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Festive table
Emerald balls with herring appetizer

Emerald Herring Balls Appetizer

This pretty appetizer is perfect for a holiday table. If you want to surprise your guests with something unusual, make these balls. Their look makes them especially at home on a New Year's spread. The dish comes together quickly and easily, with just a handful of ingredients.

Maria

Recipe author

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Composition / ingredients

Servings:

Herring (fillet)

Potatoes

Eggs

Dill (5-6 sprigs)

Mayonnaise

Ground black pepper

Salt

Pomegranate (seeds)

Translation table of volumetric measures

Nutrients and energy value of the composition of the recipe

By weight of the composition:

Proteins 42 % 11 g

Fats 38 % 10 g

Carbohydrates 19 % 5 g

155 kcal

GI: 100 / 0 / 0

Cooking method

Step 1:

Gather your ingredients. For these emerald herring balls you'll need: herring fillet, boiled potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, mayonnaise, dill, ground black pepper, and salt, plus pomegranate seeds for garnish.
Step 2:

Pat the herring fillet with paper towels to blot off any excess oil. If you're using a whole herring, fillet it off the bones first.
Step 3:

Cut the fillet into small cubes.
Step 4:

Boil the potatoes in their skins until tender, then cool and peel them. Grate them on the coarse side of a grater.
Step 5:

Hard-boil the eggs, cool, and peel them. Grate them on the coarse side too.
Step 6:

In a bowl, combine the herring, grated potato, and grated egg. Season with salt and pepper and dress with mayonnaise.
Step 7:

Mix everything well and refrigerate the mixture for 20 minutes.
Step 8:

Wash the dill, dry it, and chop it very finely.
Step 9:

Shape the chilled herring-and-vegetable mixture into walnut-sized balls. If the mixture falls apart, wet your hands to shape them.
Step 10:

Roll the herring balls in the chopped dill.
Step 11:

Arrange the balls on a platter, sprinkle with pomegranate seeds, and serve. Enjoy!

This appetizer needs just 3 main ingredients plus mayonnaise. But thanks to the shape, the chopped herbs, and the pomegranate seeds, it turns into a real festive dish that's ready in minutes. Its biggest selling point is how affordable it is — potatoes, eggs, and mayonnaise are in just about every fridge. Just pick up some herring and this lovely appetizer is practically done. You can swap the herring for another lightly salted fish; it's delicious with salmon or trout. I've seen versions that also add a processed cheese, and you can use regular cheese in place of the processed kind too.