Ice fish is not as popular as other seafood. But they ignored her undeservedly. With proper preparation and knowledge of how to cook icefish, it will take its rightful place in your diet. Here we show you how to best prepare it, and also offer some recipes to inspire you to be creative in the kitchen.
Where did she come from
Ice fish (it is also called white-blooded) is a unique group of fish that live in Antarctica. In appearance, they resemble pike, and many call them pike , although this is not entirely correct. This fish feels great in water, the temperature of which is rarely above + 1 ... + 2 degrees Celsius. She developed various interesting physiological and biochemical changes and adaptations that allowed her to survive in cold waters. Her blood contains special substances that prevent her from freezing. Her blood is colorless, because it contains little hemoglobin and red blood cells, causing the red color of this biological fluid. It grows slowly due to cold water, and over 15 years of life grows to a maximum of 60 centimeters. Icefish lives in several oceans: the South, Atlantic and Indian.
Benefit
This fish contains a small amount of fat (only seven percent) and a lot of protein. Its meat is dense, very tender, not at all fatty and low-calorie (about 70 kcal per hundred grams), it contains potassium, phosphorus, fluorine, and many other useful elements and vitamins. She has almost no bones: ice fish consists only of a ridge and has no ribs and small bones. Yes, and the ridge, because it has little calcium, is soft and edible (it chews easily). And, probably, the most important thing is the absence of a characteristic smell, which is not pleasant for everyone. And when you consider that it lives in Antarctic waters, that is, in unpolluted places, it does not contain toxic substances. Her meat tastes sweetish and looks like shrimp.
Icefish preparation
There are many recipes, preparation of the carcass will not take much time:
- Take the whole fish, cut off the head, cut the belly and remove the entrails. If you have a cat, she will be happy with it.
- After cleaning from your head, you can remove the gills and use it to cook a delicious fish stock.
- Use scissors to remove fins from above and below the body of the fish. You can also make the fillet, although this way you will lose more meat than when cooking whole or in pieces, the meat in the finished fish easily lags behind the bones.
How to cook ice fish? Just like any other small pelagic fish like smelt.
You can simply rub it with salt without oil and bake in the oven at 180 degrees for 15-18 minutes. Or roll in a beaten egg and breadcrumbs or flour, put in the oven at 200 degrees for 15-20 minutes. It is best to use, of course, flour. As seasoning, you can take special breadcrumbs with seasonings or regular and separately use spices and spices to taste. The batter is necessary for the fish so that its tender meat does not burn out and does not dry out during cooking. The meat of the finished fish easily lags behind the ridge.
Fried fish with capers and garlic butter
Ingredients:
- ice fish (unfinished);
- mashed potatoes;
- cream;
- capers;
- garlic;
- parsley;
- butter.
Cooking:
- Grind, mix and heat the garlic, parsley and butter in a pan.
- Salt the fish and lightly grease the mixture of oil and herbs.
- Place under the grill for 6-7 minutes, turn and hold the same amount.
- Mash potatoes and add cream, salt, pepper and capers to taste.
- Put the mashed potatoes in a pastry bag and squeeze nicely in the center of the plate. Place the fish on top.
Fried filet
Ingredients:
- boneless icefish fillet;
- salt and pepper;
- egg yolk for binding;
- flour;
- breadcrumbs.
Cooking Method:
- Sprinkle the fillet lightly with flour, fry in ghee for 2-3 minutes on each side.
- Combine the flour, egg and breadcrumbs, coat the fish with this mixture.
- Deep-fry at 180 degrees Celsius for 3-4 minutes.
Sauce for ice fish (recipe):
- Red pepper;
- saffron;
- shallot;
- white wine vinegar - 1 tbsp. the spoon;
- olive oil - 3 tbsp. spoons.
Red pepper is very finely chopped. Finely chop the onion, add olive oil, saffron, red pepper and simmer over low heat. Season to taste and add white wine vinegar.
Ice fish in the oven (with mustard sauce)
There are a lot of ways to cook this type of fish. It can simply be boiled, baked or fried. A very interesting dish is obtained if you cook it with mustard sauce in the oven with potatoes.
Ingredients:
- a kilogram of fish;
- twenty grams of mustard;
- a pound of potatoes;
- three tablespoons of vegetable oil;
- cream (at least twenty percent fat) - a glass;
- a couple drops of Tabasco sauce;
- a bunch of parsley;
- salt.
Since ice fish is brought from far away, you can find it in stores only in frozen form. Do not forget that if it is thawed and frozen again, a significant part of the useful substances will be lost. Therefore, before you buy, pay attention to the label, which will indicate where it was caught and when it was frozen.
Do not defrost fish with hot water or a microwave. It is best to do this in advance and at room temperature.
Now you need to clean it and remove the insides, cut the fins with scissors and cut off the heads. Peel and slice the potatoes, arrange them in a greased form, and salt. Put fish on top. Wash and finely chop the parsley, add cream, sauce and mustard. Beat with a blender or just mix. Pour the fish on top with this mixture and place the bake in a well-heated (up to two hundred degrees) oven. Cook for half an hour. Serve hot, garnished with greens. A salad of fresh vegetables is perfect for fish.
In spicy sauce
Ingredients:
- fish (eight pieces);
- 200 ml of fish broth;
- sunflower oil - 4 tablespoons (tablespoons);
- 6-8 cloves of garlic;
- 4-5 sprigs of rosemary;
- a spoon (teaspoon) of ground chili;
- two tablespoons of flour;
- salt.
Wash the fish, let dry, then roll well in flour. Pour two tablespoons of oil into the pan, heat and fry the fish for three minutes on each side. Transfer to a preheated dish. Now add oil to the same pan, put the garlic (no need to peel), cook rosemary leaves and half a minute to allow the oil to absorb the aromas of spices. Pour all over the broth, stir and simmer over a rather high fire until the sauce is doubled. At the end of cooking, add chili and stir. Pour the fish over this sauce and serve immediately.
Steaming
- ice fish (800 grams - kilogram);
- salt to taste;
- pepper to taste.
Cooking method:
- Prepare the fish (gut, cut off the fins and head). Then rinse it well and dry it with a napkin. Carcasses should be salted and sprinkled with pepper on the outside and inside.
- Put in a double boiler. Only 8-10 minutes are enough for cooking. It turns out very tasty and healthy. We especially recommend this recipe for those who follow the figure.
Fish with vegetables
Ingredients:
- 4 pieces of ice fish;
- 80 grams of fennel;
- 1 PC. leeks;
- one white onion;
- sunflower oil;
- paprika (powder);
- corn starch);
- lemon zest;
- parsley powder.
Wash and prepare the fish. Finely chop the vegetables and herbs. Pour oil into a well-heated skillet and add salt. Put vegetables and fry there, not forgetting to stir. Combine the zest, starch, herbs and paprika. Roll icefish in this mixture. Now fry it to a delicious golden color. First place the vegetables on the plate, and then the fish, decorating it with thin slices of lemon.