Which fish do you prefer, home-salted or store-bought? Don’t ask this question to anyone, everyone will be inclined to pickle it themselves. Do you know why? The answer is obvious; in the store, the herring can sit in brine for a long time, which is not good, as it will be very salty. And also, you don’t know how the choice was made, maybe it’s not the first freshness, then there won’t be any taste at all. That’s why it’s better to salt fish at home using your own proven recipes. It will be much tastier and more aromatic. Don't be afraid to waste a lot of time, believe me, it's worth it.
In previous articles, recipes for lightly salted herring have already been described, and they have also been considered using the dry method and whole in brine. Today I want to share with you recipes for spicy salting. I hope you will appreciate them and save them in your cookbook. It’s clear that every good housewife has her own method, but still try these options. Maybe you'll like something.
So the choice is entirely yours. After all, no matter what you say, herring is the most delicious appetizer on the holiday table. And today we will prepare it using herbs. They will add not only aroma, but also excellent taste. Well, let's move on to the first method.
The most important thing to remember: before any salting, always remove the gills, otherwise they will give us unnecessary bitterness. And this is not desirable in brine.
How to choose and prepare fish correctly
To make the herring tasty and proper after salting, it is not enough to know the recipe for a good marinade/brine. In addition, it will also be good if you know how to choose fresh fish of good quality.
So that you do not make a mistake in your choice, we have created for you a list of rules (or tips) by which you can choose a really good product.
- In fresh fish, the gills must be dark red in color, and in no case light;
- The second important point is the eyes. It is for this reason that it is recommended to take a whole carcass. Fresh herring have bulging and clear eyes. If they are flat and cloudy, then the fish has clearly not been standing for the first week;
- Try to press lightly on the gills - nothing should flow out/stand out. If blood flows, the fish was stored in poor or simply incorrect conditions;
- When you press on the “meat” itself, you should feel that the fish is elastic. That is, the dent from the finger should be smoothed out in less than a second. If it takes a few seconds, the fish is clearly not fresh;
- The thicker the back of the fish, the juicier and tastier it will be, no matter how you cook it;
- Herring has its own specific aroma. And if you buy herring, then it can only smell “of itself.” There should be no spices or other aromas. Very often, manufacturers add a lot of spices to products to brighten up the fact that the expiration date has already passed;
- Try smelling the gills. They should smell pleasant, without bitterness or rot. In the last two cases, the carcass, naturally, cannot be purchased;
- Ask the seller for a bag and use it to pick up the carcass. If you find it difficult to do this because the fish is too slippery, then rest assured that this seller did not follow the storage rules;
- The scales of the fish should be their natural color. If it is even a little yellow, it is better not to buy it. It may be dangerous.
Now that you are already an expert in choosing herring, you can safely go to the store or market in order to choose the main ingredient correctly. Good luck!
Cooking spicy salted herring at home
Pickling recipe in two days
| Ingredients | Quantity |
| boiled water - | 1200 ml |
| herring - | 3 pcs. |
| cardamom - | 3 pcs. |
| salt - | 220 g |
| lemon acid - | 2 g |
| allspice - | 5 pieces. |
| black peas - | 4 things. |
| carnations - | 5 pieces. |
| coriander seeds - | 5 pieces. |
| sugar - | 35 g |
| Lavra - | 2 sheets |
| Cooking time: 2800 minutes | Calorie content per 100 grams: 182 Kcal |
Preparation:
- Wash the herring, remove the heads and tails, cut off the fins;
- Pour water into a saucepan and place it on the stove;
- Add salt, coriander, allspice and black pepper, cardamom, cloves;
- Send laurel leaves there;
- Bring to a boil, add citric acid and dissolve it completely;
- Remove the saucepan from the heat and cool the brine completely;
- Place the fish in a container, pour cold marinade over it and place a press on top so that the fish does not float up;
- Remove the fish from salting for at least two days at room temperature.
Salting a whole herring carcass
- 850 g herring;
- 4 clove inflorescences;
- 1100 ml water;
- 2 laurel leaves;
- 35 g sugar;
- 10 pcs allspice;
- 65 g salt;
- 6 black peppercorns;
- 15 g coriander.
Time – 5 minutes + 5 hours + 3 days.
Calorie content – 187 calories.
Preparation:
- Place cloves, laurel leaves, sugar, allspice and black pepper, salt, coriander in a plastic container;
- Pour water over spices and spices, stir until salt and sugar crystals dissolve;
- Place the fish there and keep at room temperature for five hours;
- Then put it in the refrigerator for at least three days, but no more than five;
- When half the time has passed, turn the fish over so that it is equally salted on both sides.
Salting frozen fish
- 750 g frozen herring;
- 35 g sugar;
- 3 cloves;
- 1200 ml boiled water;
- 6 g coriander;
- 8 pcs allspice;
- 50 g salt;
- 2 laurel leaves.
Time – 15 minutes + 15 hours.
Calorie content – 191 calories.
Preparation:
- For such a quantity of fish, most likely, just two carcasses will do;
- Remove them from the freezer and let them defrost completely;
- Rinse the defrosted fish and, if desired, gut it;
- Place the carcasses in a container or container where the fish will be salted;
- Pour water into a saucepan, add sugar, cloves, coriander, allspice, salt and laurel leaves;
- Remove the saucepan to the stove and bring the contents to a boil;
- Then remove from heat and cool the marinade completely;
- Pour the cooled brine over the fish so that the water completely covers it;
- Leave at room temperature for fifteen hours;
- Next, put the fish in the refrigerator and cool. Then you can use it for its intended purpose.
How to bake an Easter cake if you don’t have a mold - a few ideas for baking Easter cakes.
Read how to cook pizza with shrimp or other seafood.
Take note of the recipe for potato shish kebab - a simple and at the same time original dish.
Quick salting
- 2 herrings;
- 10 g sugar;
- 1100 ml warm water;
- 5 pcs allspice;
- 30 g salt;
- 2 laurel leaves;
- 5 carnations.
Time – 10 minutes + 12 hours.
Calorie content – 174 calories.
Preparation:
- If your fish is frozen, you need to defrost it first;
- Then rinse well with running water and remove scales;
- Open the bellies of the carcasses, gut them and wash them again;
- Pour salt and sugar into warm water, add bay leaves, allspice and cloves, stir until the sweet and salty crystals dissolve;
- Place the carcasses in a container in which the fish will infuse;
- Pour the marinade over the fish, cover and refrigerate for at least twelve hours.
Another way
- 50 g salt;
- 10 pieces of black peas;
- 2 herring carcasses;
- 5 carnations;
- 1100 ml water;
- 8 pcs allspice;
- 4 laurel leaves;
- 10 g sugar.
Time – 30 minutes + 1 hour + 2 days.
Calorie content – 177 calories.
Preparation:
- Thaw the fish if it is frozen and rinse with running water;
- Place the carcasses in a container in which they will marinate;
- Boil water in a saucepan, add salt, black and sweet peas, cloves, sugar and laurel leaves;
- Stir everything until the sugar and salt dissolve;
- Then bring to a boil again and then cool;
- Pour over the fish and do not touch it for one hour;
- After this, put it in the refrigerator for at least two days (no more than seven days).
Recipe 8: how to pickle Volga herring (step-by-step photos)
- 2 pieces of fatty herrings;
- Salt - 50 grams;
- 1 tsp. Sahara;
- A couple of bay leaf pieces;
- A pack of black peppercorns;
- 500 ml water.
Two large and fatty herrings are thoroughly washed and placed in a bowl for pickling.
Pour water into a saucepan and heat to a boil over low heat. Add salt, granulated sugar, bay leaves and a pack of peas to boiling water. Stir well until completely dissolved and turn off the heat. Leave for a while to allow the resulting brine to cool.
After this, the herring is filled with warm brine and closed. The cup with herring and brine should be placed in the cold. After about a couple of days, the herring will be lightly salted. If you need the herring to be a little saltier, then you should wait a couple more days.
The finished salted herring is cut into small pieces, placed in a special container, filled with sunflower oil and stored in the refrigerator.
Quick recipe
In 36 hours
- 260 g salt;
- 2 herrings;
- 3 bay leaves;
- 900 ml water;
- 5 black peppercorns.
Time – 20 minutes + 1 hour + 36 hours.
Calorie content – 170 calories.
Preparation:
- Rinse the fish well under running water;
- Boil water, add salt and other spices to it, cool;
- Place the herring in a container in which it will be salted;
- Pour brine over the fish and do not touch it for an hour;
- After this, put it in the refrigerator for 36 hours;
- Before serving, wash the fish, cut and serve.
In 2 hours
- 3 herring carcasses;
- 12 g of salt per carcass;
- 5 g sugar per carcass.
Time – 15 minutes + 2 hours.
Calorie content – 167 calories.
Preparation:
- First, you need to defrost the fish, if it is not freshly caught;
- Next, rinse and cut off the head and tail;
- After this, rip open the belly of each herring and gut it;
- Rinse again and rub each fish separately with salt and sugar;
- Wrap each carcass separately in cling film and leave for two hours at room temperature;
- After this, open the fish, rinse off excess salt and you’re done!
Recipe 5: Scandinavian-style herring slices with sugar
- herring 3 pcs.
- onions 2 pcs.
- mustard seeds 2 tsp.
- salt 2 tbsp.
- powdered sugar 100 g
- wine vinegar 100 g
- boiled cold water 50 g
- olive oil 15 g
- bay leaf 1 pc.
- fresh ginger 1 pc.
- chili pepper 1 pc.
Select herring for pickling. The fish should be free of rust, undamaged, with clear eyes. Fresh herrings are the key to success! In my recipe, 3 unpeeled herrings weighed about 1 kg.
The procedure for cleaning herring is not the most pleasant. Cut off the heads, cut off the fins, peel the scales and wash thoroughly.
Separate the herring fillet from the bones. Using tweezers, remove the small bones from the ridge that remain in the fillet.
Salt the herring. The calculation for salt is as follows: for one medium-sized herring, 10-12 g of coarse salt, which is slightly less than a tablespoon. Place in the refrigerator for 3 hours.
Prepare the marinade. Mix powdered sugar, vinegar, water, olive oil, and mustard seeds in a jar in which the herring will be pickled. Peel the ginger root and chop finely. Cut the onions into rings.
Remove the herring fillets from the refrigerator and remove excess salt with a damp hand. Cut into 2 cm pieces.
Place pieces of herring tightly in a jar, alternating them with onion rings and pieces of ginger. If the herring displaces excess marinade from the jar, then it’s okay.
Close the jar with a lid and refrigerate for 2 days. You can regulate and adjust the salting process. Try a piece of herring the next day. If it seems that there is too much of any ingredient, then you can drain the brine and add boiled, salted water. A day later the herring is ready.
How and with what to serve a snack
It seems that pickled herring is a ready-made dish to which nothing can be added. But this opinion is more than wrong.
At a minimum, it will be very tasty if you cut the salted fish into slices and serve it for lunch with regular mashed potatoes. This is if your imagination is really bad.
But, in addition to this, fish can be added in small portions to salads, or served as a classic appetizer with onions and vegetable oil. You can also make pate from fish fillets and make sandwiches for the holiday. Or wrap the fish in pita bread instead of meat, add vegetables, herbs and you're done!
Well, and of course, where would we be without herring under a fur coat or that famous classic when the fish is served with onions in vegetable oil and accompanied by jacket potatoes. It's not like you can lick your fingers, but you can bite them off!
In general, as you can see, wherever you add herring, it will be tasty everywhere, every dish will be satisfying, unusual and truly aromatic!
