How to cook fish that has been in the freezer for a long time

Despite the fact that among the Slavic peoples red fish has always occupied a worthy place in the center of the table, for us the most favorite remains a simple appetizer - homemade lightly salted salmon. Healthy and very tasty fish, which contains all the microelements a person needs, will decorate any holiday.

Cooking lightly salted salmon at home will not take much time, and you can store it in the freezer for as long as you need it. At the same time, the fish will not lose either its taste or its appearance. We can talk a lot about the merits of such a snack, but it’s better to try it once. Ingredients:

• Salmon – 500 gr
• Coarse sea salt - 2 tbsp. l
• Sugar - 1 tsp
• Fresh dill – 30 g
• Leek - 50 gr
• Lemon - 1 pc.

Salmon can be fresh, chilled or frozen - this will not affect the taste of the final dish. Before preparing lightly salted fish, in any case, it is advisable to keep it in the cold for several hours.

After the fish has cooled sufficiently, you need to carefully remove the skin and remove the bones. The cutting time depends on the size of the fish. After the pulp is well cleaned from the skin, it must be transferred to a clean container.

Dill must be finely chopped with a knife, add salt and sugar. Gently squeeze the juice from half a lemon and stir. Place the mixture in the refrigerator and leave for at least five minutes. Pay special attention - the fish must be chilled, but not frozen!

Place the salted fish in the refrigerator and leave for several hours - the most optimal time for salting would be 6-8 hours. Before serving, carefully scrape off the remaining salt with a knife. You can wash off a small piece with cold water, but then dry it with a paper towel and you can start serving.

Depending on your plans for what the lightly salted salmon will be used for, cut it into thin layers, cubes or strips. It is advisable to avoid contact between fish and water, unless the fish is very salty. If all these proportions are observed, the fish will take as much salt as needed. When salting fish in large pieces, the cooking time can be extended to a day.

Important: if you salt a lot of fish, store it in the freezer. It is best to cut into portions and wrap in foil. For festive serving of salmon slices, use frozen fish - this way the pieces will be thinner and smoother. Many foods go very well with lightly salted salmon - use the serving to suit your taste.

Place the salted fish in the refrigerator and leave for several hours - the most optimal time for salting would be 6-8 hours. Before serving, carefully scrape off the remaining salt with a knife. You can wash off a small piece with cold water, but then dry it with a paper towel and you can start serving.

Not all people have the opportunity to buy only fresh fish, but nutritionists recommend consuming this product at least twice a week. In addition, some varieties even reach the shelves of domestic stores only in frozen form. These are mackerel, hake, icefish, halibut, tuna, red snapper. Research by Norwegian scientists has shown that frozen fish is no different from fresh fish in terms of the composition of vitamins, minerals and other valuable substances. And so that the product does not spoil, it must be kept in the right conditions and at a certain temperature. We will tell you how long you can store fish in the freezer in our article. We will definitely focus on preparing the product for freezing and other important points.

According to GOST

Shelf life (SG) is the period during which the product is suitable for its intended use. It is calculated in days (months, years) from the date of manufacture or is determined by a specific day, after which the product cannot be used (Articles 472-473 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

For SG fish and storage conditions are established by by-laws (GOSTs) in relation to a specific type of product:

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General information about the shelf life of fish products is also contained in SanPiN 2.3.2.1324-03 dated March 22, 2003 “Hygienic requirements for food storage conditions.”

ATTENTION: SG should be distinguished from shelf life - the period of time during which the product retains all its consumer properties if the conditions are properly met. It may end before the nominal SG.

How does vacuum packaging for sausage affect shelf life?

Features of vacuum packaging

Others, on the contrary, choose this option, since vacuum packaging allows the sausage to be preserved for a long time. Today, vacuum packaging is used not only for sausages, but also for fish, meat, and even vegetables.

In this case, no preservatives are used; the products are simply placed in an airless environment. In it, almost all harmful microorganisms that lead to damage to the contents of the package do not have the opportunity to multiply and soon die. This method of storing food products has a lot of positive aspects, including:

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You can significantly extend the shelf life of sausages and other food products.

The organoleptic qualities of the food remain unchanged - the sausage is still tasty and aromatic.

During transportation and storage, as well as on the store shelf, the product does not become dirty or gather dust.

If the package is equipped with a zip fastener, after opening it is possible not to overload the contents, but leave them in the same container.

Vacuum packaging is a great convenience for consumers.

There are practically no negative aspects to this packaging option. It can only be noted that if the bag contains sliced ​​sausage, the pieces may begin to stick together, as the product releases moisture. This does not in any way affect the quality.

What determines the expiration date?

Vacuum packaging is an excellent option to significantly increase the shelf life of sausage, as well as protect it from negative external influences. The shelf life of such a sausage is three or even five times longer than that of a similar product, but in regular containers. This parameter may be different even for one product. It is influenced by many factors:

How fresh the product fits in the bag.

The number of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria in the sausage during packaging.

Temperature during the procedure.

How quickly was the packaging carried out?

Sanitary and hygienic conditions - the better they are, the longer the sausage will be stored.

Therefore, when cutting food, it is necessary to use only clean knives, cutting boards and packaging devices. Storage conditions are also important - what will be the temperature in the room, will the packaged goods be exposed to sunlight, etc. Only high-quality vacuum bags should be used.

Purchasing sausage in vacuum packaging allows consumers to save money, primarily by extending the shelf life. This indicator must be indicated on the label. Therefore, you should review it carefully before purchasing. In addition, it is recommended to visually inspect the packaged sausage. This will help you buy a good quality product.

Timing and types

Depending on whether the fish has been cooked, the following types, subspecies, and storage modes are distinguished: TAKE ORIGINAL TABLE

How to defrost fish before eating

You cannot cook fish without defrosting - it will remain dry/raw inside or turn into a shapeless mass. The defrosting process takes from 8 to 24 hours.

The defrosting speed is affected by:

• type and size;
• cutting method - whole or gutted, briquette, fillet, steak;
• conditions and duration of freezing - briquette, piece, block;
• freezing temperature.

Methods for defrosting different types are described in detail in the table:

After defrosting, the fish is stored in the refrigerator at 0°C for 2–3 days, at -5°C for no more than 14 days. Carcasses are stored gutted and washed in a dry container with a tightly closed lid, otherwise neighboring products will quickly become saturated with a fishy smell.

Fresh

This is raw fish that has not been subjected to any cooking.

caught

This can be live fish or fallen asleep, but not yet chilled or frozen. In terms of taste, it is superior to those subjected to cooling or freezing, however, not all types are suitable for sale (mainly freshwater (river, lake) are allowed - carp, bream, catfish, trout and others.

Not allowed for sale with mechanical damage to the body, eyes (must be clear, convex), or a change in the shade of the gills from red to any other.

For transportation or storage of goods before sale to the end consumer, special containers (containers, aquariums) are used. They are filled with clean, non-chlorinated water, which is further enriched with oxygen to support life. The optimal water temperature is 5...10 °C; when the temperature increases to 15 °C, the storage duration cannot exceed 24 hours for the warm season and 48 for the cold season.

To keep fish alive at home, it is permissible to use a container filled with clean, cool, non-chlorinated water. Then it should be removed from the water, put in the refrigerator, where it should be stored at -2...0 °C. When maintaining such a low temperature is not possible without damaging other products, it is recommended to place the product in an airtight container filled with ice cubes for additional cooling.

If you don't have a refrigerator, you can use the following methods:

1. Without washing with water (you can simply wipe with a towel), clean the carcass, remove fins, gills, scales, rub with salt and ensure storage in a well-ventilated room. The product can remain fresh for up to 3 days.
2. The fish, grated with salt, is stored for 2 days, wrapped in a towel moistened with a mixture of vinegar and sugar (2 teaspoons).
3. In winter, the product can be stored on the balcony at a temperature not exceeding +2 °C.

Chilled

Its constant temperature ranges from -1 to + 5 °C. You can cool live or only dormant fish. It should be dense to the touch, have a natural color, a characteristic fresh smell without a putrefactive tint. There should be no damage to the carcass.

Cooling methods:

1. Ice. It takes about a day. The product is placed in a container with ice, the amount of which varies from 40 to 100% depending on the season and type of individual.
2. In a liquid medium - sea water, saline solution (3-5%) or a mixture of ice and salt (80% to 20% ratio). Additionally, antibiotics and antiseptics can be added to increase the shelf life by 3-5 days. The method is most often used on fishing vessels or coastal fish processing enterprises before the main technological processing.

Sale of a cut carcass (with or without head) or as a whole is allowed.

Before sale, the product must be stored at a relative air humidity of 95-98% and a temperature of -2...0 °C for 7-9 (small varieties), 10-12 (large species - pink salmon, halibut, pike perch and others) days. The sales period for products should not exceed 1-2 days, and in the absence of a refrigerator - 8 hours.

At home, fish should be stored in the refrigerator at -2 ... 0 ° C, if necessary, placing it in a plastic container with ice.

Frozen

The product temperature is adjusted and maintained at a level not exceeding -18 °C. There are several methods of freezing:

1. Natural - cold (used in winter during ice fishing in harsh climates) or a mixture of ice and salt.
2. Artificial:

• wet (glazing) – at a temperature from -12 to -18 ° C in baths filled with brine;
• dry (“shock” freezing at temperatures from -23° to -30°C and constant airflow).

Store frozen fish at -18 °C for the shelf life specified by the manufacturer (depending on the variety, it is 3-10 months).

In home refrigerators at a temperature of -5 to -6 °C, fresh frozen product is stored for about 2 weeks, at 0 °C - 3 days.

Minced fish

It is prepared by grinding caught, chilled, frozen fish of any kind (except sharks, chimeras and stingrays). Minced meat is classified according to the degree of grinding:

1. Coarsely ground - with muscle fibers visible to the naked eye.
2. Finely ground - obtained by additional processing from coarse minced meat without visible muscle fibers.

IMPORTANT: commercially produced frozen minced meat must be made from one species of fish.

The product is frozen in a dry way to a temperature no higher than -18 or -25 °C. The shelf life is set by the manufacturer, depends on what kind of fish the minced meat was made from, and ranges from 4 to 18 months.

After purchase, minced meat can be stored at home at 2...6 °C in the refrigerator for no more than 6 hours. In the freezer – from 30 days (at -6 °C) to 3 months (at -18 °C). At room temperature, minced meat is stored for no more than 1-2 hours.

What to do if your hands smell?

After dinner, you can wipe your palms with a slice of lemon or table vinegar. But don't do this if you have scratches on your hands. Coffee, olive oil, beer and even toothpaste are also suitable for treating leather.

Special preparations for eliminating odors in the refrigerator

Special means will help eliminate the smell, for example, “absorbers” - balls containing gel inside. They not only neutralize stench, but also leave a pleasant aroma, such as citrus. Their price ranges from 80 to 300 rubles.

You can also purchase a “smart” absorber with an indicator that is placed inside the refrigerator and controls the amount of aromas emitted. When it’s time to clean, the device will notify you. It also works as an odor neutralizer.

More expensive options include battery-powered ionizers, which are placed in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to purify the air. They cost about 1000 rubles.

Cooked

This is fresh fish that has undergone some kind of culinary processing that allows it to be eaten.

Smoked

Smoking is a preservation method that involves salting, drying and processing fish with products of incomplete combustion of wood.

Depending on the temperature, hot and cold smoking methods are distinguished:

You can store the product by wrapping it in a cloth moistened with a saline solution (1 part salt to 2 parts water), placing it on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator, and if the latter is not available, in a drawer, sprinkled with chopped wood or sawdust.

Dried

It is prepared by slowly drying lightly salted fish under the influence of sunlight, heat (up to 40 ° C), air, which leads to the loss of up to 50% of water and a more uniform redistribution of fat.

Whole fish carcasses of small species or pieces (backs, bellies) of larger species are dried.

Before storing, you should make sure that the fish has not oxidized, has not begun to mold, and has no minor damage.

The product should be stored in a dry, dark, cool place, wrapped in cotton cloth or parchment and hung or placed in a tin with a lid, box, or basket. Under these conditions, storage is allowed for about 4 months.

You can keep fish in the freezer for 6-10 months, after wrapping it in paper.

At room temperature (20...25 °C) it will last no longer than 2 months.

IMPORTANT: Plastic storage bags are not recommended as lack of air flow can cause mold to grow.

Dried

It is made by removing moisture from fish carcasses using the following methods:

1. Cold (at 40 °C in natural or artificial conditions). The main difference from drying is the ability to dry without sunlight.
2. Hot (at 200 °C or more).
3. Sublimation (by turning water into ice, and then directly into steam, bypassing the liquid phase).

Salted and unsalted fish are dried.

You can store such a product by wrapping it in cling film and putting it in the freezer (in this case, its properties will remain unchanged for up to 1 year) or on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator, wrapped in paper (allowed up to six months).

Fish suspended in a cotton bag can be stored in a cool, dark place for about a month. It can also be kept in tins, boxes and baskets, similar to jerky.

ATTENTION: dried fish is a semi-finished product, not suitable for consumption without preliminary heat treatment.

Salty

Salting is the process of preserving fish using table salt for further direct consumption or smoking, drying, drying.

The following salting methods exist:

1. Dry. Rolling in salt so that it gets into all the cuts on the body, gills, inside the carcass, placing (again, sprinkling with salt) in a waterproof container (tank, tank). Used for long-term storage.
2. Wet. The product is poured with brine (saturated saline solution) in a ratio of 1:3 for about a week. The fish turns out to be more tender and of better quality than dry-salted products, but unsuitable for long-term storage.
3. Spicy. Processing carcasses with a mixture of salt, sugar, spices (black and red pepper, cumin, cloves) and then placing them in a barrel. A day later it is filled with brine and ripens at 0 °C for about a month. This salting method is often used for herring.

According to the degree of saturation with salt (as a percentage of weight), fish can also be:

• lightly salted (4-6%);
• lightly salted (6-9%);
• medium salted (9-13%);
• strongly salted (over 13%).

Such products can be stored at temperatures from -8 to -4 °C in barrels filled with brine for 4, 6, 9 months (depending on the salinity - weak, medium, strong). Without brine, storage is possible in various containers for:

• 4 months (wooden boxes);
• 3 months (plastic buckets);
• 1.5 months (glass jars);
• 1 month (plastic jars);
• 1-2 months (vacuum polymer bags);
• 10-30 days (polymer packaging without vacuum);
• frozen at a temperature not exceeding -18 °C – 4 months (under vacuum), 2 months (without vacuum).

Home storage at 0...+3 °C allows you to preserve:

• lightly salted salmon – 2-3 days;
• common herring – 15-20 days;
• products in vacuum packaging – 1 month;
• lightly salted fish – 5-6 days;
• pieces of fish in vegetable oil before opening the package - up to 3 months.

Fried

It is prepared by frying pieces (large types), whole carcasses (small varieties) in a small amount of animal or vegetable fat or completely immersed in fat.

The fried product can be stored in the refrigerator at 2...6 °C for about 36 hours, at room temperature - no more than 2-3.

Canned fish fried in marinade must be stored at 0...20 °C and a relative air humidity of no more than 75% for less than a year from the date of manufacture.

At what temperature should frozen and fresh-frozen fish be stored?

Freezing is a method of storing fish when it is cooled to -10°C or lower naturally (in the cold North), in freezers or with liquid nitrogen. Freezing allows the product to be transported without problems in refrigerators and stored on store shelves.

Fresh frozen (frozen) fish is exposed to temperatures down to -5°C when using natural, artificial ice or cold water. It is frozen while still alive or immediately after slaughter.

Reference. All types of fish can be sold frozen. And herring, mackerel and cod are most often frozen.

Frozen carcasses in the store refrigerator should be stored by grade. Each is in a corrugated cardboard box or non-woven bag, packed in a film bag. The fish can lie together or separately, packed in film.

In commercial refrigerators, the frozen product is stored at a temperature of -5...-6°C for 2 weeks. Without refrigeration equipment it is stored for 24 hours, at a temperature of 0°C - 3 days.

Frozen carcasses lie on open cold counters on trays with ice. This product is not wrapped in film, paper, or bags.

The optimal storage mode for fresh frozen products is 2°C. At such indicators, carcasses are stored for 8-10 days.

Attention! If fresh frozen fish was stored correctly, the taste after cooking will be identical to fresh fish.

How to know if a product is expired

For each type of fish product there are signs that it is no longer suitable for consumption:

Freezer storage rules

Average temperatures in the freezers of home refrigerators range from -6 to -24 degrees. Purchased frozen fish should immediately go into the freezer to avoid possible defrosting. To preserve fresh fish, it is necessary to pre-process it - the meat is thoroughly washed, gutted, and the head and fins are cut off. If desired, large carcasses are cut into portioned pieces.

It is impossible to get poisoned by freshly defrosted fish from the freezer, since the cold stops fermentation and destroys harmful microflora. But meat that has been left in the cold for a long time loses some of its taste. The main thing: do not refreeze such a product! And not because of an even greater loss of taste - microorganisms will immediately develop in it, and all the beneficial substances will finally leave it!

Fatty varieties develop an unpleasant odor and taste of rancid oil over time. Low-fat varieties lose their taste completely when stored for a long time.

Danger of spoiled product

Eating expired fish is dangerous to health, and in particularly severe cases of intoxication – to human life. Symptoms of poisoning are nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, a decrease in body temperature to 32 ° C, severe thirst.

In the most difficult cases, if medical care is not provided on time, respiratory paralysis and death occur. Therefore, if you notice the first signs of poisoning, you should immediately consult a doctor.

If the cause is a low-quality product (raw or cooked) purchased at a retail outlet (store, market, catering organization), the consumer should file a complaint with the SES or Rospotrebnadzor.

How to store live

Since fish cannot be preserved for a long time without cooling or heat treatment or salting, sometimes it is advisable to leave it alive for as long as possible.

Not all of its species are kept alive:

• marine – flounder, gobies, navaga, glossa;
• river - chub, crucian carp, asp, bream, perch, pike, tench.

At home, storing fish catch alive is problematic, since the quality of tap water is not suitable for it. However, if a live catch is provided with running water of appropriate quality, it can last no more than a day.

Fishing

Basic rules to help keep your fishing catch alive for as long as possible. Having caught a fish, it is removed from the hook as carefully as possible, without squeezing the abdomen, so as not to injure the insides. Injured specimens are not thrown into a bucket of live fish. To store the catch, use a wicker or thread cage and place it in a shaded place. It is better not to use metal ones, since the fish are injured in them, peeling off the scales.

The container with live catch is regularly checked; if they are found asleep or lethargic, they are immediately isolated, killed and gutted, otherwise the rest will quickly deteriorate.

How to properly pack before storing

For proper storage of fried fish, it is important not only to comply with the deadlines, but also to pack it correctly. Unsealed packaging leads to loss of taste and smell. The main component of seafood is protein. It is a breeding ground for many microorganisms. Dense containers protect food from the appearance of foreign odors and the development of pathogenic microbes.

Protein foods are stored in a tightly closed container or hermetically sealed bag. This way the product retains its own smell and taste. Airtight containers help retain moisture in the dish longer and protect against the ingress of foreign objects. The optimal solution for storing fried fish is to use vacuum bags. In a bag without air, moisture loss and fat oxidation occur more slowly.

Airtight containers are suitable for freezing seafood. The dishes are selected taking into account the ability to withstand sub-zero temperatures. Regular foil and plastic bags are only suitable for short-term storage of fried fish in the refrigerator.

See also

How to properly store ginger at home

Cooling

Before placing the fish in the refrigerator, it is removed from the stove and kept until it reaches room temperature. Then they are transferred to plastic or enamel containers with lids and placed on the bottom shelf. If special containers are not available, you can use a plate well wrapped in cling film or tightly folded aluminum foil.

You cannot store fish in a cast iron frying pan, even if it has been fried there. This metal reacts with foods and accelerates the oxidation of omega-3s.

Safe supplies: how long can you store fried fish in the refrigerator

Without knowing how long fried fish can be stored in the refrigerator, it is easy to get food poisoning. This is due to the fact that in the early stages of decomposition the product looks and smells like fresh, but the amount of toxins in it is no longer safe for the human body. The general rules are as follows: cooked fish can be stored in the main compartment of the refrigerator for up to 3 days, in the freezer for up to 3 months.

What to look for when choosing: useful tips

I recommend studying the following recommendations, they will help you buy a quality product in the store:

If possible, purchase live fish, even if you do not plan to cook it right away. This way you will be sure of its quality and freshness before freezing. It is not always possible to buy a fresh product. Some species live far away, so delivering them alive is problematic.

Pay attention to the variety; “overseas” ones must be frozen. Selling in a thawed form is prohibited; such a product cannot be re-frozen and eaten. It is better to buy frozen fish, vacuum packed

Such a package must have the date of catch and the expiration date after which the product cannot be consumed. The only thing you need to do is check the integrity of the vacuum film. Frozen products must have good appearance. The appearance of stains on the surface of the skin and mechanical damage is unacceptable. Never be shy to smell the product. Even after freezing, the fish should have its own smell, without any impurities. It is acceptable to sell certain types of fish in ice glaze, but its thickness should be no more than 5% of the total weight (according to GOST requirements).