Solomon gundy substitutes

The genuinely close option. Flake 200g smoked mackerel or smoked herring, then pound with 2 tbsp vinegar, 1 tsp sugar, half a minced scotch bonnet, ¼ tsp ground allspice and a grind of black pepper. This is essentially the real recipe, since solomon gundy is a homemade preparation to begin with.

Best for

crackers, party spread, seasoning rice, pasta, sandwiches

Smoked mackerel is oilier and less salty than Jamaican smoked herring, so you may want an extra pinch of salt. Taste before salting anything, because the fish may already be salty enough.

Right fish, right pickled sourness, right shreddy texture. What is missing is the smoke, which is a big part of what makes solomon gundy distinctive. Straight pickled herring tastes sweeter and sharper and reads Northern European rather than Jamaican.

Best for

crackers, spreads, dips, quick versions

Drain well, discard the onion and dill if present, and add ¼ tsp smoked paprika per cup along with the allspice and hot pepper. The smoked paprika does surprisingly heavy lifting here.

Cheap, available everywhere, and kippers in particular are smoked herring, so the flavour family is correct. Both are much oilier and considerably less salty than solomon gundy, and neither has any pickling sourness, so the spread tastes richer and softer and needs acid added.

Best for

crackers, toast, pantry cooking, seasoning rice

Drain thoroughly, then add 1 tbsp vinegar and ½ tsp sugar per can along with the allspice and pepper. Kippers are the better of the two because they are smoked; sardines are milder and sweeter.

Nails the concentrated salt and fishy umami, which is a large part of the job, and it is shelf-stable. What it gets completely wrong is texture: solomon gundy is coarse and shreddy, this is smooth and rich. It also tastes distinctly more of butter.

Best for

seasoning pasta, seasoning rice, canapes, when the texture does not matter

Add ¼ tsp smoked paprika, ¼ tsp ground allspice and hot sauce to taste per 2 tbsp of the mixture. Use this when solomon gundy is an ingredient rather than the thing being served.

British-style bloater or smoked fish paste is smooth, mild and lightly smoky, so it hits the general shape but is far gentler on every axis: less salty, less sour, less smoky and not spicy at all. It tastes like a polite version of the real thing.

Best for

sandwiches, crackers, cooking for people who dislike strong fish

Add hot sauce, a pinch of allspice and a teaspoon of vinegar per quarter cup. Even loaded up it stays noticeably milder than solomon gundy.

Smoked trout, smoked whiting or smoked bluefish will all make a defensible solomon gundy once vinegar, sugar, allspice and scotch bonnet go in. Trout is softer and more delicate, bluefish is oilier and stronger. The seasoning matters more than the species.

Best for

spreads, improvising, what the shop actually has

Avoid smoked salmon, which is too soft, too expensive and too distinctly flavoured to disappear into a heavily spiced pate.