View source for Hollandse maatjesharing/Hollandse Nieuwe/Holländischer Matjes (Dutch herring)

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[[Image:Hollandse maatjesharing.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Hollandse maatjesharing]]
'''[[Template:Gegarandeerde Traditionele Specialiteit |GTS]] Hollandse maatjesharing''' is regarded as a collective name under which this Dutch herring, caught during the period from 1 May to 31 August, i.e. the fishing season, is protected. ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ may be sold under that name either before or after 31 August of the fishing season.
The term ‘Hollandse Nieuwe’ is an established concept in the Netherlands and is an old traditional name which may be used only for the traditional product that is both caught and sold in the period from 1 May to 31 August of the current calendar year.
These names express the specific character of the product. They are used for maatjes (young immature) [[herring]] which has been gibbed or headed and then [[brined]] or dry-salted in the traditional Dutch way, as it has for centuries, and can be consumed after natural enzymatic ripening has taken place. The term ‘maatjesharing’ refers to the stage which the [[herring]] has reached in its biological development and denotes [[herring]] caught during the period from 1 May to 31 August of the current calendar year. ‘Maatje’ is a corruption of ‘maagdje’ (virgin): no roe or milt has formed by the time the [[herring]] is caught. The term ‘maatjesharing’ on its own therefore refers only to the raw material. The term ‘Hollandse’ refers to the traditional method of production associated with it, as maatjes [[herring]] may also be processed in other ways.

'''Description'''

‘Hollandse maatjesharing’ is the name used for [[herring]] (''Clupea harengus'') which is at least three years old. It is a slim, rather small [[fish]] with one short fin on its deep blue back. Its [[bones]] are soft. Other characteristics of this [[herring]] are as follows:
—
small reproductive organs (3-8 mm in length),
—
roe or milt not visible to the naked eye,
—
bright red ovaries; reddish/grey testes,
—
translucent white fatty layer,
—
white flesh,
—
fresh, salty, more or less ripe smell,
—
[[meat]] of tender and fatty consistency,
—
creamy, slightly salty, delicate taste.

'''Specificity'''

The specificity of ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ derives from a number of its characteristic features, namely:
—
the specific character of the maatjes herring used as the raw material,
—
the traditional Dutch way of gibbing or heading the [[fish]] and brining and ripening it.

‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ owes its specific characteristics to the combination of the raw material used and the traditional processing method.
‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ differs from buckling in that the latter is made from whole [[herring]] which contains milt or roe and is [[smoked]] and salted. Buckling is [[brined]] or salted and then dried and [[smoked]]. The [[herring]] is [[smoked]] at a temperature of not more than 25 °C, whereas in the case of ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’ it is gibbed or headed and then [[brined]] and frozen. The milt and roe present in buckling is a real delicacy for connoisseurs. The maatjes [[herring]] used for ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ contains negligible amounts of milt or roe.

‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ differs from pickled [[herring]] or rollmops in that the latter are made from [[herring]] which have spent their milt or laid their eggs and are too small to be made into ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’. A rollmop is a filleted pickled [[herring]] rolled up around a gherkin and small onions, this being held together by a small skewer.

'''Description of the production method'''

As stated above, ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ is caught at the beginning of the fishing season (May to August) 

After being caught, the [[herring]] is checked to verify the characteristics specified. The fatty layer is checked to verify that it is translucent white. In order to check the colour of the reproductive organs, the [[herring]] has to be cut open.
If the sample does not provide sufficient evidence of being a suitable maatjes [[herring]], the [[herring]] is used for some other purpose.
Processing

All processing, comprising gibbing, brining and ripening, is carried out in the traditional Dutch manner:
After being caught, maatjes [[herring]] must be gibbed or headed. This may be done at sea or onshore.
Gibbing involves removing the [[herring]]’s gills and its viscera, except for the pancreas. Gibbing is increasingly being automated but may also still be carried out using a special knife. This allows the blood to drain from the [[fish]] effectively, and ensures that its flesh is white. The pancreas produces an enzyme which aids the [[herring]]’s digestion. After the [[herring]] dies, the enzyme causes the proteins in the [[fish]] to change, thus setting in motion the enzymatic ripening which gives ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’ its very particular taste, smell and texture. Ripening entails autolytic conversion of fatty [[fish]] meat by pancreatic enzymes.
Heading produces the same result. This involves cutting off the whole head, whereas, when a [[herring]] is gibbed, the head is left attached to the [[fish]].

Both techniques are equally effective in terms of the ripening process.

Gibbed or headed [[herrings]] are ripened in [[brine]]. This may be done in the following ways:

Dry [[salt]] is scattered over the [[fish]], drawing moisture and blood from it, thus forming a natural [[brine]];
[[salt]] is dissolved in water to make [[brine]], into which maatjes [[herring]] is then placed. Seawater with added [[salt]] may also be used as a saline solution.
The [[salt]] does not need to meet any special requirements. Brining marks the start of the ripening process. In order to obtain the final product, the maatjes [[herrings]] ripen for between four hours and four days, depending on the size, weight and [[fat]] content of the [[fish]], in vats, pails or tubs of [[brine]] in line with market preferences, with large [[herrings]] remaining in the [[brine]] for longer than small [[herrings]]. The [[salt]] slows down the ripening, so that ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ can be kept for long periods without its properties (taste) changing.

There are three different processing methods:

1. Gibbing at sea, the [[herring]] being gibbed and [[brine]]d/salted at sea in order to start the ripening period immediately. The [[herring]] is then frozen;

2. Onshore gibbing, the [[herring]] being kept cool in sea water and landed immediately after being caught, after which it is gibbed/headed and [[brine]]d/salted, ripened and frozen;

3. The [[herring]] is first frozen (without any processing or grading) and then thawed onshore in order to be gibbed/headed and [[brine]]d or dry-salted, after which the ripening period begins.

All these methods yield good ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’.
The freezing of the [[herring]] is mandatory pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004.

‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ may be sold either filleted or unfilleted. It may be filleted either by hand or by machine after a ripening process lasting between one and seven days at a temperature of 0–4 °C. In the case of gibbed [[fish]], ripening may take place before and/or after freezing.

'''Checks'''

Fishmongers traditionally carry out the following checks on (ripened) ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’:

1. Smelling the ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ (which are generally in a pail); the [[fish]] must smell fresh, not rancid;

2. The [[brine]] must be of a good colour and clarity. The [[brine]] must be tasted. The [[salt]] and ripened product must not have an off taste;

3. Feeling the ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’. This is done by moving the [[herring]] backwards and forwards between the fingers. The [[herring]] must have a firm structure yet feel tender;

4. One or two specimens are carefully removed from the pail, to be assessed by means of filleting. Their stomach contents are examined for plankton and the subcutaneous [[fat]] has to be assessed.

It is traditional for an assessment of the new catch to be demonstrated before the first vat is auctioned. But all [[fish]] merchants still assess their purchases of ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ in the same way.

'''Traditional method of production'''

Historians are still debating whether it actually was Willem Beukelzoon of Biervliet who invented the [[herring]] gibbing process. Wierda, a historian who wrote a book about inventions and inventors, believed that it was, stating that:

‘The practice of salting [[herring]] and other [[fish]] was developed just 300 years ago by a fisherman, one Willem Beukelsen of Biervliet, […] a town on the Flemish mainland. He would first gib the [[herring]] and then [[salt]] them in barrels, in which state they would be unloaded. He died in 1397 and had two gibbing knives in his coat of arms. He became famous and his grave is still pointed out by local residents. Emperor Charles V, who was partial to [[herring]], […] held the memory of this man in honour and so in 1556 did therefore make his way to Biervliet with his sister, Maria, Queen of Hungary, and the Queen of France to visit his grave and bless his soul.’ (Wierda, Naauwkeurige Verhandelinge van de eerste Uytvindingen en Uytvinders, 1733).  Whether or not it really was Beukelzoon who invented the [[herring]] gibbing process, or whether it was developed by different people independently in various places, is irrelevant. In those days, nobody knew anything about enzymatic effects and so the value of the invention would not in fact have been understood. Gibbing used to take place mainly onshore (A. de Boer, W. Klootwijk. Haring en zijn maatjes 2004).

[[Herring]] fishing in the Middle Ages was initially dominated by the then Danish region of Scania (Skåne). The year 1384, however, marked a turning point in the history of the [[herring]]. On the annual Hansa Day, the Hanseatic cities refused to provide any more services to Dutch fishing boats. This resulted in successful [[herring]] fishing shifting to Holland. For Dutch [[herring]] fishermen, who were no longer welcome in Scania, or in England, the only alternative was to process [[herring]] on board their boats whilst at sea. The Dutch thus perfected their product, the quality of which eventually surpassed that of Scanian [[herrings]]:

‘The fact that the Dutch were forced by circumstances to clean and [[salt]] [[herring]] on board immediately after the [[fish]] had been caught is likely to have considerably improved its quality and durability.’ (Stam, Haring een liefdesgeschiedenis 2011)

In his book, Stam stressed the importance of salting. [[salt]] has the effect of inhibiting the growth of bacteria and has played a major role in enhancing the [[herring]]’s keeping qualities. Salting meant that boats could stay longer at sea without the [[fish]] spoiling. It is the ‘cleaning’, or rather the gibbing, that ultimately makes ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ such a unique product. The Dutch word for gibbing is derived from a word that means ‘gills’, and ‘gibbing’ is the action of removing the viscera. What is special about gibbing is that the viscera are not removed completely, as happens in the case of gutting. This difference is crucial: in the case of ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’, the key factor is that the pancreas is left in the [[fish]]. This digestive gland contains enzymes that break down proteins and help ripen the meat of the [[fish]]. In spring, maatjes [[herring]] is full of enzymes. The invention of gibbing, combined with salting, made it possible to use bigger boats and more distant fishing grounds became accessible. As a result, more [[fish]] could be caught and landed. This led to increased prosperity (Stam, 2011).

The renown of Dutch [[herring]] fishermen was due to their switching from onshore gibbing to gibbing at sea as a result of the ban imposed in 1384. When Dutch fishermen were no longer welcome in Scania, they gibbed [[herring]] at sea and this was then salted in barrels. [[herring]] that is gibbed at sea drains of blood more effectively, which is a big advantage. [[herring]] that is gibbed onshore drains of blood less effectively, as the blood has already clotted. Connoisseurs can always tell from a [[herring]] if it has been gibbed onshore or at sea. The gibbing of [[herring]] at sea marked a turning point in [[herring]] fishing and the Netherlands did very well out of it. From 1450 onwards, the industry was to develop into the ‘buss fisheries’, from 1567 known as the ‘Great Fisheries’, a large-scale commercial [[herring]] fishing enterprise (Stam 2011). For many decades, until 1857, Schiedam, Vlaardingen and Maassluis (known as ‘the three towns on the Maas’) enjoyed a monopoly as far as gibbing was concerned.
Traditional raw material

In the late 1970s, falling stocks led to the introduction of a ban on fishing for North Sea [[herring]]. Wholesalers from the Netherlands then moved to Denmark. The Danes fished in the Skagerrak for a type of [[herring]] very similar to the North Sea maatjes [[herring]]. Gibbing and ripening was still unknown to the Danes at that time. The Dutch applied their own tried and tested treatment techniques to the [[herring]] in Jutland. [[herring]] fishing in the North Sea was permitted again after 1983, albeit on a limited scale. However, the Dutch continued to buy and process Danish [[herring]]. It is still the same North Sea [[herring]] as that which used to be fished by so many Dutch boats. Some years later, Dutch [[herring]] traders extended their operations to Norway and, to a lesser degree, to Scotland. Flag Day (Vlaggetjesdag) is celebrated in the Netherlands. This used to be the day before the [[herring]] fleet left port; now it marks the arrival of ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’. The first publicity for Flag Day was issued in 1947. The departure of the fleet had a symbolic meaning and was a source of optimism for poorer sections of the population. The arrival of ‘Hollandse maatjesharing’/‘Hollandse nieuwe’/‘Holländischer Matjes’ signified the advent of better times, and Flag Day symbolised this.

'''Reference:  [http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/quality/door/registeredName.html?denominationId=10050 The European Commission]'''

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[[Category:Ingredients]]
[[Category:Fish and seafood]]
[[Category:PDO-PGI-TSG ingredients]]

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