Recipe
🥙 LUNCH
Inlagd Sill (Pickled Herring)
Salt herring soaked and pickled in a sweet-sour 1-2-3 brine of vinegar, sugar and water with allspice, bay and red onion, the centrepiece of the Swedish Midsummer table alongside new potatoes and soured cream.
Swedish · easy · serves 8
prep 30 min · cook 5 min
~192 cal · 10g protein · 21g carbs · 8g fat · 1g fiber · 20g sugars · 2g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Inlagd sill is the herring every Swede knows by heart, and no Midsummer table is complete without a jar of it beside the new potatoes, the soured cream and the chives. The brine follows a ratio so famous it is recited like a phone number: the 1-2-3 lag, one part vinegar, two parts sugar, three parts water, tuned sharper or sweeter to taste.
The work is mostly patience. Salt- herring fillets are rinsed and soaked in cold water, changed a few times, until they taste pleasantly salty rather than fierce. Then they are layered into a jar with red onion, carrot and warm spices and covered with the cold brine. The brine must go on cold: warm liquid turns the translucent fillet opaque and mealy.
A day in the fridge and it is good, two days and it is better. Serve it chilled with boiled new potatoes, soured cream and dill, or on rye crispbread as part of a smörgåsbord.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally gluten-, dairy-, egg-, nut- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 8
400 g salt- herring fillets
200 ml white vinegar (5%)
150 g granulated sugar
100 ml water
2 tsp allspice berries, crushed
2 bay leaves
1 tsp white peppercorns
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
1 small carrot, sliced into thin coins
a few sprigs fresh dill
Instructions
1
Rinse the salt herring under cold running water, then soak the fillets in a bowl of cold water in the fridge for about 12 hours, changing the water two or three times, until they taste pleasantly salty rather than harsh. Drain, pat dry and cut into 2 cm pieces.
✎ Chef’s note
Taste a sliver after soaking; if still too salty, soak longer with another water change.
2
Combine the vinegar, sugar, water, allspice, bay and peppercorns in a saucepan. Warm gently, stirring only until the sugar dissolves, then take off the heat and cool completely, ideally in the fridge.
✎ Chef’s note
The brine must be cold before it meets the fish; warm brine turns the fillets opaque and mealy.
3
Layer the herring, red onion, carrot and dill into a clean glass jar, packing snugly without crushing.
4
Pour the cold brine over to cover everything completely. Seal and refrigerate at least 24 hours, better 48, before serving.
5
Serve chilled with boiled new potatoes, soured cream and dill, or on rye crispbread. Keeps several weeks refrigerated.
Swedish Midsummer and smörgåsbord tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Skåne. Skane was Danish until 1658 and the kitchen still shows it. Saint Martin's Day on 10 November is kept here with roast goose and svartsoppa in a way the rest of Sweden does not bother with, and the east coast was long known as the eel coast, though that fishery is now tightly restricted.
🗺️
Sweden. Two Swedish rituals are more distinctive than the meatball. The kraftskiva, the August crayfish party, comes with paper hats, schnapps and singing, and is timed to a season that was once legally enforced. Surstromming is fermented Baltic herring, sold in tins that bulge from the pressure inside, and is opened outdoors by anyone with sense.
🌍
Europe. European cooking is built on the land and the seasons, wheat, butter, and cured pork in the north; olive oil, tomatoes, and seafood around the Mediterranean; preserved vegetables and hearty stews through long winters. Centuries of peasant tradition, guild craft, and royal courts refined techniques from French mother sauces to Italian fresh pasta and Central European baking. Regional identity runs remarkably deep, with a single dish often changing from one valley to the next.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Sweden
Köttbullar (Swedish Meatballs)Small allspice-scented meatballs in cream gravy with potatoes and lingonberries, Sweden’s definitive comfort plate.
HavregrötWarm oat porridge topped with lingonberry or blueberry and a splash of cold milk.
RäksmörgåsA lavish open sandwich piled high with cold peeled shrimp, egg, and dill mayonnaise, a Swedish lunch indulgence.
Browse all Sweden recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Pot or saucepan.
Storing it: Stews and braises keep 3 to 4 days refrigerated and often taste better the next day. Reheat gently, adding a splash of water if it has thickened.
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Frequently asked questions
What is Inlagd Sill (Pickled Herring)?
Salt herring soaked and pickled in a sweet-sour 1-2-3 brine of vinegar, sugar and water with allspice, bay and red onion, the centrepiece of the Swedish Midsummer table alongside new potatoes and soured cream.
Where does Inlagd Sill (Pickled Herring) come from?
Inlagd Sill (Pickled Herring) is a Swedish dish from Skåne, Sweden.
Can Inlagd Sill (Pickled Herring) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Inlagd Sill (Pickled Herring) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Inlagd Sill (Pickled Herring) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Inlagd Sill (Pickled Herring) take to make?
About 35 minutes total (30 minutes prep, 5 minutes cooking), serving 8.
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