Herring is more than 2 dm but less. To get a good result, you need to know how to pickle herring

ZALOM (RAID, BLACKBACK, KESSLER HERRING) - anadromous fish of the species Alosa kessleri of the herring family; sometimes subspecies are distinguished: the Volga Alosa kessleri volgensis and the Black Sea-Azov Alosa kessleri pontica. This is the largest of the Caspian "herring", reaching a length of up to 52 cm and a weight of 2 kg, and its name "zal" is associated with its size - the usual length of this fish exceeds the distance from the fingertips to the elbow. During spawning, it splashes heavily in the water, and some individuals are even thrown ashore - there are signs of abnormal fish behavior - hence the popular name "rabies". This large fish should be correctly called "shad" (among the Americans, its closest relative A. sapidissima is referred to as "shad" and is never called herring), since it very indirectly refers to real marine (oceanic) herrings of the genus Clupea, although it is included into this vast family, along with sprat, sardine, and even sprat.

Astrakhan herring is the common name for several types of herring caught in the Volga. These species include: blackback (Kessler herring, Zalom), Volga herring (more often considered as a subspecies of blackback; listed in the Red Book of Russia), shad.

In the shad, the body is strongly compressed from the sides, wide; the belly is large, arched; the skin is thin, olive; the meat is tender, quite fatty. In cooking, shad is most often salted or pickled.

The blackback is distinguished by the thickness of the body and the elongated, bent down tail. This herring is larger than the shad (the first reaches a length of 50 cm and weighs 400 g, and the second 60 cm and weighs 2 kg) and makes up the bulk of the selected herring, known under the trade and culinary name "zal".

The hall is famous for its excellent taste. This is a large Caspian herring, which is most often cold smoked or salted. There are several versions of the origin of the word "hall". According to the first of them, herring began to be called a “crease” because, due to its large size, it had to be bent, that is, wringed, and only after that it was placed in a barrel for salting. According to another, "zalom" was formed from the adjective "zalomny", which means "rich, monetary, expensive", and, as you know, fatty herring is really highly valued!

Since during the spawning period it splashes strongly in the hall, spins on the surface of the water surface and even sometimes throws itself ashore (which, of course, leads to its death), the people also called this fish "rabies".

Until the 1860s, rabies was almost never eaten, as it was considered an "unclean" fish. They just melted the fat out of it. And only from the end of the 1860s they began to salt it, and in a completely different way than foreigners salted sea herring.

Unfortunately, already in the first half of the 20th century, the population of rabies declined sharply. The reason for this was, on the one hand, the pollution of the Volga with oil and the construction of hydroelectric power stations, and, on the other hand, the overfishing.

Zalom lives in the Caspian Sea and fresh water bodies of the Astrakhan region, enters the Volga and the Urals for spawning, and before the massive construction of hydraulic structures, its huge shoals rose to spawn as far as the Oka and Vyatka. “Moskovskie Vedomosti” dated March 10, 1858 wrote: “Caspian herring is spreading in Russia more and more: it has found its way even to St. Petersburg, where it has been on sale for the second year, despite the fact that it is more expensive than the average quality of German Sea herring. This rivalry can only be explained by the much larger size of the Astrakhan herring... The Caspian herring or rabies is remarkable for the incredibly huge quantities in which it appears. Hall, as a rule, was smoked in a cold way, less often salted.
Even the “Book of Tasty and Healthy Food” of the 1953 edition mentions the salmon: “The best of herrings are Zhupanovskaya, Olyutorskaya, Pacific, Kerch, Caspian salmon (black-backed), polar salmon, White Sea, Volga (Astrakhan), Caspian shad, etc. Zhupanovskaya and Olyutorskaya herring are caught near Kamchatka. Lightly salted Zhupanovskaya herring is undoubtedly one of the most exquisite fish products, unsurpassed in taste; it happens that it consists of more than a third (33.5%) of fat.
This fish was so popular in Russia that the trade name "polar hall" appeared in the not too distant past. It was assigned to large and oily sea (oceanic) real Clupea herring, which was caught in the waters of the Norwegian and Barents Seas and salted with spices in wooden barrels. Marietta Shaginyan herself wrote in one of her articles:
“Perhaps we will start the conversation with Norway. It is the Norwegian herring that is famous for its fat content and large size. (The same type of herring, caught by our fishermen in the same cold and clear waters of the Norwegian and Barents Seas and salted with spices in wooden barrels on floating factories - or on coastal ones - in Murmansk, in not so ancient times was on the shelves under the name " Polar Hall "... These best of the best work hand in hand with scientists, with the Polar Institute of Marine Fisheries and Oceanography (PINRO). A sailor and a scientist, like a Stakhanovite and an academician at a factory, jointly receive Stalin Prizes in Murmansk (biologist - Murmansk resident Yu. Yu. Marty and the captain of the trawl fleet G. P. Korolkov). Novels can be written about this joint work. Which of the Muscovites does not hunt in grocery stores for the famous herring "Polar Hall"? But before it got to our, Soviet table, I had to hunt for it in the vast Arctic Ocean "... Today, this herring is better known to us as "Norwegian", but about the "real hall" is found on sale only in certain markets Now (alas!) a real Caspian hall is a rare fish.

Not a single set table for the holiday is complete without salted herring. Our Russian people really love this appetizer. So how can you not love her? Cleaned of bones and skin, cut into pieces, seasoned with butter and fresh thinly sliced onions - this is such a delicious thing that you can’t describe in words.

What's with the festive table? And on weekdays, salted herring is good. Boil potatoes, season them with butter, and serve with our favorite fish - hardly anyone will refuse such a dinner.

And our favorite New Year's salad "Herring under a fur coat" is completely unthinkable without this wonderful fish. As well as the fact that this wonderful snack is always on the New Year's table. And it probably makes no sense to talk about the merits of herring, it is loved by both adults and children without any advertising.

Now in stores they sell very tasty herring, but many prefer to salt it on their own. Yes, this is understandable, it is still believed that everything that is cooked at home is both tastier and healthier. Probably the way it is! And that is why today there are many homemade ways to salt this fish. Let's take a look at some of them.

You can salt herring in brine or brine, and there is dry salting, which is the simplest. Herring can be salted both whole and in pieces. They salt it with oil, mustard, lemon, vinegar, onions and even add carrots.

Salted herring is considered to be salted for 24-36 hours. If the fish is salted for a longer time, then it will become more and more salty every day, and it is no longer considered lightly salted.

In order for the herring to turn out delicious, you must be able to choose it correctly. The freshness of the fish and the knowledge of some features also determine how our favorite dish will turn out.

It is best to choose a large and fatty herring. Someone thinks that it would be nice if it turns out to be a "boy" with milk. "Girls", although usually well-fed, but give all their fat to caviar. In any case, it is considered so. But here, as they say, “the taste, the color ...” Personally, I love the “girl” herring more, it seems to me more tasty and tender.
The fish must be whole, without torn skin, cuts and damage, with intact fins. Also, make sure that it is not rumpled and pressed down.

The freshness of the fish is determined by the eyes and gills. A fresh herring has red gills and light, shiny, and protruding eyes. Sometimes, to hide the freshness of the fish, its head is cut off. Try not to take such fish.
If the fish is frozen, and then thawed and then frozen again, then its flesh will be soft. It is better to refuse to buy such fish. If you salt it, then the flesh will fall apart, all the bones will be exposed. The fish will lose its appearance. Yes, and it certainly will not be tasty. In addition, eating such fish can be dangerous. After all, we do not know how long she lay defrosted.
if you want to pickle frozen fish, then it must first be thawed. Do not use warm or hot water for this, and do not use the microwave. You should give the fish the opportunity to defrost gradually, and in natural conditions. It is best to defrost it in the refrigerator. Well, at least at room temperature.

Very tasty herring, salted in brine

In my opinion, most people salt fish in brine. And there are many ways to salt. Every now and then at work you can hear - “Oh, I found such an interesting new way of salting herring, just delicious!” And they carry the fish for trial to their colleagues. And we are happy to try and praise.

Let's see what methods exist.

Spicy salting of whole fish according to the classic recipe

We will need:

herring - 2 pcs
water - 1 liter
salt - 2 tbsp. spoons
sugar - 2 tbsp. spoons
peppercorns - 10 pcs
allspice - 4-5 pcs
cloves - 4-5 pcs
bay leaf - 2-3 pieces

Cooking:

1. Clean the herring from the insides and rinse well. The head is best left, but the gills must be removed, they will give a bitter taste to the brine. If there is caviar in the fish, carefully clean it, later it can be salted along with the herring.

Sometimes milk is also salted, someone loves them. You can wash and leave them if you like.

2. Prepare the brine (brine). To do this, put the water to boil, as soon as it boils, add salt, sugar and spices. Let it boil for 3-4 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the brine cool completely.

3. Prepare a container according to the size of the fish, put the herring in it, fill it with brine. Put also caviar, and who left - milk. Let the fish soak in brine at room temperature for 3-4 hours. Then put in the refrigerator.

4. Milk and caviar will be ready in 24 hours, and fish in 48 hours. It is better to get caviar in a day and eat it, because after 48 hours it will be salted, the same applies to milk.

How to salt herring in brine with butter

We will need:

herring - 2 pcs
salt - 2 tbsp. spoons
sugar - 1 tbsp. spoon
vegetable oil - 1 tbsp. spoon

Cooking:

1. Clean the herring, remove the insides and gills. If you want, you can leave caviar and milk. Wash the herring and caviar.

You can cut the fish into pieces, or you can leave the carcass as a whole, do as you like. I cut into pieces. I like it when each piece is lightly oiled.

2. Put water on fire. As soon as the water boils, put salt and sugar into it. Mix until completely dissolved. Turn off the fire and cool the water.

3. Add oil to the water. Put the fish in a glass or plastic container and fill it with brine. Close the lid.

4. Hold for 3-4 hours at room temperature, then refrigerate for 3 days.

Spicy salted herring in brine with mustard

We will need:

herring - 2 pcs
water - 1 l
salt - 5 tbsp. spoons
sugar - 3 tbsp. spoons
coriander grain - 1 tbsp. spoon
dill (can be dried) - 1 tbsp. spoon
bay leaf - 8 pcs
black peppercorns - 15 pcs
allspice - 4 pcs
mustard - 2 tbsp. spoons

Cooking:

1. Clean the herring from the insides. If you leave the head, be sure to remove the gills. They will give a bitter taste to the brine and the herring itself.

And you can disassemble the herring into fillets and cut. It will also be very tasty. Each piece will be in mustard, and it will be very tasty.

2. Boil water and add salt, sugar and all spices except mustard. Let it boil for 3-4 minutes. Then turn off the fire, and cool the brine.

3. Coat the cleaned carcass with mustard. Put in a special container with a tight-fitting lid.

Thanks to mustard, the herring will not only be tasty, but also firm and strong.

4. Pour in cooled brine. Leave for 2-3 hours at room temperature. Then refrigerate for 48 hours.

Another Mustard Recipe

We will need:

herring - 2 pcs
water - 1 liter
salt - 5 tbsp. spoons
sugar - 3 tbsp. spoons
black pepper - 10-15 pcs (can be coarsely chopped)
dry mustard - 1 teaspoon
bay leaf - 4-5 pieces

Cooking:

1. Clean the fish and if you leave the head, remove the gills. Rinse well under running water.

2. Boil water, add salt, sugar and spices. Let it boil for 3-4 minutes, turn off the heat. Let the brine stand to cool.

3. Put the herring in the prepared container and pour over the chilled brine. Pour the mustard on top and mix a little so that the mustard gets wet.

4. Let stand at room temperature for 2-3 hours. Then refrigerate for 48 hours.

How to salt herring with vinegar

We will need:

herring - 2 pcs
water - 250 -300 ml
salt - 1 tbsp. spoon
vinegar 9% - 1-1.5 tbsp. spoons
peppercorns - 10 pcs
bay leaf - 3 - 4 pcs.
coriander seeds - 1 tbsp. spoon
vegetable oil - 3 tbsp. spoons

Cooking:

1. Peel the herring, remove the head, and if you salt with the head, then only the gills. Rinse in cool water. And you can salt the fish and along with the insides. But the gills are still better to remove.

2. Bring water to a boil. Add salt and spices, boil for 3-4 minutes and turn off the heat. Let the brine cool down.

3. Add vinegar to the chilled brine.

4. Put the fish in a special dish and fill it with brine. Let it rest at room temperature for 4-5 hours. Then refrigerate for 7-8 hours.

Quick salting with vinegar and onions

We will need:

herring - 1 pc.
water - 500 + 250 ml
vinegar 9% - 1 tbsp. spoon
salt - 3 tbsp. heaped spoons
peppercorns - 7-8 pcs
bay leaf -2 pcs
onion - 1 pc.
sunflower oil - 2 tbsp. spoons

Cooking:

1. If frozen herring is used, then it is not necessary to defrost it completely. Defrost to a state. so that you can easily clean it from the insides. Remove head.

2. Cleanse the skin and remove the bones. Cut the fillet into pieces.

3. Mix 500 ml of room temperature water with salt. Pour the chopped fish and leave to salt for 1.5 hours. Then drain the water.

4. Mix 250 ml. water with vinegar and pour the mixture over the fish. Hold for 5 minutes, then drain the water. Leave it, we'll still need it.

5. Add onion, bay leaf, coarsely chopped peppercorns. Pour in oil and remaining water with vinegar.

6. Let stand for 30-40 minutes. Then you can eat.

How to quickly and tasty pickle a whole herring in brine

And according to this recipe, herring can be salted in just 24 hours.

We will need:

herring - 2 pcs
water -1 l
salt - 3 tbsp. spoons
sugar - 2 tbsp. spoons
peppercorns - 10 pcs
allspice - 10 pcs
coriander seeds - 1 teaspoon
bay leaf - 3 pcs

Cooking:

1. Remove the gills from the fish and rinse it thoroughly. We do not remove the internals.

2. Boil water and add all the spices, salt and sugar to it. Boil 3-4 minutes. Then cool the brine.

3. Put the herring in a special container for salting and pour the cooled brine.

4. Put in the refrigerator for 24 hours.

After 24 hours, the herring is completely ready for use. Very tasty and tender.

Dry salting for pickling herring at home

This is the easiest way to pickle herring.

We will need:

herring - 2 pcs
salt - 2 tbsp. spoons
sugar - 1 tbsp. spoon

Cooking:

1. Clean the fish from the insides, remove the head and remove the skin. Divide the herring into two halves, removing the backbone and all large bones. You should get two fillets.

2. Mix salt and sugar. Coat fillet with mixture. Put on a plate and leave at room temperature for 6-7 hours.

3. Transfer the fish to a container and put it tightly closed in the refrigerator for 48 hours.

Spicy salting in a bag

We will need:

herring - 2 pcs
salt - 2 tbsp. spoons
sugar - 1 tbsp. spoon
coriander grains - 1 teaspoon, or ground - 1 teaspoon without a slide
black peppercorns -7-8 pieces (grind)
bay leaf - 2 pieces (grind)

Cooking:

1. Gut the fish, remove the head, remove the skin and remove large bones. Divide the carcass into two parts.

2. Mix all spices. Coat them with herring.

3. Put the fish in a bag, wrap tightly. Leave to lie at room temperature for 5-6 hours. Then refrigerate for 48 hours.

Express way of salting at home

We will need:

herring - 2 pcs
salt - 1 tbsp. spoon
sugar - 1 tbsp. spoon
ground black pepper - 1/3 teaspoon
chopped bay leaf - 2 pcs

To cook fish according to this recipe, you need only fresh herring, since its salting time is only 2 hours.

Cooking:

1. Gut the herring, remove the gills and put it in cold water for 1 hour.

2. Mix spices.

3. Pull the fish out of the water and wipe it on all sides with a mixture of spices, salt and sugar.

4. Wrap in cling film and leave to salt at room temperature for 2-3 hours.

In the same way, you can salt herring without the use of spices, only with the help of salt and sugar. But an indispensable condition for salting fish in this way is that FISH MUST BE FRESH!

5. Peel the spices with a knife and cut the fish into pieces.

Dry salting with onion and oil

We will need:

herring - 2 pcs
salt - 4-5 tbsp. spoons
onion - 2 pcs
oil - 5-6 tbsp. spoons

Cooking:

1. Clean the fish, remove the head, free from bones and skin. It should be a boneless fillet.

2. Cut the onion into thin half rings.

3. Rub the fillet with salt. Fold in a prepared container, you can in a jar. Alternate each layer with onions.

4. Fill with oil. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour. Then refrigerate for 48 hours.

Lightly salted spicy herring with lemon

We will need:

herring - 2 pcs
salt - 2 tbsp. spoons
sugar - 1 tbsp. spoon
lemon - 2 pcs
bay leaf - 4-5 pieces
black peppercorns - 10 pcs
allspice - 5 pcs

Cooking:

1. Clean the herring from the insides, skin, bones and head. Rinse it well.

2. Mix salt and sugar. Cut the lemon into slices.

3. Put the herring, lemon slices in a small saucepan, sprinkling with a mixture of salt and sugar and spices.

4. Place a saucer and put a jar of water on it as a press. Place in refrigerator for 24 hours.

5. After the allotted time, remove the pan, mix the layers and keep in the refrigerator for another 24-48 hours.

By the way, not only we like to eat herring. In Holland, for example, they also love her very much and know how to cook deliciously.

Herring in Dutch spicy salting

We will need:

herring - 2 pcs
sugar - 6 teaspoons
onion - 2 pcs
lemon - 0.5 pcs
carrots - 1 pc.
bay leaf - 10 pcs
peppercorns - 8-10 pcs

Cooking:

1. Defrost and gut the fish. Remove the head, remove the skin and remove the bones.

2. Cut the finished fillet into pieces 2 cm wide.

3. Cut the lemon into thin circles, grate the carrots on a coarse grater. Onion cut into rings or half rings.

4. Prepare a jar and lay out everything in layers in this sequence - onion, bay leaf, a little grated carrot, lemon, a whisper of sugar and a little pepper. Then a layer of chopped herring

5. Then the next layer in the same sequence and so on until the ingredients run out, or until we reach the end of the jar.

6. Close the jar tightly with a lid and refrigerate for 3 days.

7. When serving, put the fish in a herring bowl and pour over with oil. If you need to salt, then you can salt directly in the herring.

The fish is just amazing! Very tender, juicy, fragrant and incredibly tasty!

Rollmops in German

We will need:

slightly salted herring - 2 pcs (fillet - 4 pcs)
pickled gherkins - 5 pcs
bell pepper (red) -1 pc
onion - 1 pc.
mustard - 2 tbsp. spoons
white wine vinegar - 100 ml.
mustard seeds - 2 teaspoons
cloves - 3-4 buds
sugar, salt - 1 teaspoon each
ground black pepper - 0.5 tsp

Cooking:

1. Prepare the marinade. To do this, boil water. Add salt, sugar, pepper and cloves. Boil everything together for 2-3 minutes. Cool the broth a little.

2. Add mustard and wine vinegar. Stir and let cool completely.

3. Cut the onion, bell pepper and gherkins into long thin strips.

4. Lightly beat off each layer of fillet and grease with mustard. If the herring is very large, then the fillet can be carefully cut into two equal halves.

5. Put onions, peppers and gherkins across the herring layer.

6. Roll into a roll, fasten with a toothpick.

7. Put the rollmops in a bowl and pour over the brine. Leave for at least a day to salt. But it is best to keep them in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.

Secrets of cooking delicious salted herring at home

It is better to choose ocean herring for salting, coastal seas are often polluted with waste and harmful toxins.
Herring should be either chilled or frozen, but care should be taken that it is not old. Fresh fish has a natural silver color, bulging eyes of a light color, fins and gills tightly pressed to the body. Therefore, to determine the freshness of a fish, do not buy it without a head.
You should choose large carcasses that do not have mechanical damage, preferably “boys”. Although it should be noted that this issue is highly controversial. In "girls" the meat is more tender and light.
It is also believed that herring caught in the winter season puts on more fat, so after salting it will be more tender and tasty. For salting, you need to choose large silvery carcasses with a uniform color, then the snack will always turn out - what you need!
Do not defrost frozen fish in warm water and microwave, but only at room temperature. Or even better in the refrigerator, at a temperature of +4 degrees. So that the defrosting process occurs naturally.
You can salt both gutted carcass and not gutted. If you salt the whole fish, then it is better to leave the head, you just need to remove the gills. They give a bitter taste when salted. After cleaning, the herring should be thoroughly washed in plenty of running water.
Salted herring both whole and in pieces. With skin and bones and without them.
Often, whole, cleaned carcasses are kept for 30-60 minutes in cold water. In this case, the herring becomes even juicier.
When salting, do not use iodized salt.
You can salt fish in glass, plastic or enameled dishes. It is desirable that the container has a well-closing lid. Otherwise, the refrigerator will smell like fish.
For dry salting, a plastic bag or cling film is used.
After several hours of keeping the fish at room temperature, it should be stored in the refrigerator.
The most delicious is herring, salted whole with the insides. Such a herring must be salted for at least three days and can be stored in saline for a week.
If you do not want to wait so long, then you can clean the fish on the fillet, cut into pieces and pickle. Such a fish will be ready in a few hours.
If the herring has not been eaten during this time, then it must be removed from the brine, cut into pieces, transferred to a jar and poured with oil.
If for some reason you oversalted the herring, or if it has lain in brine for too long, then it can be soaked in cold milk for two hours. Excess salt will come out into milk, and the herring will again be tasty.

How and with what to serve slightly salted herring on the table

Of course, before serving, especially if you are preparing to meet guests, the herring must be cleaned.

Serving herring with bones and skin is very ugly! This is disrespect for the guests, and discrediting you as the mistress of the house!

What's more, it's quite easy to do. An incision should be made along the back and pulled by the tip of the skin. As a rule, the skin is cleaned easily and quickly. The spine and bones are also easily and simply removed. But it is better to see once than to hear a hundred times.

The most famous and delicious way to serve is to cut the herring into beautiful uniform pieces, sprinkle it with onion, cut into rings or half rings and season with vegetable oil. For spicy lovers, you can sprinkle freshly ground pepper on top.

Often, herring is seasoned not only with oil, but also with freshly squeezed lemon juice. You can also decorate a dish with herring with lemon. And then, everyone, if desired, can season the fish with lemon juice.

The dish is also decorated with fresh herbs, green onions, cranberries, olives or olives. It always looks beautiful, and only adds appetite.

On holidays such as New Year's Eve or Birthdays, you can serve herring on prefabricated fish plates. In addition to the above ingredients, you can decorate with fresh or pickled cucumbers, tomatoes and even canned mushrooms. These plates look very beautiful, and are always very popular among snacks.

Herring is served with potatoes, which are pre-boiled either in their “uniforms”, or peeled and boiled whole or in pieces. You can serve such a fish with fried, baked potatoes and even mashed potatoes.

Slightly salted herring is widely used in the preparation of various snacks and salads. Sandwiches and canapes are prepared with its use. There are a lot of options for them, and if you wish, they are easy to find on the Internet.

It is made from herring and tasty herring oil or a more complex snack called forshmak.

And no matter how you serve the herring, it is always a wonderful appetizer and an indispensable dish on the festive table. And of course, the most delicious always seems to be the one that is cooked by yourself.

Bon appetit!

Salted herring is a traditional dish. Initially, people were worried about how to pickle the herring so that it would be stored for a long time and not spoil, and for some time they generally considered it the food of the poor. The fact is that with the classic methods of cooking this fish, bitterness is felt if the gills are not removed. Later, when the fishermen learned how to properly cut and salt herring, noble people did not neglect it either. Today, everyone has the opportunity to learn how to deliciously pickle herring at home and serve it to the table.

How to choose a herring for salting?

In stores, you can choose a ready-made product, which remains only to be taken out of the package and put on a dish. However, every housewife is worried about the quality of the fish and its taste, and the best way to be sure of the product is to cook it yourself. The freshness of the fish and the composition of the brine remain in question if you do not participate in all stages of cooking.

Before pickling a herring at home, you need to choose the right fish:

Fresh herring in the market or in the store should not emit an unpleasant odor. It is better to choose whole carcasses with a head - the freshness of the fish can be judged by the condition of its eyes and gills.
Frozen fish should be taken in stores with the date of freezing and the expiration date of the product. Her skin should be clean, without damage and a yellow tint.
High-quality herring in any form has a silver sheen, clean, unclouded eyes, fins and gills that fit snugly to the body.
If you have a choice, it is better to take a herring caught in the ocean. Sea water is more saturated with toxins, heavy metals and harmful processing products of various substances.
Herring caught in winter has a denser fat layer.

Fresh herring is the best option, especially if it can be purchased close to where it is caught. If this is not possible, salting of fresh-frozen herring remains at home. In any case, it is better to choose large fish with round sides and a thick back - it will have the most delicious meat.

Preparing for salting

The first rule applies to frozen herring - it must be thawed so that it does not lose its taste. For this, the fish is left overnight in the refrigerator. This temperature will be enough to melt the ice, but it will retain the structure and taste of the herring. It is not recommended to defrost it at a high temperature.

Before salting the herring, the gills must be removed in it. It is they who give undesirable bitterness to the finished product, due to which it could not be tasty cooked for a long time. This procedure can be done with your hands, a knife or scissors.

If the herring is not gutted before salting, salt and spices will be evenly distributed throughout the carcass. Of course, you can also remove the insides, so that then you just have to chop the fish. If fish with entrails is salted, caviar and milk are left and also placed in brine.

There is a separate preparation method before pickling herring quickly. It is cleaned of gills and entrails, the head, intestines and membranes are removed, and then placed in brine. The meat quickly absorbs salt and spices and is ready to eat in 3-4 hours. This is an express option when you need to quickly cook fish for the festive table. Such salted herring cannot be stored for a long time, and its taste may be less bright than with prolonged salting.

Recipes for home cooking

It must be said that the recipes differ from the type and size of the fish. Before salting the Don herring, a brine is prepared, which is not suitable for ocean fish. The concentration of ingredients can be slightly changed to taste.

Classic recipe

Classically salted herring, without additional spices, can be used in any dishes. It is added to salads "olivier" and "herring under a fur coat", as well as separately with a side dish. This is a way of salting herring at home as a whole, that is, it will need to be gutted and cleaned before use. For this recipe, you will need 2 large fish, 1-2 tablespoons of salt and sugar and 700 ml of water.

Salting herring lasts from several days to a week, it depends on the personal taste preferences of the hostess. In 2-3 days, the fish will become lightly salted, and in a week it will absorb a large amount of salt.

Spicy salted herring

The next recipe for salting herring is spicy herring, which is obtained with a bright aftertaste and a characteristic smell. You can experiment with spices, but the traditional way of harvesting spicy fish requires:

2 large fish;
1 liter of water;
salt (3 tablespoons) and sugar (1 or 2 tablespoons);
10 black peppercorns;
4 large bay leaves;
a few dry unground carnation flowers.

Further, the process does not differ from the previous method. The fish are poured with brine, left warm for an hour, then placed in the refrigerator. Salting time - from 2 to 7 days.

Herring with mustard

According to this recipe, you can pickle the whole herring at home. In addition to two fish, you will need 1 liter of water, 5 tbsp. l. salt, 3 tbsp. l. sugar, 1 tablespoon black pepper, and herbs to taste.

The fish are defrosted, the gills are removed, but not gutted. They are completely smeared with mustard sauce while the rest of the ingredients boil and cool. Herring is poured with brine and sent to the refrigerator.
The herring is cleaned, the entrails, gills and head are removed. All components are mixed in a saucepan, except for mustard powder (it is added after boiling). The brine is cooled and herring is poured over it.

Properly prepared brine for salting herring is the main goal. Any combination of ingredients can be added to it. The main thing is that they do not deteriorate and do not change the consistency of the brine. Therefore, only mustard powder can be added to the liquid - it will completely dissolve and be evenly absorbed into the meat. If you use mustard in the form of a sauce, it is better to distribute it among the carcasses manually.

Herring in brine

Brine is a strong saline solution that keeps fish fresh for a long time. This is one of the difficult recipes for salting herring at home. A liter of water is heated in a saucepan, and after boiling, salt is added to it. The brine is considered ready when the salt no longer dissolves, but settles to the bottom. Next, the fish ready for salting is poured with brine and placed in the refrigerator for 2-7 days.

If you lower an egg into a brine, it should float on the surface, and not sink.

Dry salting

There is also a method of dry salting fish, without preparing a brine. For one medium fish, you will need a spoonful of salt and sugar, as well as spices to taste.

The process of salting herring:

If there is no time to wait a week, there is a way to pickle herring quickly and tasty. If you defrost and clean the fish in the morning, it will be ready by the evening. The carcass is rubbed with a mixture of seasonings (2 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. sugar), wrapped in a film and sent to the refrigerator for several hours. Then it is taken out, washed under water, seasoned with onion rings and sunflower oil and put back in the cold. After half an hour, it can already be served at the table.

Salting Don herring

Donskaya herring is a good option for salting, as it is more fatty and has a mild creamy taste. Traditionally, Don or Black Sea herring is salted in brine and left in barrels for the winter. The method of salting herring at home in brine is slightly different from the classic one, since the fish is kept in a small glass container. For brine, you will need at least 100 g of salt per 1 liter of water, as well as spices to taste.

Salted herring is not only an ingredient in salads and sandwiches, but also an independent dish. In order not to worry about the quality of store-bought fish, you can spend a small amount of time and cook it yourself. The main thing is fresh high-quality herring and properly prepared brine. The concentration of the solution varies depending on the type and size of the herring: recipes for pickling Don herring at home are not the same as for other types. There are ways to quickly and dry salting, with spices and mustard, salted and salted herring.

Salted herring is a great appetizer for the holiday, as well as a great addition to dinner or lunch with potatoes. It is not always possible to treat yourself to a delicious herring from a store or market, because sometimes it is too salty, and there is not always confidence in its freshness. That's why we collected the best selection of recipes for salting herring in different ways.

The main thing in the article

How to prepare a herring for salting?

To cook a delicious herring at home, you first need to buy it. In the market (in the supermarket) you can find fresh-frozen fish. She is what we need. The carcass must be intact, not dented, without external defects and damage to the skin.

After purchase, the carcass must be thawed. It is not necessary to resort to shock defrosting. Leave the fish in the refrigerator on the bottom shelf for a day . If the herring has not yet thawed, then move it to the table in the kitchen for a few more hours.

After the fish has thawed, wash and clean it. You can salt fish in any form:

Whole;
fillets;
Pieces.

Well, below you will find recipes that will help you decide on salt and spices.

How to quickly pickle herring at home: the easiest way

We offer a quick recipe for herring in just a day. At the same time, you use a minimum of ingredients, and as a result you get a very tasty salted herring.

How to pickle herring like in a store?

Salting as in a store provides for long-term storage of the product. Therefore, large volumes of fish can be salted. So, for 5 kg of herring, you need to make a brine from the following products:

15 tbsp salt.
5 tbsp granulated sugar.
25 peas of allspice.
15 bay leaves.
On the tip of a knife ground cinnamon.

How to pickle herring in brine?

Whole carcasses are usually salted in brine. This method of salting is good because the fish is stored for a long time. Therefore, it is salted a lot, for example, for the holidays. Although the process of such salting is quite long, the result is worth the days of waiting. So, for 2 kg of fresh herring necessary 4 liters of brine which is made from:

4 liters of water.
12 tbsp salt.
10 tbsp granulated sugar.
5-8 bay leaves.
10-15 pieces of allspice peas of pepper.

Now for the preparation:

Boil water, dissolve salt and sugar in it, add the remaining spices.
Cool the brine to room temperature and pour it over the fish, which is pre-thawed, washed and placed in a container for salting.
Keep the container with fish warm for 6-8 hours. After - put the herring in a cold place for salting for 3 days.

Tip: If the carcass has a pronounced fishy aroma, treat it with lemon juice or vinegar when washing.

How to pickle herring in a dry way

We offer you to try an interesting recipe for dry pickling of herring in a bag. Fish in this way can be cooked both in fillets and in portions. Let's consider both options. We prepare everything you need:

2 large carcasses of herring.
1.5 tbsp salt.
1.5 tbsp granulated sugar.
3 bay leaves.

Such fish turns out to be moderately salty. If you want salted herring, then reduce the proportion of salt and sugar. Also, to get a spicy taste of fish, you can add spicy spices (coriander, paprika, suneli hops, etc.).

How to salt the Caspian herring with a photo

The Caspian herring is distinguished by its large size and excellent taste. Do you know how to pickle such a beauty? No? Then we will share the classic recipe for pickling Caspian herring. On 2 herrings will need 1 liter of brine. And it is prepared from the following ingredients:

1 liter of water.
6 tbsp salt
3 tbsp granulated sugar.
1 tbsp allspice.
2 cloves.
1 tbsp mustard seeds
4 pieces of bay leaves.

In this way, you can also salt an ordinary herring, only it will be ready in 2 days.

How to pickle herring with salt?

As you know, fish love salt. Therefore, we suggest trying an old recipe used by fishermen in the distant past. This method of salting is very simple and does not require any knowledge in cooking. To prepare such a herring you will need:

two large carcasses;
regular kitchen salt.

Wash the herring, gut and cut lengthwise. If desired, you can remove the central bone.
In the sudok, where the fish will be, pour a layer of salt on the bottom.
Lay the fish in one layer.
Sprinkle salt on top too. If all the fish does not lay out in one layer, then make two tiers, pouring salt between them well.
On top of the fish is also abundantly covered with a salt "blanket".
Close the container with the fish lid and refrigerate for 10-12 hours.
After this time, get the fish, wash off the salt under running water and you can help yourself.

How to pickle a whole herring

You can call the method of salting a whole herring easy, since you do not need to gut it, take out the bones, cut it into pieces. It is enough to defrost the carcasses, wash and salt well. We will use the dry method of salting.

For 1 kg of herring you need:

2-3 tablespoons of salt;
1 tbsp sugar.

Loose mix with each other and generously sprinkle them with carcasses. Put in a container and leave for a day at room temperature. After - shift the herring to the refrigerator and wait another 2-3 days. Herring can be cleaned and eaten, or you can leave it for later, since with such salting it can be stored for a long time.

How to pickle herring in pieces in a jar: a step by step photo recipe

To prepare portioned herring in a jar, you need to prepare the following list of products:

Frozen herring - 3 pcs.

For brine:

1 liter of water.
3 tbsp salt.
Two bay leaves.
Three peppercorns.
Three umbrellas of carnations.
Five peas of coriander.

How to pickle herring with vinegar?

Before starting work, we prepare the products. For herring with vinegar you will need:

Two carcasses of herring.
One big bulb.
500 ml of water.
1 tbsp salt.
1 tbsp granulated sugar.
1 tbsp vinegar.
5 peas of black and allspice.
3-5 pieces of bay leaves.

Pour peppers, salt, bay leaf and sugar into water and boil for 3-5 minutes.
Pour vinegar into the still hot brine and leave to cool.
While the brine is cooling, take care of the fish. Clean it, gut it, wash it.
Cut the fish into portions, and the onion into half rings.
In a container (sudok, jar), lay fish and onions in layers.
Pour everything with cooled brine, cork and send in the cold for two days.
After this time, the herring with vinegar is ready. You can eat.

How to salt lightly salted herring: a recipe with a photo

Scientists have proven that herring contains the hormone of joy. So why not please yourself with a delicious dish, namely lightly salted herring, while charging yourself with a good mood and positive for the whole day? To get salted herring, you need the following products:

2 carcasses of herring.
1 liter of water.
3 tbsp salt.
4 tbsp granulated sugar.
8 peppercorns.
3 bay leaves.
Cloves optional.

How to salt spicy herring?

Spicy herring is made in brine, using many different seasonings. We present to your attention a delicious way to cook spicy fish at home.

It will take for 1 kg of herring:

1 tbsp water.
3 tbsp salt.
1 tbsp granulated sugar.
2 tbsp dry dill.
7-10 black peppercorns
5 bay leaves.
3 cloves.
1 tbsp white mustard seeds.
0.5 tbsp coriander beans.
2 tbsp vinegar.

Preparing the brine: All spices, except dill, put in water and boil. Pour in the vinegar.
Wash the herring, peel and divide into fillets, removing the central bone.
Fold the herring fillets into a container, sprinkling each layer with dry dill.
Pour the herring with cooled brine and stand for a day in a cold place.
The herring turns out surprisingly tasty and looks great on the festive table.

Herrings in jars against loose

On the eve of the upcoming May holidays, the editors of Delovoy Mius decided to hold a tasting of preserves from salted herring.

In the retail chains of Matveev Kurgan, six types of herring were purchased from four manufacturers. All samples had a valid expiration date and were under appropriate storage conditions at the time of sale. All samples were sealed. The evaluation of the taste and smell of the samples by the editorial staff was blind - without information about the brand and manufacturer.

Participants and results of the procurement

1. Herring fillet "fishhouse» (1st place according to the results of the editorial tasting)

Net weight: 250 g

Fish weight: 190 g

Price: 109.0 rub.

Cost per kilogram of fish: 573.0 rubles.

Average rating given by employees: 4.8

Employee reviews: “Cultural” such a taste”, “Normal”, “Maybe a little salty”, “Delicious, acetic acidity is felt”

2. Herring fillet "Mathias", family pack

Producer: JV "Santa-Bremor", Belarus

Ingredients: herring fillet, oil, salt, flavor enhancer, acidity regulator, preservative

Net weight: 500 g

Fish weight: 400 g

Price: 229.0 rub.

Cost per kilogram of fish: 572.5 rubles.

Average rating given by employees: 4.6

Employee reviews: “The taste is completely identical to the herring from another large pack” (we are talking about the Fish House brand from the same manufacturer), “Pleasant, audible vinegar”

3. Herring "Queen-fish"

Producer: VOOI "Synthesis", Voronezh

Ingredients: herring, oil, salt, flavor enhancer, acidity regulator, preservative,

Net weight: 180 g

Weight of fish: not specified

Price: 69.95 rubles.

Cost per kilogram of fish: about 699.5 rubles. (assuming that there are about 100 grams of fish in a jar)

Feedback from employees: “Pleasant, salty taste, fatty”, “Nothing like that, even slightly sweet”

4. Herring with dill "RIK"

Ingredients: herring, oil, flavor enhancer, preservative, dill

Net weight: 180 g

Fish weight: 108 g

Price: RUB 83.99

Average rating given by employees: 3.6

Employee Reviews: "Spreads too fast in the mouth", "Tastes ordinary"

5. Herring fillet "RIK"

Producer: RIK LLC, Rostov region, Aksai district, Verkhnetemernitsky village

Ingredients: herring, oil, flavor enhancer, preservative

Net weight: 180 g

Fish weight: 108 g

Price: RUB 83.99

Cost per kilogram of fish: 466.6 rubles.

Average rating given by employees: 3.6

Employee reviews: “Nothing”, “You can eat”

6. Herring fillet "Teftida"

Producer: Teftida LLC, Rostov region, Taganrog

Ingredients: herring, oil, salt, sugar, preservative

Net weight: 180 g

Fish weight: 95 g

Price: 50.95 rubles.

Cost per kilogram of fish: 536.2 rubles.

Average staff rating: 3.5

Employee reviews: “Some kind of marinated”, “Sweet aftertaste, but pleasant”, “Smells like fish “with a smell”, “Strange aftertaste, not very pleasant”

A little about loose herring

To compare prices for salted herring, the editors also purchased one herring by weight from the store. Of course, this herring is not preserves. Yes, and it is often quite difficult for a simple buyer to establish exactly neither its manufacturer nor the composition that is included in the curing mixture, although it is these factors that determine its taste, which can be different every time even in the same store. For this reason, it was decided not to include loose herring in the voting, but to purchase it “out of competition”, only in order to compare exactly how much a simple buyer has to overpay “for the service”. This is when the manufacturer removes the skin from the herring, removes the head, tail and large bones, cuts the fish and puts it in a serving box, filling it with oil. The results, to be honest, are quite impressive:

Net weight of one herring: 414 g

Price: 76.18 rubles.

Cost per kilogram: 184 rubles.

It turns out that even if, roughly, a third of its weight is thrown out of the herring - all inedible parts - cut into pieces of fillet, and then poured with vinegar, not just “vegetable”, as the manufacturers indicate, but with expensive olive oil, it is unlikely whether the cost of fish will be more than 250 - a maximum of 300 rubles per "kilo" ...

For me personally, this factor alone has become decisive. Not to mention the fact that you should not once again eat preservatives, which, as can be seen from the composition of the samples, are found in absolutely all preserves, and “flavor enhancers”, which are put in five out of six cans.

What to check on the packaging of preserves

The fattest, most delicious and healthy herring is the one that has not reached puberty. This is what the word “mathieu” says on the label of preserves. It suggests that in front of you is a young fish that boasts the highest content of fat, protein, polyunsaturated acids and vitamins. At the same time, mathieu is also a way of preparing such fish. This "mathieu" refers to expensive premium products.

If the preserves are packed in a transparent container, shake it slightly. Is the brine or marinade foaming? The fish is spoiled. In high-quality herring, the filling is always transparent. If the brine is sour, it becomes cloudy and dark.

If the herring is not loose, the main requirement for its packaging is vacuum. Fresh air is categorically contraindicated for preserves, and if there are obvious traces of brine smudges on the jar, you should not buy such a product. Good hand wrapping will never get dirty.

Shelf life of herring in a can is up to 4 months, in plastic up to 3 months, in vacuum packaging up to 35 days. Regardless of the packaging, herring should be stored at a temperature not exceeding 4-6 degrees, otherwise its shelf life is drastically reduced. In practice, it is always better to buy herring as close to the production date as possible. Otherwise, there is a possibility that even preserves that are suitable for the term may turn out to be spoiled in fact. Moreover, if there is a choice, it is better to make it in favor of loose fish - you can always not only evaluate it “by eye”, but also smell it.

How to choose the most delicious loose fish

Gills are an indicator of the quality of any fish. In quality, they are ALWAYS dark red, without a single light one. If, when you press the gills, a blood smudge forms or an unpleasant smell is heard from them: notes of bitterness or rot - the fish has already deteriorated. Herring should not contain any third-party odors, except for its own and spices that were used for salting.

Scales. Must be free of rust. Rust on the surface of the herring occurs due to the oxidation of fat. And this is not a superficial defect: if there is rust on the skin, be sure that the muscle tissue has also suffered.

Carcass. The "correct" herring will be elastic and firm, without damage, abrasions and cracks. Otherwise, this means that the fish was not only overexposed in salt, but also stored at a temperature much higher than necessary. Do not take fish if you see a white coating on its skin - low-grade salt was used for salting! Pay attention to the "figure" - a herring with a thick, wide back is always an order of magnitude tastier than its "slender" relative.

Brine. If the brine is cloudy, and even smells somehow suspicious, go to another store, since this herring has long expired. But if you see that the brine is transparent - good!

Eyes. The criterion helps in choosing in terms of taste preferences. If you prefer slightly salted herring, choose fish with red eyes. Firstly, it is perfect for a “fur coat”, and secondly, its fat content will be much higher than average. A sign of medium and highly salted herring will be cloudy eyes, which, by the way, also indicate the presence of caviar in the fish. Such a fish will be lean, since during the spawning period all its vitality was spent on the production of eggs.

Floor. It is generally accepted that males are much tastier and fatter than females, so you can quite easily ask for a “male” to be packed for you. It is quite possible to distinguish them: females have a round mouth, while males have an elongated and narrow one. The fat belly of the fish also indicates the content of caviar or milk. If you want to choose something specific, press on the abdomen: in the lower abdomen, closer to the tail fin, caviar or milk will appear from the hole.

Elena Motyzheva

Potato tartlets with herring on a minimalist fur coat

"Herring under a fur coat" is one of the most popular salted herring dishes. Since spring is in the yard - the traditional time for picnics in nature - we propose to slightly change the traditional recipe, turning it from a salad into an original appetizer.

Ingredients for 12 servings:

For 12 tartlets: dough for tartlets: 3 medium potatoes (approx. 400 g), salt to taste, 15 g butter, 1 egg, 1 tbsp. flour

For a minimalist coat: 1 medium boiled beet, 1 clove of garlic, 50 g curd cheese (I have it with herbs), 1 hard-boiled egg, 1 tbsp. mayonnaise, 1 tsp mustard, freshly ground pepper, 1 whole herring or 2 herring fillets, 1 onion and a few green onions for serving

Cooking:

For tartlets, peel the potatoes and boil in salted water until cooked and drain the water from it. Then mash into a puree with the addition of a small amount of butter, then beat in a raw egg and mix the puree well. If the puree turns out to be watery, then add a tablespoon of flour and mix thoroughly again. Leave the puree to cool.

For a fur coat, you need one hard-boiled egg, and you need to boil it accordingly.

While the puree is cooling, you can prepare a minimalist fur coat. Grate beetroot, boiled egg and garlic clove on a fine grater. Mix grated products with curd cheese, mayonnaise, mustard and a pinch of freshly ground pepper.

Make tartlets from the cooled puree. To do this, you need muffin molds, if the molds are not silicone, then pre-lubricate them with vegetable oil.

Place small portions of mashed potatoes in molds and, with hands moistened in water, gently mash the potatoes inside the mold over the entire area. Try not to make the puree layer too thin, but it shouldn't be too thick either. Place in oven (180°C). Bake until browned (about 15 minutes).

Remove the finished tartlets from the oven, carefully remove from the molds and leave to cool until completely cooled on the wire rack.

While the tartlets are cooling down, clean the herring and free it from the bones, cut the resulting fillets obliquely into small pieces.

Fill the cooled tartlets with beet-egg-curd mass, and put a piece of herring on top, put onion rings on top and sprinkle with green onions.

The appetizer is ready, you can serve it to the table. Bon appetit!