What fish is split, salted, and smoked to make a traditional kipper? Herring is the answer.
A kipper is traditionally a whole herring split open in a butterfly shape, gutted, salted or pickled, and cold-smoked. Herring’s oily flesh makes it especially suitable for smoking because it stays moist and carries the smoke’s flavor well.
Kippering developed as a preservation method for surplus fish, especially in Britain and other North Atlantic fishing regions. The process helped extend the useful life of catches before modern refrigeration. Kippers were once a familiar British breakfast or supper food, particularly before World War II.
Kippers are sometimes confused with bloaters and bucklings. All three are preserved herring products, but kippers are split and usually cold-smoked; bloaters are smoked whole, while bucklings are generally hot-smoked whole. “Kipper” can also describe the preservation method when applied to other foods, but the traditional fish is herring.