The Field Guideby Moss & MarrowThe Field Guideby Moss & Marrow
Also called haring, nieuwe haring, maatjesharing, maatjes.
In the Netherlands, Hollandse Nieuwe herring is in season June to August, at its best in June. November is outside the Dutch season for Hollandse Nieuwe herring.
The first barrel of Hollandse Nieuwe comes ashore in the second week of June, when the young herring have fattened on spring plankton, and the season opens on Vlaggetjesdag in Scheveningen. The catch is frozen at sea, so the same herring is sold all year; the new season's fish are at their fattest in June and July.
A proper maatje is soft, fat and silvery, lightly salted, and served with chopped onion.
Omega-3 (EPA and DHA) in large amounts, vitamin D, vitamin B12, selenium and iodine; the June herring is at its fattest, which is where the omega-3 and vitamin D sit.
To get the most: Eaten raw and lightly salted, it keeps everything. The fat is the point: the new herring of June and July has roughly double the fat of the autumn fish.
Content per NEVO, the Dutch food composition database. This describes what the food contains, not what it does for you.
Eat it as it comes, by the tail or on a soft roll. Keep it cold and eat the day you buy it.
No producer in The Field Guide is recorded as selling Hollandse Nieuwe herring yet. The guide grows ring by ring; the map shows what is covered so far.
Dates read on 2026-10-11. If a window on this page is wrong, tell us with a source.
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