Herring, Pickled - pareve

12 herring fillets in brine
2 cups sugar
1 cup Swedish vinegar or white-wine vinegar
1 carrot, thinly sliced
1 red onion, chopped
1/2 leek, white part only, chopped
1 bay leaf
4 black peppercorns
4 white peppercorns

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the herring with enough water to cover. Refrigerate overnight.

Drain the herring, and pat dry with paper towels. Arrange the fillets in a shallow pan, and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, combine 3 cups water, the sugar and the vinegar. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat. Add the carrot, onion, leek, bay leaf and peppercorns. Allow the pickling brine to cool completely, and then pour over the herring. Refrigerate overnight.

Variations:

Add 5 tablespoons chopped cilantro and 2 lightly crushed dried chilies to the pickling liquid. Or add 2 tablespoons chopped ginger, 5 tablespoons chopped mint or 2 chopped lemon grass stalks.

Once you have pickled the herring, you can use them in salads or as an hors d'oeuvre, or you can fold them into a dressing: combine 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice, the grated zest of 1/2 lime, 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro and kosher salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste. Blend until smooth, refrigerate overnight, and then fold in 4 sliced herring.