Forshmak

Forshmak (from Yiddish vorshpeis — appetizer) is an Ashkenazi Jewish dish with several key differences from plain mashed fish. Classic forshmak always includes a sour apple (for balance), soaked bread (for texture), and an egg (for creaminess). Everything is ground together and served chilled. Regular mashed herring is simply fish with onion — without the sour apple and bread, a completely different flavor.

The herring for forshmak should be lightly salted or 'tender' cured — not spiced or strongly salted. If the herring is too salty, soak it 1–2 hours in milk or cold water, changing the liquid once. The bread is also soaked in milk — it additionally neutralizes saltiness. The sour apple and vinegar in the recipe are not just for flavor but to balance the salt.

Apple is not an optional extra — it is a structural ingredient. It provides acidity (balances the fattiness of herring), juiciness (lightens the texture), and gentle sweetness. Best varieties are tart or sweet-tart: Antonovka, Granny Smith, Semirenko. A sweet apple like Golden will make it cloying. Some recipes use a quarter apple, some half — the fattier the herring, the more apple is needed.

Classic serving is on thin slices of rye or dark bread, garnished with green onion. In Ashkenazi tradition forshmak is served as the first appetizer on the holiday table — for Shabbat or Rosh Hashanah. It pairs well with hard-boiled egg, pickled cucumbers, and thin crackers. In modern cuisine forshmak is served in tartlets or on crostini — an elegant version for cocktail parties.

Technically yes, but it will be a different dish. Salted smoked mackerel gives a similar fatty profile. Anchovies are too intense — use only 2–3 as an accent. Cod is too neutral — forshmak will lose its character. Historically forshmak was also made from boiled veal or lamb (hot forshmak) — a completely different dish popular in Finnish cuisine.