Kippers for Breakfast?
May 15, 2004 6:15 AM   Subscribe

Kippers for breakfast?

I have long heard of this practice, but as an American, I only know kippers by way of the long thin cans that sell for $1. Since these are labelled "Kipper Snacks", I suspect these are nothing like what the British actually eat for breakfast.

So, what's up with this? Why kippers for breakfast? Are they always cooked (recooked?) in some way? ... and with marmalade?

I'm not disparaging this; I am truly interested and want to experiment.
posted by mischief to Food & Drink (21 answers total)
 
I've heard of sardines on buttered toast for breakfast

Kippers are just smoked herring. I can see how any tinned fish could be interchangeable for breakfast for those with a taste for it. Although maybe not healthier, it is a nice change from eggs and bacon or the cloyingly sweet pancake starchbomb.
posted by pieoverdone at 6:29 AM on May 15, 2004


is this an offer? ;o)

you (well, my grandparents) would cook them in a "frying pan", but simmering the fish in a little milk and water. they're very nice with bread and butter.

(not sure i understand pieoverdone, but kippers don't come from a tin - you buy them fresh).
posted by andrew cooke at 7:05 AM on May 15, 2004


No, thank you.
posted by troutfishing at 8:08 AM on May 15, 2004


Are Americans the only ones who find fish for breakfast a little much?
posted by tommasz at 8:14 AM on May 15, 2004


Kippers aren't too bad. My old man is fond of smoked chub - a quick search doesn't turn up a good photo, unfortunately. They look like the dried up dead fish you sometimes find on the beach. Their eyeballs stare up blankly as he sucks on the bones, etc.

Smoked salmon for breakfast, on the other hand, is top shelf.
posted by aladfar at 8:19 AM on May 15, 2004


The best kippers (as far as I'm concerned) are Manx kippers. You can have them mailed anywhere in the world, so they should be quite easy to get hold of if you want to try them. I'd recommend having them with bread and butter.
posted by Nick Jordan at 8:36 AM on May 15, 2004


Are Americans the only ones who find fish for breakfast a little much?

you obviously say that because you've never tried to dip smoked halibut in your cappuccino. you don't know what you missed
posted by matteo at 8:38 AM on May 15, 2004


Are Americans the only ones who find fish for breakfast a little much?

We're not the ones to talk about a little much.
posted by PrinceValium at 10:01 AM on May 15, 2004


When I played a gig in Marske (Yorkshire coast) we partied with pub owner all night after closing, and of course woke up dead hungover. "Well, right then" said Solly, "It's kippers for breakfast!" Then he brings out a tray piled high with smoked herrings. Not herrings marinated in vinegar, not raw dutch new herring, not bismark. Proper Yorkshire kippers, hot, with toast and butter. With ale.

Are Americans the only ones who find fish for breakfast a little much?

Obviously not born a New Yorker. Ever heard of lox? Try Russ and Daughters Appetizing (for some reason, trad NY smoked fish places are always called an "Appetizing."
posted by zaelic at 10:50 AM on May 15, 2004




Yorkshire coast

maybe it's a yorkshire/northern england thing (my family is from leeds and manchester).
posted by andrew cooke at 12:21 PM on May 15, 2004


If you can't handle a whole kipper then try Kedgeree.

If you're having trouble facing this then a Sri Lankan breakfast (a personal fave) might be a bridge too far...
posted by i_cola at 12:31 PM on May 15, 2004


I've always seen Kippers in tins in the same aisle with tuna, oysters, etc in tin.

I've always wanted to try smoked chub. It's becoming very common here. Do you cut the head off? What? Help?
posted by pieoverdone at 2:50 PM on May 15, 2004


Well, if you're like my father, you leave the heads and tails on the chub, and sort of peel the meat out of them. It's a bit much to handle, if you ask me.

In any case, when it comes to herring for breakfast, I prefer the Swedish pickled variety. With some red onions and peppercorns, it's great stuff.
posted by aladfar at 3:42 PM on May 15, 2004


tinned kippers sound very very wrong - this is what you should be eating, grilled, with melted butter. or even better, Arbroath Smokies!
posted by gravelshoes at 4:54 PM on May 15, 2004


"Smoked chub" has always sounded vaguely vulgar to me...
posted by five fresh fish at 8:23 PM on May 15, 2004


Ugh. My father-in-law is fond of kippers for breakfast, and it stinks up the entire kitchen. And since he's the first one out of the house in the morning, the rest of us have to try and eat with the lingering stink of fish.

So if you are planning on having kippers, please keep all windows open. Especially if you're the first one up in the morning.
posted by Katemonkey at 1:24 AM on May 16, 2004


In case it's not clear yet from the context, what the Brits are talking about and what the Americans are talking about are two different preparations of herring. One (the British kind) are whole smoked fish, the other (American) are chopped, pickled and/or packed in various sauces. You would not exchange one for the other.

Find a place that imports British food products, or an Internet source that ships globally and order the "proper" smoked fish.
posted by briank at 1:08 PM on May 16, 2004


Response by poster: Yup. I figured that canned stuff was no where near. I'm going to try the smokies that gravelshoes recommends.
posted by mischief at 1:36 PM on May 16, 2004


an excellent choice sir. bon appetit!
posted by gravelshoes at 2:08 AM on May 17, 2004


I second gravelshoes' plug for the Arbroath Smokie - I can still remember the first time I ate them, shortly after moving to Scotland, and I'm pretty sure smoked fish is one of the things that has kept me here a decade ; )

If you want to avoid the risk of stinking out your house when cooking kippers, don't go with the pan poaching or grilling method (though grilling is very tasty).

Instead, get a jug tall enough to hold your kippers upright (I use an old vase!) and stuff the fish in heads-down. Then pour boiling water over them, cover the top of the jug with a saucer/plate/whatever and leave them to stand for, ooh, about five minutes, maybe a little more (which gives you time to make some white toast and poach an egg, arguably the best accompaniment). Then drain them, and plate them up with a knob of butter on top and your optional poached egg alongside, and maybe a splash of Worcester sauce over the lot.

Something to watch out for: if your kipper is a suspicious dayglo yellow-orange colour, it's been under-smoked and then dyed with nasty chemicals to fake the smoked look. Not good. You want kippers that smell as smoky as they do fishy, with a lovely oily sheen to them.

(Weird kipper synchronicity incident: I just flicked on the telly to see John Prescott talking about some kippers he bought at Loch Fyne while plotting with Gordon Brown against Tony Blair!)
posted by jack_mo at 11:21 AM on May 17, 2004


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