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Salting fresh fish. Hot salting of fish

Everyone, without exception, loves salted fish. But not everyone knows how to cook this at home. Meanwhile, salting fish is a fairly simple process that any housewife can master. In our article we want to talk about how to salt fish.

Process Features

Even if you have never salted fish in your life, mastering the process is not that difficult. Firstly, the procedure itself is not complicated, and secondly, the main thing is to know the recipe for a good brine for fish. In addition, there is no need to strictly maintain proportions. After practicing several times, you can improve any recipe by adjusting it to suit you.

It is worth saying that there are several methods of salting: in brine, dry and in brine. In this case we are talking about sea fish. The river one needs to be processed more strongly. it must be smoked or cured. Our article will focus specifically on wet salting. The fish brine can be cold or hot. In cold brine, the product takes longer to cook, at least three days. But at the same time, the fish retains all its nutritional properties.

Hot brine for fish is good because the product is ready for use by the time the solution cools. The salt concentration can be selected based on taste and preference. But you need to understand that the richer the brine for salting fish, the longer its shelf life.

However, there are little tricks that will allow you to prepare a wonderful product. If you have oversalted the fish, then you need to keep it in milk for several hours, which can neutralize the excess salt. At the same time, the fish becomes more tender and softer.

If you add an acid to the brine, for example it could be lemon, wine, tomato or vinegar, then the result is not salted fish, but marinated fish. Spices are added to marinades (cumin, peppercorns, mustard, coriander, cloves, garlic, etc.). However, you can marinate fish without brine, for example in wine. But as a rule, the product is first salted.

On the eve of the holidays, every housewife strives to prepare something tasty and special. A table decoration can be, for example, salmon. By salting it at home, you can save a lot. The main thing is to choose the right recipe for preparing red fish.

Ingredients:

salmon (two kg),
(five tbsp.),
sugar (two tbsp.).

Remove the skin from frozen fish and then rinse it in running water. Next, cut it into thin pieces. Rub each piece with a pickling mixture consisting of salt and sugar.

Next, place the pieces tightly together in a container. Close the dish and put it in the refrigerator. After eight hours, the fish is ready to eat. By the way, this recipe is most popular among housewives.

How to salt fish in brine? The recipes are very simple. To prepare, you need to purchase any salmon fish: pink salmon, trout, chum salmon, Chinook salmon, etc.

The brine for salting red fish consists of water and salt. Moreover, the degree of its concentration may be different. Red fish is in great demand and takes an honorable first place. It is often used as appetizers for festive tables. Home-salted red fish can be used to prepare salads and other dishes. Preparing brines for salting fish is very simple. But the result is always excellent. Culinary experts say that salting a whole carcass is not very convenient. It takes longer. And more brine is needed for fish. Therefore, it is preferable to cut the carcass into pieces and remove the extra bones altogether.

There are many recipes for brines for fish. However, the quickest option for preparing the product is the most popular. The fish is ready in an hour. It can be served with butter and onions.

Red fish: how to salt

The brine for pickling red fish is prepared quickly.

Ingredients:

kilogram of fish,
Bay leaf,
salt (three tbsp.),
peppercorns (7 pcs.),
Art. l. table vinegar,
bulb,
vegetable oil (60 ml).

If you have fresh fish, then it must be cut immediately. But ice cream must first be defrosted, but not completely. This makes it easier to cut it apart. It is necessary to cut off the head and remove the fins. We divide the carcass into two parts, removing the bones and backbone. As a result, we get fillet. You need to cut off the skin with a knife; we don’t need it. Next, cut the prepared fillet into pieces and place in a container.

Now that all the preparatory work has been completed, you can begin preparing the brine for red fish.

Pour half a liter of cold water into a separate vessel. Add salt to it and mix well with a spoon until completely dissolved. The brine for red fish is ready. Pour it into the container with the fillet. We press down the fish from above with pressure so that it does not float up.

Leave the fillet in the brine for an hour and a half at room temperature. Then we drain the old solution and prepare a new one. To do this, pour water into a glass and add a tablespoon of vinegar. Pour the mixture over the fish for literally three to five minutes. After this, drain the liquid.

Next, cut the onion into half rings and add it to the fish. Pour in vegetable oil, add bay leaf and pepper. Mix all the ingredients and leave for another fifteen minutes. Lightly salted fish is ready.

It can be used for sandwiches, appetizers, salads and simply served with potatoes. There are plenty of options.

Another pickling option

If the previous option can safely be called quick, then this recipe has its own characteristics, thanks to which the fish can be stored in oil and vinegar in the refrigerator for a long time.

Ingredients:

kilogram of fish,
salt (four tbsp.),
ground and allspice pepper,
Bay leaf.

We prepare the fish for further cooking, as in the previous recipe. Next, take 700 ml of water, pour it into a saucepan and put it on fire. After the liquid boils, add a mixture of peppers, salt and bay leaf. The solution should simmer over low heat for about five to seven minutes. Then turn off the gas and cool the brine to room temperature. Place the fish fillet in a wide container or basin and fill it with the solution. Cover the top with a lid and send the fish to a cold place for half a day. After the specified time has passed, remove the fillet, cut it into pieces and serve. If you plan to store the fish, then you need to pour it with vegetable oil and then fill it with the solution. It is prepared as follows: dilute a teaspoon of vinegar in a glass of water. Place the fillet in an airtight container and pour vinegar solution on top.

If fish prepared in the first way can be stored for only a few days, then the second recipe allows you to prepare the product in such a way that it can stand in the cold all winter. Both options have their advantages and are in demand in different cases.

Quick salting

How to prepare brine for fish? Another recipe allows housewives to pickle fish very quickly. This option is based on the use of hot brine for fish.

Ingredients:

fish steaks (five pieces),
salt (three tbsp.),
liter of water,
sugar (tbsp.),
Bay leaf,
vinegar (tbsp.),
coriander,
peppercorns.

We wash the steaks in running water. Place a saucepan on the fire and boil a liter of water. After boiling, add sugar, coriander, salt, bay leaf and pepper. Boil the solution for about five minutes. Next, turn off the gas. Add vinegar to the brine. Now you need to wait until the solution has cooled completely. Place the fish steaks in a container and fill with cold solution. You need to remember that the fish is salted for at least two days.

Brine for hot smoking

You can also cook smoked fish at home. However, before starting cooking, the carcass must be prepared. The fish is cleaned and washed. Small fish are smoked along with the head and all the entrails. Larger carcasses must be gutted and heads removed. If you purchased a large fish, then you definitely need to cut it. Steaks will look good on the table.

Ingredients:

salt (two tbsp.),
liter of water,
Bay leaf,
Art. l. Sahara,
according to Art. l. cinnamon and pepper mixture,
onion, a pinch of rosemary, sage, thyme,
half an orange and a lemon.

Brine for smoking fish is prepared very simply. Place a pan of water on the stove and bring it to a boil. Add salt to the boiling liquid. We also add lemon, orange, onion and other ingredients. Prepare the marinade for five minutes. Then turn off the heat and wait for the solution to cool. Pour the prepared fish with brine and leave it for 12 hours. Then we leave the carcasses in a well-ventilated room in a draft for a couple of hours. Then they can be hot smoked. The finished fish has a spicy aroma with citrus notes.

Marinade with wine

Aromatic fish can be prepared using a marinade with white wine and soy sauce.

Ingredients:

soy sauce (120 g),
salt (120 g),
lemon juice (140 g),
garlic,
sugar (95 g),
two liters of liquid,
sugar (95 g),
dry white wine (220 g),
a pinch of coriander, basil and a mixture of peppers.

The brine is very easy to prepare. Place a pot of water on the stove and bring the liquid to a boil. Add salt and sugar. Remove liquid from heat. After complete cooling, pour in soy sauce, wine, and lemon juice. We also add garlic and all the spices to the marinade. Pour the prepared solution over the fish and leave in a cool place for 12 hours. After time, drain the liquid and dry the fish. Afterwards you can start smoking it.

Spicy pickle

To prepare fish with a spicy note, you can use natural honey. It would seem that the products are not compatible at all, but this is not so.

Ingredients:

vegetable oil (170 g),
lemon juice (90 ml),
greenery,
seasonings for fish,
a teaspoon of black pepper and salt,
honey (110 g),
garlic.

Mix all ingredients in a container, add chopped garlic and parsley. Pour this unusual mixture over the carcass and place the dishes in the refrigerator. at least ten hours. The given quantity of products is calculated per kilogram of carcasses. If you have more fish, then you need to increase the ingredients proportionally.

Tender fish in red wine

Marinades based on alcoholic beverages have long been popular among housewives. It is wine that adds inimitable refined notes to any dish. And marinades are no exception.

Ingredients:

cloves (five pieces),
water (1.5 l.),
salt (three tbsp.),
dry red wine (190 ml),
cumin (tsp.),
allspice (tsp).

Bring the liquid to a boil and add salt and cloves, then simmer for ten minutes. Turn off the heat and wait for the water to cool. After this, you can add all the other ingredients. Place the fish in a suitable container and fill it with brine. It takes at least four hours to prepare. The recipe is incredibly simple. The wine gives fish meat tenderness and juiciness. But cloves create a unique aroma.

Kefir marinade

An unusual recipe based on kefir allows you to get juicy fish.

Ingredients:

a glass of kefir,
mint,
garlic,
vegetable oil (60 g),
salt (tbsp.),
sugar (tsp),
black pepper.

The marinade is prepared simply and quickly. Add garlic, chopped mint and black pepper to kefir. Pour the kefir mixture over the fish and marinate it for about six to eight hours.

River fish: how to salt

Brine for river fish does not have any major fundamental differences.

Ingredients:

two liters of water,
salt (480 g),
black pepper,
Bay leaf.

This amount of ingredients is given for salting three kilograms of fish. Medium-sized carcasses must first be gutted and washed. It is not recommended to salt the whole fish. The carcasses are placed in a container and filled with brine. It is imperative to use oppression. The brine is prepared by boiling. But they pour it over the fish only after it has completely cooled. The finished product can be consumed only after three weeks. The recipe is suitable for salting sprat, anchovy, sardines, and herring. Small fish can be salted whole. It is worth remembering that after cooking the product must be stored only in the refrigerator.

Cold marinade

Both river and sea fish are marinated in a cold way. For cooking, it is very important to maintain the correct proportions to avoid the growth of bacteria.

Ingredients:

onions (four pcs.),
vinegar (380 ml),
salt (110 g),
sugar (190 g),
Bay leaf,
water (580 ml),
peppercorns,
coriander (two tsp),
Dill seeds.

We gut and clean the small fish. It is not necessary to remove the heads, but the gills must be removed. It is generally recommended to cut larger carcasses into portions.

Bring a glass of water to a boil and add dill, coriander seeds, peppercorns and bay leaves. Boil the mixture for about ten minutes. Then add sugar and salt. The brine should cool down. Only then is vinegar poured into it and the remaining cold water added.

Place the fish in a glass or enamel bowl. Layer the layers with onion rings. Pour marinade on top. Close the container with a lid and put it in a cool place, maybe in the refrigerator. If you marinate the fillet, it will be ready in three days, but salting the carcasses will take at least five days. It is recommended to turn the fish several times during this time so that it is evenly salted.

Finished carcasses must be stored in sterilized jars. Place the fish tightly in the container to the very top and fill it with the same marinade. In this form it can be stored for three to four months.

Hot marinade

Ingredients:

three onions,
the same amount of carrots
Bay leaf,
vinegar (180 ml),
salt (three tbsp.),
peppercorns,
sugar (4 tbsp.),
water (two liters).

We clean the fish and cut it into pieces. Then rinse and dry. Roll the carcasses in salt and put them in the refrigerator for forty minutes. Meanwhile, boil water in an enamel pan. We also put the onion, cut into half rings, and slices of carrots into the container. Boil the liquid for no more than ten minutes. Then add sugar, vinegar, salt, bay leaf, black pepper and the fish itself. After the brine with fish boils, reduce the heat to low and cook for another fifteen minutes. If necessary, remove the foam.

After cooking, very carefully remove the fish from the pan and place it in jars, which must first be sterilized. The containers need to be filled only 2/3 full in order to pour the hot marinade on top. Next, the jars are sealed with lids. And after complete cooling, they are placed in the refrigerator. The fish can be consumed after two days.

If you cook chum salmon or tuna, then you can serve such fish immediately after the marinade has cooled. The fact is that red fish meat cooks much faster. Therefore, it makes no sense to wait long.

Instead of an afterword

As you can see, there are quite a few ways to prepare salted fish. Recipes differ in the ingredients used and the timing of obtaining the finished product. Each of them has its own advantages and benefits. The choice of one option or another largely depends on the fish you have. The easiest way to salt red fish is that it has the shortest salting time, so you can start experimenting with it. In general, all sea fish is prepared quite simply. But with river fish you need to be careful and accurately maintain the proportions.

If you love tender fish flesh and the smell of spices, you should definitely use one of the marinades we have given. A particularly interesting combination is provided by the use of dry white and red wine. Using brine makes it possible to prepare moderately salted and tasty fish, in contrast to dry salting. But still, the choice of recipe depends on your preferences.

The recipe for salting red fish or river fish is simple. At home, it is important to correctly determine the ratio of fillets or carcasses and salt. The fish must be taken fresh or frozen, whole or in steaks. To obtain a lightly salted product, it takes several hours; a saltier taste requires 1-2 days.

How to salt red fish

Time: 2 hours.
Number of servings: 2 persons.
Difficulty: easy.

The recipe for salting red fish at home involves using good quality fish.

Pink salmon, salmon, and trout are used for salting.

After salting is completed, the finished dish is used for sandwiches.

Ingredients:

sugar, salt - 15 g each;
salmon steak – 250 g;
vegetable oil – 60 g;
ground black pepper – 3 g.

Cooking method:

Salting red fish at home starts with processing the carcass.
Lightly freeze the fish before using.
Mix spices in a separate bowl.
Cut the steak into thin slices.
Place cling film on the bottom of a plastic container.
Coat with oil and sprinkle with a mixture of spices.
Place the first layer of salmon.
Fill with oil again and sprinkle with spices.
Layer all the fish pieces.
Refrigerate for about 2 hours.

Quick salting of herring

Time: 40 minutes.
Number of servings: 10 persons.
Difficulty: medium.

Salting fish at home is carried out using dry salting, sagging salting or using brine. The latter method is well suited for pickling herring. It turns out spicy and is used for garnish and salads.

Ingredients:

salt – 3 tbsp. l.;
water – 1 l;
fresh frozen herring – 4 pcs.;
sugar – 1.5 tsp;
bay leaf – 2 pcs.;
black pepper – 5 peas;
cloves – 2 pcs.

Cooking method:

Thaw the herring at room temperature.
There is no need to gut the fish.
To make the brine, fill all ingredients with hot water.
Bring the liquid to a boil until the salty and sweet crystals dissolve.
Remove the marinade from the heat and cool.
Place the herring in a container with salted liquid for pre-salting for a day. Place pressure on top.
Then transfer the carcasses into a food container with a lid, fill with the remaining brine.
Place the product in the refrigerator for 24 hours.

Time: 40 minutes.
Number of servings: 6 persons.
Difficulty: easy.

Peled is a lake-river species. It must be selected in the same size, no more than 25-30 cm in length. For salting at home, you can use carcasses, pieces, and uneviscerated fish with heads.

Ingredients:

peled – 1 kg;
onion – 1 pc.;
salt – 2 tbsp. l.;
black pepper – 5 pcs.;
vinegar 6% – 100 ml;
sugar – ½ tsp;
bay leaf – 2 pcs.;
coriander, nutmeg - to taste.

Cooking method:

Wash fresh peled.
Remove scales, heads, and entrails.
Cut into small pieces.
Place in a jar.
Place onion cut into half rings on top.
Add all the spices. Shake the jar.
Pour in vinegar and stir again.
Place the peled in the refrigerator or cellar for 3 hours.

Salting river fish

Time: 30 minutes.
Number of servings: 5 persons.
Difficulty: easy.

At home, for dry salting, it is better to choose river species. The fish should not be large; you should opt for crucian carp, perch or roach.

It is important to use glass, enamel or plastic containers for pickling.

Ingredients:

perch – 1 kg;
water – 500 ml;
salt – 1 tbsp. l.;
sugar – 1 tsp;
peppercorns – 5 pcs.

Cooking method:

Gut the perch carcasses and cut off the heads.
Mix spices with water and boil.
Cool the resulting liquid.
Place the fish carcasses in an enamel pan.
Pour in room temperature brine.
To obtain lightly salted perch, keep it in the cold for 2 days.
If you want a rich, salty taste - for 5 days.

Recipe in oil

Time: 30 minutes.
Number of servings: 5 persons.
Difficulty: easy.

At home, you can pickle using oil. This marinade helps the product cook quickly. It turns out delicious, with the aroma of pickled onions. The recipe is more suitable for fatty fish.

Ingredients:

mackerel s/m – 3 pcs.;
sunflower oil, boiled water – 125 g each;
salt – 3 tsp;
mustard, sugar - 1 tsp each;
onion – 2 pcs.;
vinegar – ½ tsp.

Cooking method:

Clean the mackerel from entrails, scales and heads.
Cut into portions.
Mix all ingredients except onion.
Place fish pieces into the resulting brine.
Add chopped onions and stir.
Cover the container with cling film and refrigerate.
Shake the container with salted fish periodically.
It will be ready in 36 hours.

Video

We will talk about how to salt and dry fish correctly and tasty, which salting of fish is better, how to avoid common mistakes and how to store fish after drying.

What kind of fish can be salted and dried?

Absolutely any fish can be salted and dried, but it is generally accepted that fatty and medium-fat fish turn out the most delicious. These types include:

Bream, white bream;
Roach, roach, ram;
Bluefish, peled;
Chekhon;
Flounder;
Smelt;
Capelin;
Ide, chub, asp and some others.

Low-fat fish can also be salted, but when dried it turns out dry. Such a fish is, for example, pike. Although, there will always be pike lovers.

Despite the sufficient fat content of fish such as carp, tench, crucian carp, they are not always suitable for salting and drying, since depending on the habitat, their meat may have a specific lake smell. However, river carp and crucian carp are almost free of this drawback, and salting fish with spices can make any fish tasty.

According to the time of catch, the fattest fish are those caught in the fall and early winter. In winter, the fish feeds poorly and loses excess fat, but during the diet its meat is cleaned, and therefore spring fish is also valued in its own way. The meat of fish caught in late winter and early spring is the cleanest, and after drying small fish it becomes translucent.

What about red fish? You can salt red fish in the same way as typical river fish. Any type of anadromous or local salmon is excellent for salting and drying.

Methods for salting fish

There are two main ways of salting fish for drying - “wet” and “dry” salting. Both methods make it possible to get equally tasty dried fish.

Dry salting is more often used for preparing large fish, and salting in brine is used for small and medium-sized fish. Another feature of salting fish in brine is that the meat of the finished fish is more tender.

For dry salting, you will need a container with holes or slits through which the juice released from the fish will drain (a wooden box, a plastic container with holes).

For salting fish in brine, any container with a salt-resistant coating (plastic, enamel dishes) is suitable. Aluminum containers for salting fish are not suitable, as their surface will oxidize and release impurities harmful to health.

Any salting method consists of the following steps:

Preparing fish for salting;
Preparing fish for drying, soaking.

Let's look at each stage in more detail.

Preparing fish for salting

Fish selected for salting must be clean and exceptionally fresh. The fish is not of the first freshness, and as a result, it turns out to be smelly, or completely unsuitable for consumption.

Large and sometimes medium-sized fish are freed from their entrails. Very large fish are completely or half-spread. The incision is made from the back along the ridge and, less frequently, from the belly.

Layering the fish allows you to speed up the process of salting and subsequent drying. In addition, the risk of spoilage of layered fish during salting is reduced to almost zero.

Before salting, the fish is washed and excess water should be allowed to drain. Large fish are wiped with a dry towel.

To dry-salt fish, you will need 1.5-2 kg of salt per 10 kg of fish, for salting in brine - 1-1.5 kg of salt per 10 kg of fish. The salt should be coarse; fine table salt is not at all suitable for salting fish. You can use regular table salt or sea salt.

When salting fish, you should be guided by the principle “it is better to over-salt than under-salt,” since excess salt will be removed during the soaking stage, and its deficiency can lead to accelerated growth of bacteria and spoilage of the fish.

The process of salting fish must take place in cool conditions, so the fish is put into a cellar or refrigerator for salting.

Salting time depends on the size of the fish. Small fish are salted in two days, medium - 2-4 days, large - up to a week. Fish kept in a strong salt solution in cool conditions can be stored in it for a month or more.

Spices

In 99% of cases, fish is salted without using any spices, but if you want to give the fish an unusual or spicy taste, they can be added during the salting process.

Regardless of the salting method, the following spices can be added to the fish:

Allspice peas;
Bay leaf;
Nutmeg;
Broken black pepper;
Coriander;
Carnation;
Ginger;
Cinnamon.

To these spices, you can add red capsicum, mustard seed, dill, cumin and anise - they all go well with fish, but any spices are good in moderation. To obtain a spicy salting, in addition to salt, you will need up to 50% sugar.

It should be borne in mind that spicy salting is best achieved when using medium-sized fish.

Salting in brine

To salt fish in brine, you do not need to prepare a special brine; the juice released from the fish will be quite sufficient.

The bottom of the container in which the fish will be salted is sprinkled with a layer of salt;
The fish is placed sideways, in layers, each layer of fish is sprinkled with salt;
The top layer of fish is completely covered with salt, covered with a lid on which a small weight is placed.

The weight is necessary so that when the brine is released, all the fish are immersed in it.

Immediately after salting, the fish is put into a cellar or refrigerator and salted there for 2-8 days, depending on the size of the fish.

Salting fish using the dry method is not much different from salting it in brine, but the salt consumption and salting time are a little more.

The bottom of a box or other container with holes is covered with canvas fabric (optional) and sprinkled with a layer of salt;
Each fish is completely rubbed with salt and laid back down with a tilt to one side, or simply sideways, each new layer of fish is sprinkled with salt;
The last layer of fish is generously sprinkled with salt, the fish is covered with a lid on which a small weight is placed.

After the fish is salted, the container with it is put away in a cool place - in the refrigerator or cellar, where it will remain for three to ten days, depending on the size of the fish.

After the fish has been completely salted, it is necessary to get rid of excess salt - this is done by soaking. If this is not done, the fish meat will be dry and over-salted, its surface will be covered with salt crystals, and the released fat will quickly oxidize, and the fish will “rust.”

Soaking fish after salting is a very important step, on which the taste and quality of dried fish depends.

Before soaking, the fish is washed to remove any remaining salt. The soaking process is carried out in cold water, the volume of which should be significantly larger than the fish. Ideal conditions are soaking in running water, but if this is not possible, the water is replaced several times with fresh water.

The same amount of time in hours is allotted for soaking as the number of days it was salted, but it makes no sense to soak for longer than 5-6 hours.

After soaking, the fish is completely ready for drying.

Many fishermen build a special drying cabinet on the balcony that provides forced ventilation. But if there is no such device, the only way out is to hang the fish in any convenient place on ropes.

The place in which the fish is dried should be in the shade, preferably ventilated and cool.

The fish is suspended by the head or tail using hooks that can be made from paper clips or wire. If the fish is hung by the head, the fish meat will retain more fat; if by the tail, the risk of bile getting into the meat of ungutted fish is eliminated.

If the fish is suspended by the head, it is pierced with a hook in the jaw area or through the eyes. When suspended by the tail, it is pierced at the base of the caudal fin. Some fishermen hang the fish by the tail using clothespins.

When hanging fish, you need to take into account that during drying, fat will drain and drip from it.

To protect against flies waiting for the moment when you hang the fish, it should be covered with gauze so that it does not touch the fish itself. It is best to hang fish for drying at night when there are no flies. During the night, the fish will become airy and will no longer attract insects as much.

You need to remove the fish without waiting for it to dry completely, especially if you are not going to eat it right away. During storage, the fish will quickly reach the desired degree of dryness.

Any dried fish will dry out and become dried out over time, but this is not the only problem. When storing fish in conditions with access to light and air, salt is released on its surface, its fat oxidizes, the fish “rusts” and goes rancid. In conditions of high humidity, there is a risk of fish spoilage due to mold and the development of dangerous bacteria.

Ideal conditions for storing fish are almost impossible to create at home, but it is possible to preserve dried fish for a long time. For those who love dried fish, drying out is not a problem at all.

There are several types of storage of dried fish, each of which has its own pros and cons, and shelf life.

Package

Wooden boxes, corrugated cardboard boxes, wicker baskets, linen and multi-layer paper grocery bags, kraft paper laminated with polyethylene, etc. are used as packaging for storing dried fish.

Studies of different types of packaging have shown that polyethylene bags and aluminum foil laminated with polyethylene are unsuitable, while kraft paper with one-sided polyethylene coating passed the test.

Storing dried roach in laminated kraft bags at a temperature of about 0 degrees showed that the product, after 6 months, retains an attractive appearance, normal meat consistency, pleasant smell and taste.

Normal storage

The fish is stored at room temperature, in a corrugated cardboard box or paper packaging of several pieces. Without much damage to the properties of the fish, it can be stored for a week. If stored in this way for a longer period of time, the fish gradually dries out.

Longer storage is possible using a refrigerator. Humidity and temperature in the refrigerator compartment are optimal. The fish is packaged in paper bags of several pieces and can be stored in this form for up to a month.

Over time, the fish dries out and the fat oxidizes, so other methods are used for long-term storage.

Long-term storage

Long-term storage of dried fish is achieved in the following ways:

To vacuum pack fish you need a kitchen packer. These devices are now quite affordable, but if you don’t have it, you can use other methods.

In the bank

Many fishermen practice storing dried fish in a glass jar. This is done as follows:

Dried fish is tightly loaded into a suitable sized jar;
A piece of a small candle is placed inside the container and lit;
While the candle is burning, the jar is hermetically sealed with a metal lid;
As the air burns out, the candle goes out - the fish is ready for storage.

In the freezer

There are many recipes for salting fish at home. Here are the best ones!

Salted mackerel according to the Old Mariner's recipe

Ingredients and preparation:
As soon as the fish had melted a little, I washed it, cut off the head, tail, fins, removed the skin, carefully gutted it, cut it into 2 fillets along the spine, removing the spine and all the bones.
Sprinkle with salt (about 1 tbsp) and place in a saucepan. The fish caught caviar - and that's it too!
Place the saucepan in the refrigerator. until morning.
In the morning (12 hours passed), I lightly washed the fish under running water and laid it on paper napkins to dry. Meanwhile, I finely chopped the garlic (1 m clove for 1 fillet) and chopped the dill.
I peppered the inside of the fillet halves with freshly ground black pepper, sprinkled with garlic, dill, and placed pieces of bay leaves. You can stop there, but to add additional flavor, you can lightly coat the fish with hot mustard, mayonnaise, and butter. I mashed the caviar with a fork and also spread it evenly on the fillet.
Next, press the two halves of the fillet tightly against each other and wrap each “pair” separately in a bag. Place in the freezer until evening.
In the evening, remove the fish from the freezer. Lightly salted mackerel is ready! Easy to cut, dense. Stored in the freezer. But not for long, as it is eaten quickly.
Bon appetit!
Mackerel marinated at home!

You can't imagine how delicious it turned out!
Will need
2 fish.
Cut off the head and gut it... (I asked my son to do this, I couldn’t do it myself, my hand didn’t rise. I even ran away from the kitchen so as not to look...).
Wash well.
Cut into pieces 1.5 cm thick.
Pour a large glass (I have about 300 ml) of water into a bowl, add 2 tablespoons of salt.
Stir well until the salt dissolves.
Place our fish pieces there, I also put a couple of bay leaves.
Cover with a plate and place some weight on top. Let's leave the fish to salt. I left it overnight. I put it in in the evening, in the morning, at about 10 o’clock, I already took it out. Salted for 12 hours...
This morning there was such a picture.
Drain all the liquid...
Place the fish back in the same bowl. Then, in the same bowl, put:
Vinegar (if 9%, then 3 tbsp, if 5%, like mine, then 4-5 tbsp);
black pepper, hot paprika - to taste;
onion, cut into half rings - 1 large onion;
2 cloves of garlic (squeeze through a garlic press);
rast. oil - 1 glass.
Mix everything well.
Cover again with the same plate (all the fish should be in the marinade), press down and place a weight on top. Then put it in the refrigerator until evening to marinate well. You can stir it periodically.
And in the evening you can eat!
The mackerel turned out so delicious that it cannot be expressed in words! It seems to me that it is even tastier than herring... fattier, or something... With boiled potatoes and pickled onions... In general, my mouth is already watering again...
Bon appetit!
How to pickle mackerel - cooking recipes!

In this marinade, mackerel turns out tastier than red fish!
Tender pickled mackerel will simply melt in your mouth...
Wonderful salted mackerel can be prepared at home. There are many cooking recipes, some of which we will consider.
Recipe No. 1
Ingredients:
Mackerel - 1 kilogram.
To prepare marinade for 1 liter of water:
Salt - 5 soup spoons;
Granulated sugar - 3 soup spoons;
Dry mustard - 1 soup spoon;
Bay leaf - 6 pieces;
Cloves - 2 pieces;
Vegetable oil - 2 soup spoons.
Preparation:
The fish must be cleaned, the entrails and head removed, the tail and fins cut off.
In a separate pan, cook the marinade from the proposed ingredients, which must be cooled.
After the marinade has cooled, put the fish in it, put a plate and pressure on top of the mackerel and in the cold, in two or three days the fish will be ready. The fish can be turned over periodically.
Recipe No. 2

Ingredients:
Mackerel - 3 pieces.
For marinade per 1 liter of water:
Tea leaves - 4 soup spoons;
Salt - 4 soup spoons;
Granulated sugar - 2 soup spoons;
Liquid smoke - 4 soup spoons.
Preparation:
First, defrost the frozen mackerel, then cut off the tail, head, clean the entrails, rinse well and put it in a two-liter jar, the tails should be at the top.
Prepare the marinade separately.
To do this, add tea leaves, granulated sugar, and salt to the water and bring everything to a boil. After which you need to strain, let it cool and then add liquid smoke to the marinade. Pour this marinade over the fish, cover with a plastic lid and refrigerate for about three days. Periodically, the jar of mackerel needs to be shaken. After the time has passed, the fish can be consumed by cutting into pieces.
Recipe No. 3

Ingredients:
Mackerel - 500 grams;
Salt - 3 soup spoons;
Sugar - 3 soup spoons;
Black pepper.
Preparation:
Thaw fresh frozen fish, then clean it, removing the head, tail and entrails. After this, rinse it well and cut it into portions.
Then each piece of fish must be salted, peppered and sugared, placed in a jar or some other container for salting fish. Between each row, salt the fish, sprinkle with granulated sugar and pepper. You need to put the mackerel in the cold and in about a day or two the fish will be ready.
Recipe No. 4

Ingredients:
Mackerel - 3 kilograms.
Marinade:
Water - 1 liter;
Granulated sugar - 3 soup spoons;
Salt - 6 soup spoons;
Bay leaf - 3 pieces;
Black peppercorns - 9;
Allspice - 3 peas;
Coriander - half a teaspoon.
Preparation:
It is necessary to defrost and clean the mackerel, that is, remove the entrails, remove the head, fins and tail. After this, rinse the fish well and place it in a pan in a jack.
Separately prepare the marinade from the proposed ingredients. Let it cool and pour the mackerel on top; if there is not enough water, you can add boiled salted and cooled water. Place a plate and weight on top of the fish. Place in a cool place for 5 days.
Bon appetit!
How to cook home-salted mackerel?

This recipe is dedicated to lovers of delicious salted mackerel. It is simple; even an avid bachelor who does not have special cooking skills can salt mackerel using it.
Ingredients:
Mackerel;
tea;
salt;
sugar.
Preparation:
So, we take two large frozen mackerel, defrost it under running water, wash it, cut off the head, and remove the insides straight into the trash can. We wash the fish inside and out, remove the moisture with paper towels and start cooking the brine.
How to cook brine, also known as marinade: pour four tablespoons of tea with a liter of boiling water. It turns out to be such a strong tea in which our defrosted mackerel will swim. Add four tablespoons of salt and the same amount of sugar to the tea (cooled) and stir. Place the mackerel in this salty-sweet tea brine and store it in the refrigerator for four whole days. Then we remove it from the marinade, hang it in the kitchen over the sink overnight, remove it in the morning and put it in the refrigerator, having first wrapped the fish in a paper bag. All. The fish is ready! Cut it and try it.
Bon appetit!
Let's marinate mackerel! Real jam!
Ingredients and preparation:
Take 3 pieces of frozen mackerel, wash, clean and cut into pieces. The main thing in this matter is not to let the fish UNFROST, we carry out all manipulations with frozen mackerel!!!
Peel and chop 3 onions and 3 cloves of garlic.
Place the mackerel, onion and garlic in a bowl, add 1 teaspoon of sugar, 1 heaping tablespoon of salt, 3 tablespoons of vinegar, 2 tablespoons of oil, ground hot pepper, allspice, bay leaf.
Mix carefully. Place tightly in a jar, cover with a lid and refrigerate for a day. And a day later we take out our fish and eat it.
Bon appetit!
Home-salted herring + marinades and brines!

Ingredients:
Herring
You should buy fish with a thick back (fatty). If it is frozen, then it should be completely defrosted before salting. And it's better not to wash it.
And now a few recipes:
Marinade 1:

Boiled water (1 glass);
vegetable oil - 3 tbsp;
black peppercorns;
bay leaf or several;
salt to taste.
Boil it all, cool it and add a little vinegar. Place the herring, cover tightly with a lid and leave in the room for 4-5 hours, then in the refrigerator for another 5 hours, or better yet, leave it overnight.
Marinade 2:

For 1 liter of water - 1.5 tbsp. spoons of salt;
1 tbsp. spoon of sugar;
Bay leaf;
black peppercorns;
cardamom;
garlic;
1-2 flowers (dried) cloves.
Bring all this to a boil and cool. Pour over the herring so that it is completely covered with marinade. Place the container in the refrigerator immediately (in winter, you can put it on the balcony). After two days you can eat.
Pickle 3:

4 tbsp. spoons of salt;
2 tbsp. spoons of sugar per 1 liter. water (this is about 2-3 herrings).
Place the fish in the cooled brine for 1 day. Basically, no hassle.
This method can be used to salt not only herring, but also mackerel.
Pickle 4:

2 tbsp. spoons of salt;
1 tbsp. dissolve a spoonful of sugar in 0.5 liters of hot boiled water;
add bay leaf;
allspice peas;
coriander (bunches).
Sue everything. Cut the herring into medium pieces, place in a bowl on its side, pour over the chilled marinade. Cover with a plate and place a jar of water on top like a press. Leave in a cool place for 1 day.
Second recipe:
6 table. spoons of salt;
1 table. spoon of sugar;
seasonings are the same for 1 liter of water.
The rest is done the same way.
Place the ungutted fish in a three-liter jar and fill it with brine: for 1 liter of boiled chilled water you need 5 tablespoons of salt, 1 tablespoon of sugar, 2-3 bay leaves, 1 teaspoon of allspice peas. When the brine has already been poured into the jar, place 1 tablespoon of dry mustard on top.
Bon appetit!
Our own salted herring!

Ingredients:
Fresh frozen herring - (3-4 pieces per 3 liter jar);
salt - 3 tbsp. spoons;
sugar - 5 tbsp. spoon;
laurel - 2 pcs.
Preparation:
Boil 1 liter. water.
Add 3 tbsp to boiling water. spoons of salt and 5 tablespoons of sugar.
Place the resulting brine on a window or balcony until it cools completely.
Completely defrost and wash the herring.
Place the herring in a 2 or 3 liter jar and fill with brine. Add 2 bay leaves.
Place in the refrigerator for 2 days. After 2 days, the herring is ready to eat.
P.S. Personally, I use Norwegian herring, in my opinion it tastes better than Atlantic herring. In general, this salt turns out no worse and even better than the cold herring that is sold in the store.

We have salted herring using this recipe many, many times and we have always been pleased with the result!!!
We take 1 kg. good quality fresh frozen herring. Gut, remove skin and cut into pieces. Place the fish in an enamel saucepan.
Ingredients:
Prepare the filling in advance:
3 onions cut into rings;
10-12 tbsp. water;
1 tsp Sahara;
1-2 tbsp. salt (without a slide);
0.5 tsp ground black pepper;
1 dec. l. vinegar (essence);
2 tbsp. l. ketchup;
1/2 tbsp. vegetable oil.
Preparation:
Boil everything together with the onion, cool and pour over the fish. Place in the refrigerator. In a day, the delicious herring will be ready!
Well, very tasty!!!
I used table vinegar.
Bon appetit!
Delicious and quick marinated herring!

Ingredients:
●herring – 2 pcs.,
●onions – 1-2 large sizes,
●apple vinegar – 5 tbsp.,
●salt – 2 tsp,
●sugar – 0.5 tsp,
●water – 1 glass,
●peppercorns – 10 pcs.,
●a pinch of coriander seeds.
Preparation:
First, prepare the marinade - add sugar, salt, apple cider vinegar to the water and heat a little (do not boil) until the ingredients dissolve in it. While the marinade is cooling, clean the herring and cut into pieces, and also cut the onion into rings. We take a jar and place the herring in it, adding onions, peppercorns and coriander alternately as we place it. Pour the now cooled marinade over it, cover it with a lid and leave it somewhere away for a day. In a day, the delicious pickled herring will be ready.
Bon appetit!
Gentle salted herring!

Ingredients:
5 pieces fresh-frozen herring
Brine:
For 1 liter of water we take
5 tablespoons (level) salt
3 tablespoons (level) sugar
12-15 grains of black peppercorns
1 teaspoon of dry mustard seeds (you can use 1 teaspoon of dry mustard) - mustard gives hardness, or rather elasticity, to the herring; it will not be soft, as we sometimes get in the store.
6 bay leaves
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil.
Five pieces of herring fit into a 3-liter jar, it’s okay that the tails are still sticking out, we’ll press them down.
It took 2 liters of water, so we do a double calculation.
Pour water into a saucepan, boil along with salt and sugar.
Let cool.
Place all the spices in a saucepan and add cooled brine. Press the tails under the water and close with a lid. Place in a cool place.
You can eat tomorrow.
If you add cloves, it will be a spicy-salted herring. But we don’t like it like that. We need gentle salting.
Bon appetit!
Sprat
Spicy dry salted sprat!

Ingredients:
Sprat (fresh) - 1 kg;
Coriander (grains) - 0.25 tsp;
Salt (with a small slide; shallow spoon) - 3 tbsp;
Black pepper (peas) - 1 tsp;
Allspice (peas) - 4-5 pcs.;
Bay leaf - 3-4 pcs.;
Ginger (ground; pinch);
Cloves (buds) - 4-5 pcs.
Preparation:
Rinse the sprat thoroughly under running water.
Prepare the pickling mixture:
Crush the spices in a mortar, but not very finely, then mix with salt. Remember that iodized or fine salt is not used for salting fish.
Sprinkle the sprat with the pickling mixture and stir.
It is better to do this in a wide container, such as an enamel bowl. Do not use jars or other narrow dishes; the sprat in them is salted unevenly and quickly deteriorates.
Cover the fish with a plate and place a small weight on top.
Place in a cool place.
In 12 hours, the delicious fish will be ready!

Ingredients for brine (per 1 liter of water):
3 tbsp. salt;
2 tbsp. Sahara;
5 bay leaves;
1 tsp each allspice, cloves and coriander.
Preparation:
Wash the capelin and put it in a jar.
Bring the brine to a boil and boil for 10 minutes.
Then cool and pour the fish into jars.
You can add 1 tsp. vinegar essence per 1-liter jar of fish. Then the ambassador will be spicy.
But you don't have to add it.
Better a couple of tbsp. sunflower oil.
And in the refrigerator for a day.
Bon appetit!

How to salt fish yourself? With the strong rise in price of imported trout in vacuum packaging, this issue is more relevant than ever. Moreover, the domestic product has continuous advantages, while the foreign one has disadvantages. See for yourself: Norwegian and fish from the Faroe Islands are too fatty, bred in captivity. Although it is beautiful (remember the white stripes - this is fat), it is not at all as healthy and tasty as wild Murmansk salmon or Far Eastern sockeye salmon.

You know what you put in your fish, but it’s better not to even know what you put on it and how you salted the salmon from the store. It should be remembered that salting can be one of the ways to sell fish of second freshness.

The only downside to homemade salted fish: you have to cut it yourself. But it only takes 15-20 minutes.

Advice. It is better not to buy chilled fish. Most likely, this is the same frozen one. The fact is that our fishermen usually freeze it right on the boat.

What kind of fish to take

Almost any red fish is suitable for salting. Coho salmon and chum salmon perform well, but they are a bit dry for stewing and frying. Trout, salmon, sockeye salmon are simply wonderful fish. You can take larger fish, salt only part of it, and use the other part for steaks or fry fillets, you can stew them in sauce... Yes, even pink salmon is very tasty when salted, and by the way, very cheap. Only its appearance is the most modest of all salmon. Pink salmon meat is rather gray and holds its shape less well when cut.

Cutting

Tip: It is very convenient to cut fish with scissors. They cut everything very easily. You can take a knife of medium length; it will help peel the meat from the ribs.

Another tip: it is more convenient to cut fish if it is not completely defrosted.

Cut off the tail and head, if any. A lot of fish is sold gutted; cutting it is more convenient and easier.

Clean off the scales and then wash the fish. It doesn’t always need to be cleaned, but if there are a lot of scales on the skin, you won’t get rid of them later.

Cut the skin along the ridge, going around one or both sides. Use your fingers to separate the ridge on one side, reach the backbone with your hand and separate all the back meat from the bones.

Cut out the ventral fins with scissors.

Turn the fish over so that the separated part is on the bottom and the bones are on top. Helping yourself with a knife, separate the ribs from the meat, then the tail part of the ridge.

If there are films left in the area of the insides, remove them. But the main film goes away along with the ribs.

Separate the dorsal fin, and also cut out the fin from the bottom of the tail.

And use a knife to separate the ridge from the second half of the fish. It’s also better to start at the top and then tear off the ribs.

And you got two halves of red fish fillet.

If you wanted to use some of it for steaks, then, of course, you first had to cut them off, and then fillet the fish.

Pickling

Mix 2 tbsp. sugar and 1 tbsp. salt (per 1 kg of fillet). Sprinkle a thick layer over the meat. Fold the fish so that the skin is facing out. Place in a container with a lid. Cover with film. If the fish is fat, then you can put a small load. No more than half a kilogram. Usually I salt 2-3 kilogram fish and don’t add any weight.

The fish itself produces juice and is perfectly salted in it.

What to add

Dill goes perfectly with fish. You can sprinkle it on the fish during salting or after.

A few pinches of lemon zest will go well with the red fish; it should be added to the pickling mixture. If you want to add lemon when serving, then garnish the fish with thin slices.

To make the fish salty and more tender, you can grease it with odorless oil when salting.

It happens that pepper, spices, bay leaves, and garlic are added to fish when salting. The taste is interesting, but it is very different from what we are used to.

How much salt to add

Lightly salted fish will be ready in just 8-10 hours. But this is not the safest option, since there may be other life lurking in the fish. Therefore, it is better to salt it for a day or two. It will be saltier, but safer.

To stop the salting process, you need to drain the juice that the fish gave. To be safe, cut it into pieces.

How to cut

It is convenient to cut by placing the fillet skin side down. I would not recommend turning the meat onto a board when it comes to our fish. It is very soft and will fall apart in no time.

Cut with a sharp knife, slightly diagonally, to get wider pieces. The remaining skin can be used to cover the fish in the tray to prevent airing.

Important! Before slicing, check that you have removed all the bones when cutting.