Matjes Hausfrauen Art

Heine said of Hamburg that “its customs are English and the food is divine”. Local hero Tim Mälzer is an Anglophile with a splendid restaurant on the banks of the Elbe called the White House. He believes in quite simple dishes, like this other one involving rollmops. Das Weisse Haus: Altone, Neumühlen 50. T. 00 49 +40 390 9016.

Serves four

• 1 kg small new potatoes
• Salt
• 1 medium-sized red onion
• 2 small gherkins
• 4 tart apples
• 250 g creme fraiche or sour cream
• 3 tbsp. mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp. lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• Salt, pepper, sugar
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 4 double Matjes fillets

Cook the potatoes in salted water for about 20 minutes. To prepare the sauce, peel and halve the onions and cut them finely. Halve the gherkins lengthwise and slice thinly. Core and quarter two apples, then cut into thin slices. Combine the crème fraîche, mayonnaise and lemon juice in a bowl. Mix in previous ingredients and season to taste with salt, pepper and a sprinkle of sugar. Stand for 10 minutes. Adjust seasoning, if necessary. Core the remaining apples and cut into thick slices. Heat the olive oil in a grill pan, and grill apple slices on each side till golden brown. To serve: Place the apple slices on a plate, with herring fillets arranged on top. Spoon the sauce mixture over the herring and surround with the potatoes.