with the fisheries and have a broker there who goes to auction for us. Once the herring reach port there's an auction and the price is set.

How many herring do you import during the season?
Thousands. Maybe 15,000 to 20,000. We ship all around the country.

Who's buying the herring from you -- have you noticed people in certain parts of the country buy more?
I don't know if I've seen a trend in mail order in terms of where people are. But Dutch ex-pats go crazy about this, and we get foodies who read food blogs and are up on these things.

I'd imagine that food historians would want a taste, too, given the historical importance of herring.
Herring as a primary food source in Scandinavia and Northern Europe dates to time immemorial. There was actually a war fought between Germanic leagues over fishing rights; that's how important it was to diet and economies. So there's a very basic, but very primordial experience you have when you eat a herring.

Holland herring are available from russanddaughters.com. New Catch herring can be ordered throughout the season, and regular Holland herring are available year-round.