By Cecil Cherry, Contributor at Wild Nexus
The Atlantic Herring (Clupea harengus) is a fish that once swam up local rivers and creeks in Eastern North Carolina to spawn. During the Great Depression, herring was a food staple for farmers in Eastern North Carolina. For many families, the herring meant the difference between life and starvation. The herring were caught many different ways, including in large bow nets and in fish traps. Whether cooked fresh or salted down and corned for preservation, it was a welcomed dish.
One place that cooks these wonderful fish is the Herring Club, located in Beaufort County in Eastern North Carolina. The Herring Club is a private club with memberships typically handed down by inheritance from grandfathers to fathers to sons. This is a typical fish camp/club found throughout the South where good times are had with fellowship, good drink, and better food.
The Herring Club was founded in the late 1940’s/early1950’s by off duty firefighters and local farmers from the community. My grandfather was one of the charter members. The members would gather to network and extend friendships in and around the county. The club sits on the banks of Tranters Creek, which is a tributary of the Tar River. In the early days, they would gather and fish for herring from the bank of the creek, drink bourbon, or even better, bootleg liquor, and fry the fish for a creek-side feast. The menu also consisted of boiled potatoes and cole slaw. As time progressed, the members built a lean-to for them to cook under when the weather was less than cooperative. This primitive cook shack did well for the time and served its purpose, but was later replaced with a cinder block clubhouse with a true cook shed. Extending into the creek is a pier with a sink to clean the day’s catch. There are picnic tables for eating the fried fish with all the fixings.
A traditional herring fry menu includes homemade cole slaw, boiled potatoes, and hush puppies. Hush puppies are another Southern delicacy. (It is believed that the name came from the old days, when leftover stale corn bread was thrown out to howling hounds with the farm cook hollering, “hush puppy!”) Hush puppies are a deep-fried, cornmeal-based treat of golden-brown, bready goodness. Sometimes jalapenos are seeded, veined, and diced and added to the hush puppy mix to create an even more flavorful version.
The preferred way to cook herring is to cut slices on both sides of the torso, use fine ground corn meal to bread the fish, then fry in 365-degree cooking oil until golden brown. Herring can be eaten nearly whole, eating everything except the backbone, and are often seasoned with hot pepper vinegar. This is one of my favorite ways to eat the fish, much like the British use malt vinegar. (The hot pepper vinegar can also be used to season the potatoes as well.) It is a delicacy that has to be experienced to be believed. An ice-cold beer, a really good bourbon, or a nice chilled Chardonnay pairs well with the fried fish.
The Herring Club has held a special place in my heart since childhood. It is a wonderful, peaceful place to relax with people of like mind. Unfortunately, the herring have nearly been fished out by foreign countries and have all but vanished from tributaries like Tranters Creek. I was disappointed to learn that I could not purchase herring anywhere in North Carolina this year. I contacted two of my favorite fish mongers in North Carolina and asked why fresh herring were not available this year, and I was referred to North Carolina Marine Fisheries. North Carolina Marine Fisheries is the law enforcement arm of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. I called and was able to speak to an officer who told me the sustainable number for herring to survive was down by 40%, and commercial and sport fishermen were not allowed to fish for herring in 2026.
For the purpose of writing this article, I was relegated to purchasing a different type of fish for illustrative purposes. I cooked fresh sea trout exactly like I do herring. There is no finer dining than an al fresco meal of a Southern staple of fried fish with all the traditional sides. No matter where I am, I try to bring a little Eastern North Carolina with me by sharing fried herring for old and new friends when the opportunity allows.
Fried Herring
Two Large Herring per Person
Fine Ground Corn Meal (Atkinson’s Cajun Seafood Breader is my favorite)
Cooking Oil
Cut slices in both sides of the fish. Bread the fish generously with breader. Heat cooking oil to 350 degrees. Drop fish in the fish fryer and cook until the fish is golden brown and floats.
Boiled Potatoes
5 pounds of new red potatoes
A half stick of butter
Black pepper to taste
Wash potatoes. Do not peel. Leave the smaller potatoes whole and halve the larger ones. Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Add butter and black pepper. Boil potatoes until fork tender.
Homemade Cole Slaw
1-2 lbs. of bagged shredded cabbage
¼ cup of Duke’s Mayonnaise
4 Tbsp Dixie Crystal Sugar
Mix all ingredients several hours before your fish fry, even a day before is better, for the flavors to meld. Add sugar to your desired level of sweetness.
Hot Pepper Vinegar
A clean, empty glass bottle with lid. (I prefer to utilize an old liquor bottle.)
Dried Cayenne Peppers (Enough to fill up the bottle)
Apple Cider Vinegar
Stuff your bottle with the dried cayenne peppers. Fill the bottle of peppers with the apple cider vinegar. The hot pepper vinegar is ready to use, or is even better if made in advance.
Hush Puppies
1 bag of House Autry Hush Puppy Mix
Water
2 or 3 Fresh Jalapeños (optional)
Sugar
Cooking oil
Follow the recipe on the hush puppy mix bag. Add a small amount of sugar to sweeten the mix. Add seeded, veined, and finely diced jalapeños to the mix, if desired. Spoon the batter into hot oil (350 degrees) and cook until the hush puppies turn golden brown and float.