Häckerle — Poland

Häckerle is a cold, finely chopped salad built around pickled herring, mixed with tart apple, onion, boiled potato and hard-boiled egg, all bound together in a light, soured dressing. The name refers to the chopping itself, since every main ingredient is cut into small, even pieces before being combined into one soft, spreadable mixture. It is reported from households in Poland, particularly where cold, chopped herring preparations are part of the everyday and festive table, alongside similar dishes found among neighboring German-speaking communities. The salad is usually served chilled, spread on bread or plated as a small starter alongside other cold dishes. To prepare it, pickled herring fillets are diced small along with peeled apple, onion, boiled potato, pickled cucumber and hard-boiled egg. The chopped ingredients are folded together with sour cream or a light mayonnaise, sometimes sharpened with a spoonful of the herring's own pickling liquid, then chilled for at least an hour so the flavors settle. The exact ratio of herring to apple and vegetables, the choice between sour cream and mayonnaise, and the fineness of the chop vary from household to household. Some cooks add a boiled beet for color and sweetness, others keep the mixture pale; each version is treated as one way of making the dish among several found across the region.