Now, don’t get jump to conclusions, but the herring I caught was off third st., by the ballpark in SF. Why is that not gross you ask? Herring live most of their lives in the open ocean, and come into the bay only a couple times a year to spawn. I’d never seen it before myself, but it’s pretty amazing. Early one morning I got a call from Kirk, local fish fanatic, and the leader of our fishing tours. I needed to be down at third street within an hour. So I went. I’d been waiting.
I got down there in 30, to a small clutch of fisherman throwing nets. It was crazy. The water was literally rippling with fish. Every couple seconds one would actually jump out of the water onto the shore. It was a frenzy. All the rocks along the coast were coated small golden herring eggs. According to Kirk, the herring in caught in the SF Bay are prized above all others.
Herring roe is very popular in Japan, but only our herring have golden roe, as opposed to the grey/off white roe found elsewhere. So I had to get in. After a brief lesson on net casting (it’s all in the wrist), I was in. Flick of the wrist, cast of the net, 10 seconds to let it sink to the bottom, then a spurt of pulling, and I had 100 fish. It was crazy. Every time you’d throw in a net, you’d come out with 100-200 fish. 20-30-50 lbs at a time. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was the anti-fishing. Fishing is usually a waiting game. Set up, hang out with a pole in your hand for 6 hours, then if you’re lucky, you’ll catch something. Not herring. Herring jump into your net. They know how excited you are, and aim to please. They want to be caught….ok, I realize these are all ridiculous things to say, but when your there, they all seem true.
After 20 minutes, I had 100 lbs of fish. I had every intention of using everything I caught, and knew even that much would be a full day of cleaning (it ended up taking me and 3 volunteers 5 1/2 hrs to gut and freeze all the fish).
100 lbs seems like a lot, but in the grand scheme of the bio mass of herring, it is not even a drop in the bucket. Most animals and seafood that are recreationally caught are given limits. The amount one person is allowed to catch in any given day or season. There are no such limits on herring. The sheer mass of fish creates a situation where it would be almost impossible for a person with a net to make a dent. Commercial boats do have limits, which are usually in the realm of 6-10 tons/year. These are set by fish and game every year, by measuring the biomass (how many fish there are), and setting the total amount allowed to catch at 10% of the total.
Overall a great experience. Each female herring (and most of the ones we caught were), had a little sac of vibrant golden roe. We cured the roe in salt, and froze the fish (we’d use them later as breaded/fried herring, and the roe would go on top of oysters). The sad thing about herring is that no one in America really wants to eat it. It’s not a trendy fish, so the vast majority that are caught get their roe removed, and then are turned into fertilizer. No good. We’ll hope to change that by making them delicious, here’s a recipe:
you’ll need:
Equipment:
Cast iron deep sided skillet (for frying)
6 Cups frying oil (canola, or if you’re bold, pork or duck fat)
Tongs
3 mixing bowls
Food:
4 Cups flour
Breadcrumbs (panko works)
6 egg yolks
10 herring-gutted and scaled
Lemon Aioli (here’s a recipe, or you can use mayo with lemon added)
Make:
Start heating oil in cast iron (make sure to leave a couple inches at the top of the pan) Lay out the 3 bowls, with eggs (whisk to combine) , flour, breadcrumbs each in their separate but equal bowls. Wash and pat your fish dry. When the oil is up to temp (375), start your assembly line. Dip the fish in 1.flour 2.eggs 3.breadcrumbs 4.oil. Simple simple. Fry until golden brown, don’t crowd the pan or the oil temp will come down making for soggy not crisp fish, remove to paper towels. Serve with lemon aioli and some watercress or frisee. Save a delicious fish from the fertilizer heap.
Iso
Cool article. Obviously fried herring is amazing, however!!!!! Have you ever tried Pickled Herring? As a native of Minnesota, I’m surrounded by the best damn pickled herring, prepared by my Scandinavian brethren that cover the icy tundra. It’s super simple, and will be yet another fantastic way to preserve, and enjoy, those little tasty silver bullets!
Blueback herring roe in the Atlantic is almost exactly like tobiko, a brilliant orange, and the roe from Great lakes whitefish, a similar species, is golden. All are yummy!
Dude, I SO need to get in on that herring action next year. I am afraid I missed it this season. Was too busy hunting ducks…
I got a couple pounds of roe out of the herring I caught, pretty amazing stuff.
Iso
Oh my why isn’t someone putting them in a smoker the quintessential Scottish/English breakfast dish, Kippers, or coat them in fine oatmeal and saute in garlic butter,go really well with any sweet relish but mango salsa is great
You should have brought the herring to one of the Russian shops. Russians love marinated herring and it’s a big seller.
Also as a Native Minnesotan, herring is the best! I love it smoked above all else as it turns into this lovely fishy oily delicate numminess. What I am most curious about is how you prepared the roe? The other thing I’d like to know is when this is coming around again, as I’d like to get in on catching some myself :]
I saw the Bay boiling of little fish last year, and thought it was the most amazing sight. I couldn’t believe my eyes. It looked as if there was not enough space in the water for these little fish and they needed to be on top of each other. This took place at http://www.yelp.com/biz/warm-water-cove-san-francisco. I go for a walk by the Bay with my dog every day. Thank you for letting me know that the fish were herring. I am a native of Finland and know dozens of great herring recipes. I will be looking for the next time. Is there somebody that could alert me to it?
Sari
Isn’t it amazing? I missed the run myself this year. Its hard to catch, they’re often only in a certain place for a couple hours, but really great when you do find them.
Iso