Solomon Gundy

Named after "Salmagundi", a 17th-century English sailor's salad of chopped salt fish, onion, and vinegar that traveled with the British navy. The Jamaican version dropped the lettuce and pounded everything to a paste, using locally smoked herring or shad. By the late 19th century it was a standard plantation pantry item — keeps for weeks unrefrigerated thanks to the salt and vinegar.

Named after the 17th-century English navy salad Salmagundi — Jamaican cooks pounded it into paste with smoked herring and vinegar. The traditional version smokes the fish twice.

A coarse pinkish-brown paste in a small jar, smelling of smoked fish and vinegar before the lid is off. Spread thin on a water cracker: smoke first, then sharp pepper-vinegar bite, then the salt-rounded depth of cured herring. Eaten at room temp with a beer; a thick smear bullies anything else on the cracker.

Traditionally the very salty smoked red herring is first boiled or soaked to draw out excess salt, then deboned and flaked before being pounded with the aromatics — the long pounding breaks down the fibers so the vinegar can penetrate every strand. Modern jarred versions skip the second smoke and rely on liquid smoke; you can taste the shortcut as a chemical edge that lingers on the palate.