There are two ways to increase the shelf life of fish - smoking and salting. Smoke is a natural antiseptic that allows you to increase the shelf life of fish and gives it a special aroma and taste. Smoking is a procedure in which the product is aged in an environment of smoke. The source of smoke is wood chips (pieces) of different species of wood that smolder.
There is cold, hot and semi-hot smoking. Basically, tourists and summer residents prefer only hot smoking, since this process does not take much time. The process of cold smoking can last several days and such a process is quite laborious. You can smoke any meat and fish products. It could be sausages various sausages, meat, poultry, fish and other products. The taste of a freshly smoked product is superior in taste to shish kebab and grill. By appearance smoked products are a real decoration of any table.
Smoking fish at home is easy and simple. Hot smoking requires a smokehouse. A smokehouse is basically a tight-fitting metal container that you can make yourself. To do this, you can use almost any bucket, large saucepan, a small metal barrel, etc. The main requirement - it is necessary that the object is tightly closed and does not emit harmful substances inside the container itself.
At the bottom of the smokehouse it is necessary to pour wood chips, which subsequently, when heated and in the absence of air, will smolder, while releasing a lot of smoke. The product cooks quickly, as the temperature in the smokehouse is about 120 degrees, at the same time the product is saturated with a wonderful and characteristic smell.
In small home-made smokehouses, the method of heating the bottom of the smokehouse is mainly used by heating on a gas stove, stove or fire. If you use a fairly large container (for example, a refrigerator case), then the heater must be installed directly inside the container itself. It is best to use electric heaters (hobs with a closed coil) on which pans with wood chips are installed. Their heating does not require access to oxygen, and they take up little space in the smokehouse, unlike stoves-bourgeois.
To obtain chips, it is best to use alder or juniper wood. They also use hazel, oak, apple, ash, pear (it is better if these are branches that were obtained during spring pruning), as well as birch. Each of the trees will give the product its own special flavor. So feel free to experiment. You can also use chips from different types of wood.
Before splitting from wood, it is first necessary to remove the bark, since the bark contains a lot of resin. It is for this reason that wood from coniferous trees cannot be used. The tree must be crushed to cubes of 2-3 cm in size, but no more. Before pouring wood chips into the smoker, it should be slightly moistened, and then poured in an even layer along the bottom of the smoker. If you are using a bucket-sized smoker, then 200-300 ml wood chips by volume will suffice.
It is necessary to install a grate in the smokehouse itself, on which the products intended for smoking will be placed. They can also be hung on special twine. But this is a rather time-consuming procedure, so most people prefer a simple lattice.
Preparation of products for hot smoking
You can smoke fish at home both fresh and pre-prepared with salting. Mostly small fresh fish, not gutted beforehand. Large fish must be gutted, and then the abdominal cavity should be filled with aromatic herbs (parsley, dill). After that, the fish is rubbed with salt and sent to the smokehouse. If a very large fish, then it must be divided along the spine into two halves.
The taste is very interesting fish, which was previously salted and dried. Large fins and heads must be separated. Then coarse salt should be rubbed into the fish. If you are going to smoke fatty fish (mackerel, horse mackerel, flounder, halibut, catfish), then after the fish has been salted, it must be wrapped in tracing paper and then placed under a light press.
The salting process lasts from 3 hours to one day, it all depends on the size of the fish. After that, the fish must be hung so that the brine can drain from it. Remains of salt that remain on the fish must be carefully removed. To do this, the fish can be rinsed cold water and then wipe dry. The fish is dried for about an hour, and then it must be sent to the smokehouse.
hot smoking process
In order to heat up the bottom of the smokehouse, a small but consistently hot fire is needed. You can use different fuels, the type of wood does not affect it.
The food should be placed on the grate in a single layer so that it can come into contact with the smoke from all sides. The smokehouse should be closed, while pressing down on the lid so that smoke does not escape from the smokehouse, and oxygen cannot get there.
The fire must be built under the smokehouse. The smoking process begins with the smoking of wood chips. The smoke will still seep through the smoker a little. It is very important not to overheat the smoker. The temperature inside should not be quite high, especially at the beginning of the process. The process can basically be divided into two steps. The first one is , takes ¼ of the time. The second is directly smoking itself - the rest of the time. The temperature inside the smokehouse during drying should not be more than 80-90 degrees, and during smoking itself - 120 degrees.
The temperature inside the smokehouse can be determined by a simple method - if you drop water on the lid, then it should evaporate without hissing, and not boil. At this temperature, the products will smoke properly and will not cook.
It is necessary to regulate the temperature - by decreasing or increasing the fire in the fire under the smokehouse. The smoking time depends on the strength of the fire, the size of the smokehouse and the amount of food. This usually takes 30 to 40 minutes. But if you have not yet adapted to your smokehouse, then it is better to remove it from the fire several times and, opening the lid, taste the smoked product. Once you've done this process a few times and become familiar with it, you don't have to do it anymore.
The smoking process is much easier to regulate if you use an electric stove that has heating “pancakes”. Such electric stoves, as a rule, have smooth adjustment, which allows you to choose the most optimal option for heating the smokehouse. When you determine it, there will be no need to experiment later.
You should be aware that hot smoked products cannot be stored for a long time. They are delicious when they are still fresh. They should be stored for no more than 3 days and then in the refrigerator. Cold smoked products are stored longer, about 2-3 months.
Cold smoking
This is the object of desire for any angler. Since the fish is processed in cold smoke, only moisture is vented out of it. The fish is immediately smoked and dried, but the process is not brought to the hardness of the dried roach, as it stops halfway - when only half of the moisture has evaporated from the fish. Therefore, when cold smoking, it is necessary to maintain the constancy and strength of the smoke. The temperature in the smokehouse should be no more than 25 degrees, this allows you to protect the fish that is smoked from drying out and losing fat.
A cold-type smokehouse can be installed in any plank shed, in an old tent, in a dugout, in a bathhouse, and even in a hut. The main thing is that the height of the room is 1.5-2 meters. The perches on which the fish will be tied must be strengthened as high as possible. The fish must first be salted abundantly and kept in such a brine for about 2-3 hours. Then the fish is aired in the sun so that the scales are not dry. Under the fish, you need to put a basin or another container, you should dilute a smoker in it: first you need to kindle a small fire, and then, as the coals light up, fill it with small sawdust. As with hot smoking, it is best to use alder or aspen chips for cold smoking. But not coniferous trees. At the final stage of smoking, it will be good if you add raw juniper twigs to the fire, as their smoke has antimicrobial properties, the fish becomes less moldy, which allows it to last longer. You can also add various aromatic herbs to the smokehouse: basil, sage, wormwood, etc. Good taste in fish, which is smoked with smoke from smoldering rye straw.
The smoking process lasts 3-4 days, depending on the size of the fish and the humidity of the air. Small fish (300-500 gr.) Will be ready by the end of the second day, larger fish can be smoked for about 6 days. It is important that the flame does not break out in the container, since it will no longer be cold smoked, but hot. In order to avoid outbreaks of fire, it is necessary to cover the bucket with a sheet of iron. At the same time, we must not forget about safety precautions.
When the fish meat becomes elastic and acquires a golden hue, this means that the smoking process is over. It does not hurt to leave the fish to hang for 2-3 days without smoke, so it will dry out and will be much tastier. But it shouldn't be overdone. If ash has stuck to the fish, and its appearance is dull and smoky, then it should be wiped with a cloth that has been previously moistened with sunflower oil or fish oil. After that, the smoked fish will have a bronze tint.
Video - cold smoked fish
Video - hot smoked fish
Conclusion
Eat smoked fish It is pure pleasure and bliss. Fish or smoked salted balychki is an excellent delicacy. Which fish to smoke depends on your preferences, but we can say that great taste comes out at the smoked tench, but the bronze-golden, like a saber, long saber coat is even more tasty.
Sitting with a fishing rod on the bank of a river or lake, a real fisherman is already thinking about how he will dispose of his catch, especially a large catch. Without a doubt, a true fisherman knows all the secrets and rules of how to smoke fish in a smokehouse, how to properly ensure this smoking, in order to be proud of the result. Bringing home a good catch is a man's luck, but the fisherman gets the main pleasure if all the prey is processed into delicious dishes!
How to save your catch?
A tired but happy angler brings the prey home and sorts the fish himself for different dishes. What can be cooked?
- Ukha - fragrant and rich.
- Fried or baked fish with potatoes.
- Salt the catch or dry it.
- Smoked fish hot or cold smoked.
Smoking fish in a smokehouse as an option for processing the catch will be discussed in our article. Information will be needed for those anglers who have just set foot on the path of obtaining their own smoked product. Believe me, the whole technology only at first glance seems complicated.
In fact, having tried it at least once, you will become an enthusiastic smoker even of the fish that were caught not by you, but by fishing fleets!
You can smoke absolutely any fish - both river and sea. The method of its preliminary preparation and the time of salting before smoking depends on the type and size.
You can smoke fresh catch brought from fishing, or you can buy frozen fish in the store and cook a delicacy from it.
It is better to defrost a frozen product in the general section of the refrigerator in a natural way, only then wash and cut it. Next, all the carcasses need to be dried with napkins and get to work.
Ways to smoke fish
Smoking involves the treatment of fish carcasses with smoke. Smoke tends to penetrate deeply into the fibers, thereby disinfecting all their layers, i.e. smoke has the properties of a reliable natural antiseptic.
In addition, smoke treatment allows you to get a beautiful, fragrant and very delicious product home smoking. Active smoke is provided by the slow smoldering of chips and sawdust of certain types of wood.
How can you smoke fish?
- Hot smoking;
- Cold smoking;
- Semi-hot smoking.
For the formation of hot smoke, you need to prepare a special, hermetically sealed container (pot, bucket, steel box or barrel, etc.).
Also, this container should be provided with a grate on which the product is laid out. The main requirement for a hot smoked smoking container is its chemically resistant inner coating. No harmful compounds should be released inside the product.
Of course, the best solution would be to buy a factory-made smokehouse - a convenient hermetically sealed container for smoking products. It is equipped with a grill and a tight-fitting lid, which allows you to smoke fish directly in the kitchen.
To obtain a high-quality smoked product, the right choice of wood is also important.
The best material for obtaining a fragrant haze are:
- juniper chips (and berries, including),
- fruit trees, alder, oak, etc.
The main thing is to avoid using wood from species rich in resins: all conifers (except juniper), birch, etc. An excellent result is the use of grapevine (dry).
Dry branches of trees are cut with a knife. The thickness of the chips should not exceed 4-5 mm, and the length should be 5-6 cm. If we use sawdust of the above species of trees, then they must also be dry.
In the process of smoking, the fish should lose up to 50% of its moisture, and therefore there should not be excess moisture in the smokehouse.
How to smoke fish
Let's look at the technology of each method of cooking smoked fish at home. The whole technology can be conditionally divided into several stages:
Stage I: Preparing fish for smoking
- The fish must be sorted and prepared for salting.
- Small fish are not gutted, but only washed.
- Gut a medium-sized fish and cut off the heads.
- At big fish be sure to take out the insides, clean the films from the inside and cut off the head.
Many fishermen (and not only) like to smoke a large catch "as is", but according to technology, this is considered wrong. Large specimens have thick flesh, which may not be smoked during smoking, so we also cut the large ones into two parts along the spine, removing the skeleton and large fins.
After cleaning and cutting off unnecessary parts of the fish, we wash and remove moisture with the help of cooking napkins. Next, we proceed to the dry salting of the product.
Stage II: Salting fish before smoking
The taste of the smoked product also depends on the degree of saltiness of the carcasses. Therefore, at this stage, you need to be more careful and trust your intuition. In the process of salting, the fish loses its specific smell, since the salt contributes to the coagulation of proteins, and the fish fibers are compacted.
For salting, we take a cutting wooden board, preferably of a large area (plywood is also suitable), sprinkle it with salt and lay out the carcass and also sprinkle it with salt.
Next, we begin to move the fish along the board with light pressure, rubbing salt into the carcass. Rub the insides of the fish with your fingers. If there are fleshy parts along the spine, then we make an incision there and rub a little salt into this incision (do not pour salt, but rub it).
If you smoke oily fish, such as flounder, halibut, silver carp or mackerel, then provide it with additional protection from oxygen - fish oil oxidizes quickly and the product may not have a very pleasant smell.
Therefore, after rubbing the salt, each fish must be carefully wrapped in parchment paper, folded into a bowl, still tightly covered with parchment for reliability, pressed down with a plate and put a press.
Most often, oily sea fish We buy from the store frozen. Such fish is salted longer than fresh - up to a day.
We keep fresh fish in salt for such a time:
- Small fish - an hour is enough;
- Medium fish - a couple of hours;
- Large fish - up to 3 hours.
Stage III: drying of fish carcasses
At this stage, we need to dry the fish a little in order to achieve its correct salinity - no more than 2%. Fish carcasses must be tied with natural twine, strung on a rope and hung up so that the excess brine is stacked. Be sure to cover the fish with gauze from flies.
We dry the product for an hour or a little more. If you want to simplify the drying procedure, then you can wrap the fish in cling film and keep in the cold - instead of hanging.
The last thing we do before treating the fish with smoke is to rinse it under running cold water and wipe it dry. We rinse in order to wash off the salt crystals and be sure that the product is not over-salted. Fish for smoking is ready!
There are a lot of recipes for smoking fish. Each smoker chooses his own way. We offer you classic version smoking - in a garden or fishing.
We take a bucket or a barrel, put sawdust and chips of selected tree species on its bottom in an even layer, no thicker than 1-2 cm. Try to find at least a couple of dry juniper twigs, preferably with berries. Juniper gives the product a beautiful golden color and an indescribable aroma.
Install a grate above the sawdust at the level of half the volume of the bucket (or two - one above the other), which can be made with steel wire with your own hands. We put salted fish on the grates (large ones - from below, small things - at the top level).
Close tightly with a lid. We must ensure that the lid fits snugly on the bucket so that the smoke stays in and does not come out. A fit without gaps is also ensured so that the sawdust inside from the influx of oxygen does not flare up on fire, but actively smokes.
We put the fish carcasses with the provision of free space between them - for uniform smoking. We do not remove the twine with which the fish were tied.
We build a fire and let it burn out to the extent that the firebrands still emit enough heat. The fire should not be hot, otherwise the chips inside the smokehouse will catch fire, and will not smolder. This can be achieved with a small fire area.
A brazier can be a good option - convenient and optimal!
We set the smokehouse over the fire and begin to heat it. This technological stage can be conditionally called "drying chips". At this stage, it is important not to overheat the smokehouse. If the chips with sawdust inside are too dry, they will not give enough smoke.
The temperature inside should not exceed 80-90 degrees, and the drying period should not exceed a quarter of the entire smoking time.
At the next stage, active smoke formation begins. The temperature inside rises to 120 degrees, and at this temperature, hot smoking of fish takes place.
Determining the temperature inside the smokehouse is quite simple: drop some water on its lid and watch. If the water hisses as it evaporates, the temperature is too high. Then the smokehouse should be removed from the fire and let it cool down a bit.
How long does it take to smoke fish?
The time depends on the volume of the smokehouse, the number of fish and, of course, the strength of the fire.
Usually, the time ranges from 30 minutes to 1 hour, 15-20 minutes is enough for small things. While there is not enough experience in hot smoking products, open the lid periodically and taste the product.
Open the smoker slowly and carefully, otherwise the wood chips may ignite and burn you from the influx of air. With frequent cooking of smoked foods, you will already have a proven skill.
Hot smoked fish is not stored for a long time. This is the same boiled product, only with a fragrant smoky smell. Store it in the refrigerator for no more than 3 days. Although, who will save such a product if you want to eat it all at once, without leaving the smokehouse?
Another recipe for smoking fish at home, look at the video. It is very easy and simple to smoke the product on a gas stove, within a city apartment.
Cold smoked fish in a smokehouse
Cold smoked products take longer to cook - several days. For this method of obtaining a smoked product, a smokehouse of a different design is needed. Most often, outbuildings (a barn, a bathhouse, etc.) are used for cold smoking, and enthusiastic fishermen build a smokehouse separately.
This method is called cold because the temperature inside the smokehouse does not exceed 35 degrees, and the processing of products with smoke lasts at least 3 days.
Unlike the technology of processing the product with hot smoke, the fish is salted not for several hours, but for several days. Moreover, laying it in a dish for salting, each layer is sprinkled with additional salt.
In such a strong salt environment, the fish should lie for about 5 days, and then it needs to be washed and soaked in cold water for 5-6 hours. All fish must be gutted, and the head must not be cut off, but only the gills removed.
The following steps actually repeat the steps of preparing for hot smoking, including drying during the day. Those. all stages preparatory to smoke treatment are several times longer.
After soaking, we tie the carcasses with heads, dry the product for about a day, hanging a trifle by the tails, and large specimens by the gills. We hang it right in the smokehouse, but without smoke yet.
Next, we take a deep barrel, pour chips and sawdust into it and put it on a fire to dry for an hour and a half. We support the fire in such a way as to support smoldering and the formation of smoke inside the building. The distance between the wood material in the barrel and the rope with products must be at least 1.5-2 meters.
So that the ash, soot and resins contained in the smoke do not settle on the fish carcasses, it is advisable to put a filter over the sawdust. A grate is installed in the barrel and sprinkled with wet straw, coarse weaving burlap or wet serpyanka.
One final note: the saltier the fish, the longer the cold smoking process takes, and the cooler the smoke should be.
For the preparation of this fish delicacy, the conditions change, fluctuating between hot and cold smoking technology. Those. smoke temperature should not exceed 50-60 degrees. Fish is also not salted for a short or long time, but the average between them is about a day, and it is also necessarily soaked from salt in water.
The technology of semi-hot smoking is worked out by the smoker himself. That is why so far this method of cooking fish does not find many followers.
Well, having learned all the intricacies of the process, we can now quite swing at our own smoked product! Knowing how to smoke fish in a smokehouse, you can smoke each type of fish kingdom according to special recipe. Will you try?
We smoke fish at home
Hot smoking of fish, despite its relative simplicity, still requires compliance with certain rules, thanks to which the end result will exceed all the wildest expectations. Smoking fish consists of several stages, the main of which is preparation, salting (marinade), and, in fact, smoking.
Gutting is the main point in the preparation, that is, it is natural that most people have a reasonable question “how exactly should the fish be gutted?”. Some fishermen may advise that you can smoke fish "as is", that is, just rinse and go to the smokehouse. However, this approach is not entirely correct - for example, some large fish carcasses have a rather thick layer of flesh, which means that if it is not cut, then it will not be smoked completely.
Therefore, if the fish is large, it is necessary to cut it, especially since home smokehouses are usually small in size. Rinse large fish thoroughly under cold water, separate the head (do not throw it away), remove the insides, remove the gills and rinse again. Then it is necessary to make a longitudinal incision along the ridge, remove the skeleton, large bones and fins. Thus, you will get two layers cut along the carcass, which can now be sent to the smokehouse.
If the fish is not too big, and not quite small, that is, medium, it will also need to be gutted and the heads cut off. You can not layer a medium fish into two halves, like a large one, but simply clean the carcass of excess entrails.
And finally, if the fish are very small, then they can not be gutted, but simply rinsed thoroughly under running, cold water. Such fish can be especially tasty if they are smoked whole.
Whatever the size of the fish, after the carcasses have been washed, they will definitely need to be dried to remove excess moisture. You can do this with paper towels or ordinary kitchen napkins.
Salting or marinating
Marinade is effective method give the fish a delicious aroma, making it tasty and tender. But salting or marinade also has another culinary value: if the degree of saltiness is optimal, the taste of the product will be richer and richer. In addition, while the fish is salted, it loses its specific, fishy smell, and also retains its freshness longer.
Salt also speeds up the process of protein folding in fish, which stops the fermentation processes and prevents the fish from spoiling.
To properly salt the fish, you will need a cutting board and coarse salt. Pour a thin layer of salt on the cutting board, then put the carcass of the fish on top of it and sprinkle with coarse salt again. But it’s not enough just to roll the fish in salt, it also needs to be rubbed with your hands, especially if the carcasses are large. If the fish is very large and fleshy, along the spine, in the thickest places, you can make several cuts and also rub salt.
We have articles on the site with various recipes.
Here is a photo of the transverse cuts:
Pickled fish should be folded into one cup and wrapped well with parchment or cling film for food. Cover the cup with a lid of a smaller diameter, so that the lid fits snugly against the fish, and put a press on top. Most often, an ordinary can of water is used as a load. If the fish that is planned to be smoked is very fatty (mackerel, flounder, etc.), then care must be taken to ensure that oxygen access to such fish is completely closed. The fact is that fish oil, which is contained in such fish in large quantities, begins to oxidize in the air, from which the fish acquires only a more pronounced smell, which many may not like. To prevent this from happening, it is advised to completely exclude exposure to oxygen.
Here in the photograph under the salt it is hard to see; it seems to be a medium-sized carp or crucian carp:
As for the salting time, again, it all depends on the size of the fish, as well as on the degree of freshness. If we talk about supermarkets, then the fish on the shelves of stores is most often frozen, which means that it takes more time for a good salting for such fish than for fresh fish - it will need to be thawed first. On average, this period can be up to a day, again depending on the size of the fish. If we are talking about a fresh catch, then an hour is enough for a small fish, 2-3 hours for a medium fish, but large individuals will require 3-5 hours for salting.
Drying
Drying is a drying process that allows you to get rid of excess moisture and prepare the fish for smoking. After the fish are pulled out of the salty brine, they must be tied with twine, strung on a thin rope and hung out in the fresh air to dry. Tying fish for hot smoking allows you to keep the shape of the fish, to make sure that the fish does not sag or fall apart. From above, it is advised to cover the fish with a thin layer of gauze, which will best protect the fish from flies.
It is not necessary to dry the product for a very long time, half an hour will be enough. And finally, the last operation is to rinse the dried fish again under cold water to wash off salt particles from its surface, and wipe dry with kitchen paper towels. Now the salted and dried fish is completely and completely ready for smoking. Well, it's time to get started!
Smoking
How to smoke fish in a hot smoked smokehouse? You need to start with the fact that there are several types of smokehouses - there are small garden ones, there are, and if there is no smokehouse, you can use an ordinary metal bucket or.
Here, small fish are hung for smoking in a barrel:
At the bottom of a bucket or smokehouse, you first need to pour sawdust and wood chips. Hardwood sawdust is the best for hot smoking. Pour sawdust on the bottom not too much, a layer of 1.5-2 cm will be enough. If possible, a sprig of juniper, which must be thrown to the sawdust, is perfect - it gives the fish a wonderful aroma and an appetizing, golden hue.
Above the layer of sawdust, you need to place a tray for the fat flowing from the fish. Usually in all hot smokehouses it is provided. And it is needed so that dripping fat does not fall on a hot bottom and on smoldering sawdust - burnt fat can ruin your product.
Here, pay attention - here an ordinary plate is used as a fat tray:
Further, they are placed right above the layer with sawdust or wood chips. If this is a smokehouse, then there are always some attachments for them. If we are talking about a bucket, then the lattice can be built from simple branches inserted into the bucket by surprise. They are recommended to be installed at the level of half the volume of the bucket.
Put dried fish on the grill, and cover the top with a lid. For uniform smoking, the fish should be placed at a small distance from each other, at least 2-3 cm. If smoking takes place in a bucket, then the lid must be selected so that it fits snugly against the bucket. This is done so that all the smoke remains inside, and does not go outside. In addition, the direct effect of oxygen on the sawdust will only kindle them, but you need them to smolder slowly.
Now you need to light a fire under your smokehouse. If smoking takes place in the yard, light a fire, and make sure that the fire is not too strong. Otherwise, if the fire is too big, the sawdust will burn rather than smoke. Then you need to set the smokehouse on the fire - it is very important here not to let the chips dry out. Indeed, in smoking, the most important thing is that there is a sufficient amount of smoke. For this purpose, sometimes sawdust is soaked in water before being loaded into the smokehouse.
The temperature inside the smokehouse should be about 80-90 degrees, not higher. After some time, the process of active smoke formation should begin in the smokehouse, and the first smoke will appear from under the lid. This serves as a signal that you can detect the smoking time.
Here you can see both the grate for food and the tray made of a simple sheet of foil:
To determine the temperature to which the smoker is heated, simply put a few drops of water on the lid of the smoker. If the water immediately begins to hiss and evaporate actively, then the temperature inside is too high. In this case, you will need to remove the smoker from the heat for 10-15 minutes.
As for the smoking time, there are several main factors that you should definitely pay attention to. First of all, the smoking time depends on the amount of fish, its size, as well as the intensity of the fire. Most often, this figure ranges from half an hour to an hour and a half, although for a very small fish, 20 minutes will be enough. If hot smoking has not yet entered the list of ingrained habits, which means that there is little experience in such smoking, it is better to play it safe and periodically look into the smokehouse just in case. You need to open the smokehouse for checking very carefully, so as not to burn yourself with hot smoke. Over time, there will be more experience, so you can safely set the right fire and the right time for smoking.
The smokehouse stands on a simple brick hearth; moreover, note that this smokehouse is not for an apartment - it does not have a water seal:
How long does hot smoked fish keep? A feature of the finished product is that such fish will not be stored for a very long time, therefore, even in the refrigerator, this period will be no more than 3-4 days. The shelf life of hot smoked fish is much lower than that of cold smoked fish. If you need to keep the fish for a longer period, it is still better to use the cold smoking method, but this will be discussed in another article.
- It is fresh fish that is ideal for smoking, however, unfortunately, it is far from always possible to purchase a freshly caught fish. Then it remains to use frozen. It is best to defrost the fish in a natural way, namely, on the top shelf of the refrigerator, and then completely pull the fish out and put it on the table. Do not use for defrosting microwaves and other methods of temperature exposure, as they take away most of the taste of the fish.
- Before embarking on the process of hot smoking, it is important to choose the “right” tree, namely, the most suitable sawdust and chips for this. The best of their kind for smoking are fruit trees, as well as alder, oak, ash, maple, etc. Conifers should not be used, with the exception of the juniper mentioned above.
- How to store hot smoked fish? Generally, the most common way to store fish involves refrigeration. True, the fish must first be put in paper or wrapped in cling film, since the free access of oxygen will make the fish winded, and the fishy smell will be transferred to other products. If you need an even longer shelf life of hot smoked fish, you can put it in the freezer, but then you need to be prepared for the fact that the fish will subsequently lose half of its taste.
These simple tips will help to cope with hot smoking, even for a beginner, and if you try, the result will exceed all your wildest expectations!
Here is a good video on how to smoke fish while fishing in a cauldron:
Vladislav Paikov
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Even a beginner can cook hot-smoked fish of the desired quality, adhering to certain rules. Therefore, to begin with, familiarize yourself with all the nuances to know some of the nuances of preparing a product for smoking.
For smoking, two types of smokehouses are used: fully or partially sealed. If we talk about hot smoking fish, then the best way- partially sealed device.
Smokehouse is better to use stainless steel. The advantages of such a device:
- maintaining a stable temperature for a long time;
- does not corrode;
- higher sealing properties.
For proper smoking of fish, the dimensions of the smokehouse are important. The height of the correct device is 50-60 cm. The device has supports to make it convenient to place over the fire. If necessary, the supports are replaced with bricks or stones.
Next, pay attention to the ways of placing the fish inside the smokehouse. There are two of them. The product is hung on hooks or placed on a metal grid. There are two grates in the set, they are placed one above the other and the distance between them is at least 15 cm. The first stand from the bottom of the smokehouse is set at least 30 cm. In this case, it will not fall on the wood chips and disturb the temperature stability. And when the chips ignite, the fish will be protected from burning. There are small holes in the tray. Hot air, passing through them, weakens and reaches the product already at the optimum temperature for hot smoking.
When smoking, it is necessary to comply with the following requirement: the smaller the dimensions of the apparatus, the weaker the heat is applied.
Should fish be gutted before smoking?
Novice smokers are concerned about the question of how to prepare fish for hot smoking - whether the carcasses are gutted before cooking or they are left untouched. The whole fish is smoked, but it is better to gut the insides. Not gutted fish gives bitterness. It is allowed to cook whole fish if the catch is small and does not exceed 0.5 kg in weight. If it is or, then weight up to 750 grams is allowed.
Evisceration of fish depends on its size:
- If the total weight does not exceed 3 kg, it is allowed not to gut. But professionals recommend getting rid of the insides during hot smoking. It is not necessary to remove the scales and cut off the head.
- Fish with a large weight are carefully cleaned. There is a danger that it will not be completely smoked, so longitudinal cuts are made on it or the carcass is divided into two parts.
After a longitudinal section, each half contains part of the head and tail. The spine is not removed and remains on one of the pieces.
Cut in another way - across. Then the knife is placed perpendicularly, and the pieces form the same size. This way, they will be able to cook evenly.
The scales do not need to be removed. Firstly, when hot smoked without scales, the fish will fall apart. Secondly, it protects the meat from soot and gives it an attractive appearance. The scales are removed if the fish is damaged.
You can also smoke hot-smoked fish in a smokehouse made from improvised materials. As a basis, take a bucket or barrel. If this is a bucket, then sawdust or hardwood shavings are placed on its bottom. The layer is approximately 2 cm. Do not forget about the twigs or juniper berries: it will give the fish an excellent smell and an appetizing look. A drip tray is placed above the sawdust. Since the smokehouse is made from improvised materials, a plate is placed in the bucket. The provision of the drip tray must not be ignored, as the dripping fat will start to burn and spoil the product.
Further along the structure of the smokehouse is a grate. It is difficult to find a round grate suitable for a bucket in the house. Therefore, we construct a lattice of branches. We take the size of the branches so as to place them in a bucket in a thrust. The finished grate is arranged at the level of the middle of the bucket. Fish prepared for smoking are placed on the branches. The pieces are laid so that they are located at a distance of 2-3 cm from each other. Then the bucket is covered tightly with a lid. The tightness of the lid is an important condition. In order for the bucket to stand steadily, it must be placed on brick supports, and a fire should already be made between them.
Now it remains to provide a fire under a homemade smokehouse. Remember that for smoking fish in a hot way, the fire corresponds to the size of the structure. A fire that is too active will cause sawdust to ignite, and a weak one will not provide enough smoke and the desired temperature inside the unit. A very important point: do not use too dry wood chips. If there is no other, then the overdried fuel is sprinkled with water, and preferably whiskey. As soon as smoke appears from the bucket, we note the time allotted for smoking.
Proper hot smoking of fish is directly related to maintaining the optimum temperature in the smokehouse bucket. To do this, just put a drop of water on the lid. If the water immediately begins to hiss and evaporate quickly, the temperature in the smoker is higher than required. The bucket must be immediately removed from the fire for 15-20 minutes.
The duration of smoking depends on the amount of product and the size of the pieces, and the intensity of the fire also affects. Typically, the preparation time of the product ranges from 30 minutes to 1.5 hours. But if the fish is very small, then 20 minutes is enough.
If smoking is carried out for the first time, there is absolutely no experience in this, then they periodically look under the lid to control cooking. Just do it carefully so as not to burn yourself with hot smoke.
Safety when smoking fish
Smoking is associated with fire and hot objects, so safety rules must be observed. The precautions are as follows:
Hot smoking of fish will go smoothly if you heed the advice of experienced smokers. To properly cook hot smoked fish, adhere to the following rules:
Photo gallery of smoked fish
These tips will help smoke fish flawlessly even for novice cooks. The result will please relatives and friends who have enjoyed themselves so much that hot-smoked fish will become a signature dish in the family, and cooking by smoke treatment will become a pleasant tradition.
Many summer residents have mastered the smoking process, since you can not only make smokehouses yourself, but also buy ready-made ones. Modern devices provide the ability to smoke the most different products both hot and cold. - for many, one of the favorite dishes, but getting a smokehouse is not enough. For beginners, the first question is how to pickle fish for smoking and how long it will take.
Why salt
Preparing fish for smoking milestone. The fact is that the smoke in the smokehouse penetrates the pre-salted fish better and the smoking process will go faster.
Training
Before smoking, it is necessary to prepare the fish, that is, salt it. But, before starting this process, the carcasses must be properly processed, and this depends on the size, fat content and type of fish. In any case, it must be properly rinsed under running water.
In large fish, it is necessary to remove the gills, remove the insides and remove the dark film from the ribs in order to improve the taste. In especially large specimens, the head is cut off, then the carcass is plastified or divided into steaks.
The average fish is gutted if it is to be hot smoked, and in the case of cold it is left whole, but if desired, the insides can be removed.
Small fish do not need to be gutted, they are salted and smoked whole.
It is better to leave the scales: it will not miss the harmful substances that are in the smoke, and will help retain moisture, which means that the finished product will be more juicy.
After the carcasses are processed, they are dried with paper napkins.
General rules for salting fish before smoking
You can salt dry and wet. When dry, the carcasses are rubbed with salt, when wet, it is placed in a concentrated salt solution - the so-called brine. When preparing fish for smoking, saltpeter is usually not added during salting.
For dry salting, the carcasses are placed in a container in rows, evenly sprinkling each of them with salt. The direction of the fish in each row alternate - tails to heads. If the fish is oily, each carcass rubbed with salt is wrapped in parchment paper and placed in layers in a dish to make a small slide. Another sheet of parchment is placed on top, pressed with a lid and pulled with a rope or wire.
The wet salting method is faster, the whole process takes two hours. So much salt is put in the brine, or brine, so that the egg does not sink in it.
The salting time will depend on which smoking method is chosen and, of course, on the size of the carcasses. Before smoking on hot technology less time is required for salting, before cold - more.
Large fish for the hot method are salted for about 12 hours, small fish for about 4 hours. Then it is washed, sent for 2-3 hours in the refrigerator and only after that it is placed in a smokehouse.
Before cold smoking, you need to salt for a day or more (up to 8 days).
Spices in brine, as a rule, are put only when salting fish with a specific taste. These are pike, grayling, eel, carp and others. Seasonings can be chosen to your taste from those that go well with fish. They can be bought ready-made. Often, when salting, especially fatty varieties, they put cumin. Spices are recommended to be scalded with boiling water before adding to the brine.
Before salting, small types of fish should be strung on twine through the eye sockets and tied
When stringing on a twine, the number of carcasses is not more than 10, the length of the twine is about a meter. A large fish is tied with two pieces of twine half a meter long, making holes near the tail. Gutted carcasses and pieces of large fish are tied with twine.
Salty fish should be elastic and hard, if it turned out to be soft and not elastic, then it is not suitable for smoking. Probably it was not fresh from the very beginning or deteriorated during salting.
Species such as salmon need to be gutted and the scales left to make the finished fish more juicy. Large specimens must be cut into pieces. A concentrated brine is prepared, fish is placed in it and aged for half an hour. Black peppercorns, a few bay leaves, dill sprigs and onions are usually placed in the abdomen. Spacers are inserted into the abdomens before smoking.
Small fish are salted under pressure, as well as representatives of large species: catfish, ide, carp, pike, carp, chub, carp, pike perch
Before salting under oppression, the fish must be gutted, for better salting, cut along the ridge. Sprinkle the fish with coarse salt and put a weight on it. For a small one, 8 hours is enough, for a large one, about 12 hours. The resulting brine is drained, and the carcasses are placed in water for 2 hours (it is advisable to rinse it under running water).
If the fish will be salted in a dry way in a bag, it is not necessary to wash it first. Small ones are left whole. Large and medium-sized specimens are gutted, the head and spine are removed. Before laying, each carcass is sprinkled with salt, and a layer of salt is also poured into a bag. Then the first layer of fish is placed there with the flesh down, the second layer is put up with the flesh, after that salt is poured again, then the fish follows with the flesh down, then up with the pulp, and so on. After laying each layer, the bag must be shaken so that the fish is compacted. Thus, fill the bag up to half. Twist the top edge of the bag so as to create pressure on the fish. Bury the bags in sand, which also needs to be properly compacted. With this method, the fish salts out quickly - in one day, and small fish even faster - in 12 hours.
Preparation of pike perch for smoking has its own characteristics. His belly for gutting is not cut at the bottom, but on the side, where the ribs are. Each carcass is sprinkled with salt, put into a plastic bag, buried in the ground for an hour, large - for one and a half. An hour later, they dig it up, turn it over and bury it again for the same period. When the fish is salted, it is washed under running water and hung upside down to dry. When it wilts a little, you need to put black peppercorns in the abdomen (3 peas in each carcass), bay leaf and chopped garlic.
Marinades before hot smoking
Classical
In this marinade, the fish is spicy with a delicate lemon flavor.
Ingredients per liter of water:
- salt - 2 table. spoons;
- bay leaf - 3 leaves;
- turnip - 1 onion;
- lemon - half;
- cinnamon - 1 teaspoon;
- granulated sugar - 1 teaspoon;
- pepper - 1 teaspoon;
- thyme, sage and rosemary - a pinch each.
Procedure:
- Put water on the stove, bring to a boil, salt.
- Coarsely chop the lemon and onion, put in water, add the rest of the ingredients.
- Keep on fire for 7 minutes, then remove and cool.
- Place the fish in the resulting marinade for 10-12 hours.
- Place the fish in a ventilated place, after an hour you can smoke.
With red wine
Cloves will give the finished product a special flavor, and the wine will make it tender and soft.
Ingredients for 1 liter of water:
- wine - 150 ml;
- salt - 2 tablespoons;
- cloves - 4 pieces;
- cumin - ½ teaspoon;
- allspice peas - ½ teaspoon.
Put water on the stove, put salt and cloves and cook for about ten minutes. Remove from heat, wait until it cools down and add the rest of the ingredients. How to stir the prepared brine and place the fish in it for 4 hours.
With white wine
A mixture of spices gives the fish flavor, and lemon juice and white wine is made very tender.
Ingredients for 1 liter of water:
- salt - 50 g;
- dry white wine - 100 ml;
- soy sauce- 50 ml;
- lemon juice - 80 ml;
- brown sugar - 50 g;
- garlic - 2 cloves;
- a mixture of peppers;
- basil;
- coriander.
Cooking:
- Heat water to a boil, dissolve salt and sugar in it, let cool.
- Pour the wine, lemon juice and soy sauce into the brine.
- Crush the garlic and put into the mixture, add all the other ingredients and mix.
- Place the fish in the marinade so that it is completely submerged.
- Put in the refrigerator for 10 hours.
- Remove salted carcasses from the marinade, dry and can be placed in a smokehouse.
With kefir
The fish acquires a fresh mint shade and extraordinary juiciness and softness due to kefir.
Ingredients:
- kefir - a glass;
- vegetable oil- 50 ml;
- salt - a tablespoon;
- brown sugar - a teaspoon;
- garlic - 2 cloves;
- mint - 4 branches;
- ground black pepper.
Cooking:
- Pour oil into kefir, add salt, pepper, sugar, chopped garlic and mint, mix well.
- Place carcasses in kefir marinade. After 6 hours, you can start smoking.
With honey
Due to honey, a beautiful crust is formed on the fish, and the flesh acquires a sweetish taste.
Ingredients:
- lemon juice - 100 ml;
- olive oil - 200 ml;
- salt - a teaspoon;
- natural honey - 100 ml;
- garlic - 2 cloves;
- fresh greens;
- ready seasoning for fish;
- ground pepper.
Cooking:
- Olive oil combine with honey and lemon juice, add salt, seasoning for fish, pepper, finely chopped parsley and garlic.
- Dip the carcasses in the marinade and put in the refrigerator for 6 hours.
Preparing fish for cold smoking
Salting in brine
A brine is prepared at the rate of 0.25 kg of salt per 1 liter of water:
- Salt put in water, put on fire, bring to a boil, cool.
- Place fish carcasses in the brine so that they are completely covered with it, and leave for 5 days.
- Remove the fish from the brine, soak for 2 hours, then hang in a draft for 12 hours.
Carcasses are ready for smoking.
marinade spicy
To prepare it, you will need the following ingredients for 2 liters of water:
- salt 0.5 kg;
- white wine - 0.5 l;
- granulated sugar - 80 g;
- garlic - 6 cloves;
- lemon - 2 pieces;
- herbs: basil, coriander, thyme, rosemary.
Cooking:
- Put water on fire, bring to a boil, put sugar and salt, remove from heat, cool.
- Pour wine into the brine, squeeze lemon juice from 2 lemons, add chopped herbs and garlic, mix.
- Place the carcasses in the marinade for 4 days.
- Remove from the brine, dry in a draft for 5 hours.
Now the fish can be smoked.
Dry salting
Pour a layer of coarse, preferably sea, salt into the salting container. Wash the fish, clean and put in the dishes in layers, each sprinkling with salt. Cover the carcasses with another layer of salt on top. Put a lid on top, which should be smaller in diameter than the pan. Press down on top with a load and leave for several days (from 3 to 7). Carcasses need to be turned over periodically so that they are saturated with salt evenly.
After salting, put them in cold water for 5 hours, then dry in a draft for one day. Now you can send it to the smoking machine.
Preparing mackerel for smoking
This fish, perhaps, is most often chosen for self cooking.
Mackerel is ideal for both cold and hot smoking.
Salting before smoking
Previously, the fish must be held in cold water for two hours. Then gut, cut off black films from the inner surface of the abdomen, remove the gills, rinse thoroughly, wipe with a cloth. You can smoke both hot and cold.
For wet salting, you need 120 grams of salt and 10 grams of granulated sugar per 1 liter of water. Spices can be added to your liking. Put the water on the fire, pour out the sugar and salt, when the water starts to boil, put the spices and remove from the heat. Cool the brine completely and pour over the mackerel carcasses. Put the weight on top and put it in the refrigerator for two days. When the fish is salted, rinse it in cold water, and if it seems salty, soak for two hours.
For the dry method, you need to take 100 grams of salt per kilogram of mackerel. Carefully rub the carcasses with salt on all sides, pour it into the abdomen and into the holes near the head where the gills were. At the bottom of a suitable container, pour a layer of salt about half a centimeter thick. Lay the carcasses in layers, sprinkling each with salt, place a load on top and refrigerate for two days. During this time, the mackerel needs to be taken out and shifted several times so that it is salted evenly. You can add spices if you like, but it's not necessary.
At the end of salting, rinse the mackerel from excess salt and place in a smokehouse
Many may have a question, which method of salting before smoking is better. Mackerel really turns out a little different. After dry salting, the pulp is denser. After wet, it is less dry and softer, it is believed that it is also palatability wins, but it all comes down to personal preference.
Pickling before hot smoking
You can pickle fish with different spices, for example, with coriander and bay leaf. To prepare for smoking three carcasses, you will need following products:
- liter of water;
- a tablespoon of coriander;
- two tablespoons of salt and sugar;
- five bay leaves;
- Carnation;
- pepper.
Put a pot of water on a gas burner, when the boiling process begins, add salt, sugar, coriander, cloves, bay leaf and pepper. Remove the container from the heat, cool the resulting marinade, place the carcasses in it for 12 hours (maximum for a day). Then remove the mackerel from the brine and dry before smoking. To do this, it is hung upside down for 2 hours so that the liquid is faster than glass, or placed on a grate.
Now there is an opportunity to simplify the process of preparing fish for smoking by buying lightly salted carcasses in the store, but, according to the true masters of home smoking, hand-made preparation will make the final product many times tastier, the main thing is to follow the cooking technology.
