Jamaican · appetizer

Solomon Gundy

Solomon Gundy reads sourness 6.3, salinity 4.9 and citrus 4.8 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Jamaican appetizer, about 32 hr 38 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

• Umami & Savory — 5.8 / 10
• Sweet & Fruity — 4.2 / 10
• Sour & Bright — 7.8 / 10
• Bitter & Earthy — 4.8 / 10
• Rich & Fat — 3.8 / 10
• Aromatic & Spice — 5.3 / 10

The measured notes (of 18)

Sourness 6.3 · Salinity 4.9 · Citrus 4.8 · Allium 4.6 · Smoke 4.5 · Umami 4.1 · Richness 3.7 · Sweetness 3.7 · Heat 3.5 · Marine & Briny 3.2 · Herbaceous 2.4 · Funk & Ferment 1.9 · Warm Spice 1.8 · Fruity 1.8 · Floral 1.3 · Bitterness 1.0 · Earthy 1.0

What's in it (12)

• salted smoked red herring — 250 g
• water — 1000 g
• allspice — 2 g
• scotch bonnet chillies — 20 g
• garlic — 24 g
• onion — 100 g
• fresh thyme — 6 g
• white vinegar — 120 g
• oil — 55 g
• lime juice — 10 g
• granulated sugar — 4 g
• freshly ground black pepper — 3 g

Time & effort: about 32 hr 38 min (38 min active) · effort: involved

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 38.6 kcal, 0.2 g protein, 3.5 g fat, 1.5 g carbs

Dietary: Contains meat · Contains seafood — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (9 steps)

1. A pungent smoked-herring paste eaten on water crackers with a cold drink, and one of the oldest recorded Jamaican preparations — the name descends from the English salmagundi, though the dish that survives on the island bears little resemblance to its ancestor. It is intensely salty, smoky and hot, and a teaspoon goes a long way.
2. Soak the herring in the water for 8 hours, changing the water twice. This is not optional; unsoaked red herring is inedibly salty.
3. Drain, cover with fresh water and boil 10 minutes to finish drawing out the salt and soften the flesh.
4. Drain again, then bone and shred the fish, about 15 minutes. Every pin bone must come out, and the only way to be sure is with your fingers.
5. Toast the pimento berries in a dry pan over medium heat for about 2 minutes until they smell resinous, then crush them. Pimento is Jamaican allspice and it is the backbone flavour here.
6. Pound the scotch bonnets, garlic, onion and thyme leaves together in a mortar for about 6 minutes to a rough paste. Wear gloves.
7. Add the shredded fish and work it into the paste, or pulse it in a food processor for 3 minutes — keep some texture, this is a paste and not a mousse.
8. Beat in the vinegar, oil, lime juice, sugar, crushed pimento and black pepper for 2 minutes until it is glossy and spreadable.
9. Pack into a jar, cover with a thin film of oil, and refrigerate 24 hours before eating so the vinegar and the heat settle into each other. It keeps a month cold.

Dishes with a similar flavor shape

• Blackened Shrimp Tacos with Cajun Slaw — Cajun/Creole · Cajun
• Grilled Shrimp Fajitas — Tex-Mex
• Blackened Shrimp Tacos with Lime Crema — Tex-Mex
• Sambal Roa (Manado Smoked Garfish Sambal) — Indonesian
• Cajun Blackened Salmon with Remoulade — Cajun/Creole · Cajun

Keep reading: what sourness, salinity, citrus mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.

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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.