Smoked fish is one of the most delicious delicacies that only exist in Russia. This is especially true for fatty and aromatic mackerel. However, when buying in a store it is quite difficult to find a really high-quality product, because it is not always possible to determine its freshness. So if there is a smokehouse at home, then you should definitely smoke the fish yourself. That is why it is important to know how to properly salted mackerel for hot smoking in order to get the perfect taste. This is what will be discussed in this article.
Fish selection
Before you begin to learn how to pickle mackerel before hot smoking, you should definitely learn how to make the right choice of fish in the store. First of all, it is worth remembering that a purchase must be made only from trusted merchants or in quality stores, this will prevent the possibility of using a bad product in the future.
To determine the quality, attention should be paid to the following factors:
- the carcass of the fish must be dense, and not loose, without an unpleasant odor;
- it is best to buy a mackerel chilled, and if it was frozen, then it should not be covered by an ice crust.
Preparing for salting
One of the most important questions about how to salt mackerel for hot smoking is the correctness of the preparation process. To do this, fresh carcass must first be thawed in the refrigerator, and then gutted, removing the head, fins and entrails.
Then the fish should be washed and dried with a paper towel. After this, the mackerel can begin to be salted for subsequent smoking in the smokehouse. Well, if you decide to smoke whole mackerel, then you will not need to gut the carcass. It is necessary to completely remove all the scales from it, but make it so as not to damage the skin.
Mackerel salting
Now we will directly proceed to find out how to salt mackerel for hot smoking. The recipe is the easiest. For this, you do not need to purchase additional ingredients, as they are already available in any kitchen - this is salt and black pepper. If you wish, you can add any other spices that go well with fish.
For such salting, you just need to cover the carcasses of the fish with a thick layer of salt mixed with black pepper. Then the container in which they are located is covered with cling film and sent to a cold place for about 10 hours. So just leave it for the night - this time is enough for the mackerel to pickle.
Just before smoking, you will need to shake off any excess salt from the carcasses and send them to the smokehouse. As you can see, the question of how to salt mackerel for smoking does not cause any particular difficulties, since the set of actions and ingredients in the classic recipe is minimal.
Marinade options
If you want to make the fish more flavorful, then you can additionally cook different types of marinade. There are quite a few of them, so if you wish, you can find the most suitable for yourself. So, now consider recipes for various marinades.
Marinade with lemon
Lemon marinade is perfect to give the fish a delicious sourness. For him, you need to take about 2 liters of water per 1 kilogram of mackerel, a couple of tablespoons of lemon juice, a bay leaf, a glass of sugar and salt, three cloves of garlic, black peppercorns and onion husks.
To get a delicious salted fish, you need to boil all the water, and then add sugar, salt, bay leaf and onion husk to it. Mix everything, and then add more lemon juice and chopped garlic. The marinade should be boiled for about ten minutes, and then cooled. In the marinade, you will need to lower the carcasses of the fish, and then leave them for salting for about a couple of hours. This time is quite enough to get a fragrant mackerel. Before smoking, you just need to dry it.
Coriander Marinade
As you know, fish always goes well with coriander, so you should definitely figure out how to salt mackerel for hot smoking in a similar marinade. Moreover, making it is very simple and quick - it will not take more than ten minutes or special culinary talents. Such a recipe will make smoked fish more fragrant, and the fillet itself more tender and juicy, so that the dish will become truly unique.
To prepare this marinade you will need to take:
- 3 peeled mackerels;
- 1 liter of water;
- 2 tablespoons of sugar;
- 2 tablespoons of salt;
- 1 tablespoon coriander grains;
- 5 bay leaves;
- 2 pieces of cloves and black pepper with peas.
To get a delicious salting, you will need to follow the following step-by-step recommendations:
- Pour a liter of water into the stewpan and put it on fire. Once it boils, sugar and salt will need to be added to it. Here you should not worry at all that sugar will give the mackerel a sweet taste - it will only contribute to the faster absorption of salt and spices. Just don't get too carried away with it.
- The marinade should be mixed until sugar and salt are completely dissolved. Then all other spices are added to it. If you wish, you can add any of your own, but you should carefully monitor that they do not spoil the taste.
- The prepared liquid needs to be cooled, and then the fish carcasses themselves are placed in it. In total, it will take about twelve hours to salting. In no case should this time be reduced, since in this case there is a great possibility that the mackerel will not be salted. As soon as time is up, carcasses need to be taken out of the marinade and hung by the tails, leaving an additional couple of hours. So all the excess liquid just drains, after which you can start smoking. If you use such a marinade, then the dish after smoking will be a little piquant.
Cooking features
When learning how to salt mackerel for hot smoking, you should definitely remember the main secret of how to get delicious fish. It is quite simple - the amount of ingredients for the marinade should be minimal. Therefore, you should not use a wide variety of spices - they will only kill the natural taste of fish.
So in most cases only salt can be used. It is quite enough for the mackerel to acquire salinity, and it will get the rest of the taste precisely because of the aromatic smoke.
Useful Tips
If you want to cook even more delicious fish, then you should use a few tips:
- When salting, be sure to grate the carcass with a little brown sugar. So the meat will be much more tender.
- If the mackerel is very large, then before pickling it can be cut into portions. So it will be better salted and will become much tastier.
- Additionally, soy sauce can be added to the marinade. This Chinese seasoning will give the mackerel a slightly spicy, but at the same time unforgettable taste.
Conclusion
The article explained how to salt hot mackerel, step by step. The recipe is useful to many. Now you know how to choose a carcass in a store, and then prepare it. In addition to the simplest pickling recipe, various varieties of marinade were also given that can be used for greater flavoring. If you used all the tips above, then preparing the fish before smoking should not take much time and effort.