Solomon Gundy is a pickled (with salt) fish pâté usually served with crackers as an appetizer in Jamaican cuisine. It is made with smoked red herring (although other fish such as mackerel and shad are also sometimes used[1]) and is minced and spiced with hot peppers and seasonings.[2] The dish appears on the menus of Jamaican restaurants and resorts.[3] It is also sold as a packaged food for export.[4]
The term may come from the British word salmagundi, used to refer to a salad of many different ingredients. The term is originally from the French word salmigondis, which refers to a disparate assembly of things, ideas or people, forming an incoherent whole (a hodepodge).[5]
Pickled herring and onion served with sour cream and crackers is referred to as Solomon Gundy in Nova Scotia.[6] The name Solomon Gundy is also a deprecated spelling of Solomon Grundy, a famous European nursery rhyme character. Any connection to the food spread or pickling is unclear, but the poetic rhyme was popular with schoolchildren in Jamaica.[1]