Salted herring - abundant salivation starts from this phrase alone, but very often the purchase of this delicacy disappoints. The fish is not salted, blood is released from it, or the product simply disappoints with its taste, so many housewives think about how to salt herring at home. I must say, they are extremely successful in this. Confirmation will be a delicious selection of recipes for homemade salting herring, below.

The choice of fish for salting

There are few tips for choosing fish for cooking in this way, but they should be followed strictly so that the cooked fish does not disappoint with its taste:

  1. The integument of the fish should be a natural silver color, the eyes should be convex and transparent, and the gill covers and fins should be tightly pressed.
  2. You should not buy carcasses without a head, since decapitating sellers can mask a spoiled product with decapitation.
  3. Juicy and fat come fish with plump backs and bulging sides.
  4. If there is any damage on the carcass, it is better to refrain from buying it.

 

Ocean herring caught in winter is considered to be ideal, since it is much fatter and does not contain heavy metals, which can be found in marine species due to the rapid pollution of coastal waters.

Read also:how to clean herring

How to salt whole herring in brine

Among the great many ways of salting herring, classic is most popular. Fish prepared in this way can be used for sandwiches, salads or served separately, as an independent dish, for example, with boiled potatoes.

The list of ingredients necessary to pickle herring can be found in any kitchen:

  • 400 g of fresh or frozen herring;
  • 0.5-0.75 liters of drinking water;
  • 20 g of salt;
  • 10 g of sugar;
  • 1 bay leaf;
  • 2 buds of cloves;
  • 2 peas of allspice;
  • 3 peas of black pepper.

Recipe step by step:

  1. Defrost carcasses (if they were frozen), thoroughly wash in cool water and remove the gills. You should not salt the fish with gills so that it does not receive an unpleasant bitterness in its finished form.
  2. Separately, cook the marinade by boiling water with salt, sugar and spices. So that the spices can completely give their flavor to the liquid, after boiling, the brine should be boiled for 2-3 minutes.
  3. Put the prepared herring in a plastic container or enameled tray of a suitable size and pour the cooled marinade. Let it stand for 3-4 hours on the kitchen table, and then hide it in the refrigerator for three days. After the specified time, you can taste delicious homemade herring.

It is very important to defrost fish properly. You need to do this on the shelf of the refrigerator in a sealed container or plastic bag so that other products nearby do not absorb the fish smell.

Spiced salmon fish

Among connoisseurs of salted herring, spicy salted fish is especially popular. For its preparation, whole bouquets of spices and spices are used in different ratios. For salting on an industrial scale, these compositions are approved and given in the "Collection of technological instructions for processing fish." At home, you can move away from strict requirements and make your own spicy recipe, using spices to your liking.

You will need to take:

  • 700 g of freshly frozen fish;
  • 90 g of salt;
  • 20 g of sugar;
  • 1000 ml of water;
  • spices: allspice and black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, bay leaf, caraway seeds, anise.

Salting Technology:

  1. Salted fish can be gutted, but for the sake of variety we give an example of a recipe for gutted spicy herring. To do this, the carcasses are thawed, gills are cut, the insides and dark films inside the abdomen are removed.
  2. Spices (except bay leaf) are slightly kneaded in a mortar, mixed with sugar and about 10-15 g of salt. The remaining salt is used to prepare the brine by dissolving it in the recipe volume of drinking water.
  3. A rectangular container into which the carcass easily enters is lined with a plastic bag, and a bay leaf is placed on the bottom. Herring rubbed with a mixture of spices with salt and sugar. Stack it in a bag into which the brine is poured.
  4. A package is tied, a small load is placed on top and allowed to stand like this for 24 hours at room temperature, then fish is salted in the refrigerator for another three days.

The milk, caviar and abdomen of herring that remain after evisceration can be salted separately. To do this, they are put in a glass jar, a little salted. The container is closed, and its contents are thoroughly shaken, then kept for 24 hours in the refrigerator.

Salted herring in slices

A salted herring made in pieces has several advantages over whole salted carcasses: before serving, there is no need to cut, individual pieces are more quickly consumed with salt, which means they will be cooked.

For one or two fish made in this way, it is necessary to prepare:

  • 70 g of onions;
  • 20 ml of vegetable oil;
  • 500 ml of boiled water;
  • 35-40 g of salt.

Cooking:

  1. Behead the fish, cut off the fins and tail, take out the inner contents of the abdomen and clean out the inner dark film. After that, cut the carcass into separate slices 2-3 cm thick.
  2. To make a brine for herring, boil water, stir salt crystals in it and cool. Peel the onion and chop the rings or half rings.
  3. Fill the jar with fish slices mixed with onions, add saline, pour vegetable oil on top and refrigerate for a day.

Additionally, your favorite spices can be added to the marinade. They need to be added together with salt to hot water.

Express method of salting herring

How long does it take to salt herring at home? Day or more? But what if you want salt fish right now? Use the express method of dry salting herring for two hours.

 

For him, you only need:

  • fresh herring;
  • sugar;
  • salt.

Salting Method:

  1. Cut the gills of the fish, and wash the carcass itself in cool water.
  2. Pour a mixture of sugar and salt with a thick layer at the bottom of the salting tank, put the prepared fish on it, and again a layer of salt with sugar on top.
  3. Establish severe pressure on the fish and leave it for two hours at room temperature.

Before serving, you only need to rinse the salt crystals and sprinkle the fish with lemon juice. It is important to consider that the longer the herring is under oppression, the more salty it will turn out.

With sunflower oil

Tasty salt can be fish without water.

The peculiarity of this recipe is that after the end of the salting process, it’s not just a salty herring, but an excellent snack, because onions and carrots, which are used in the cooking process, can be eaten:

  • 600 g of fresh-frozen herring;
  • 160 g of onions;
  • 80 g of carrots;
  • 150 ml of vegetable oil;
  • 10 g mustard seeds;
  • 10 g of salt;
  • 3.5 g sugar;
  • peas of black pepper.

Working process:

  1. Thaw the fish, but not completely, to make it easier to cut into pieces. Gut the carcass, cut the fins and cut into slices 2-3 cm thick.
  2. Prepare vegetables: peel, wash and cut into circles.
  3. In a clean glass jar, lay down vegetables and herring in layers, sprinkling with salt, spices and sugar.
  4. When the jar is full, fill the fish with vegetable oil, close the lid tightly and shake a little. Put the jar with herring for one and a half to two days in the refrigerator, after which it will be completely ready for use.

The oil in this recipe helps herring to be filled with aromas of spices, so choosing this ingredient, you need to give the odorless or deodorized or refined product.

Dry cooking

There are several ways to dry salted fish, but the recipe for cooking in a bag is worthy of special attention. Firstly, fish does not absorb odors and does not spread its aroma to other products in the refrigerator. Secondly, even if the herring lies in the brine for longer than the allotted time, it will not become salted.

In addition to two plastic bags for salting you will need:

  • 2 herrings weighing 600-700 g;
  • 50 g of salt;
  • 25 g of sugar;
  • 14 g of ready-made spices for salting fish.

The sequence of actions:

  1. Let the fish thaw completely on the shelf of the refrigerator, then wash it thoroughly. In a small bowl, combine and carefully mix salt, sugar and spices.
  2. Packages fold one into one and open. Next, right above the bag, start coating the fish with a salting mixture. Fold a well-grated herring in packets and tie it tightly.
  3. After all the manipulations, it remains only to let the fish lie for two days in the refrigerator and it will be ready for the table.

So that the herring is well salted from all sides, in a day it should be turned on the other side. So she can marinate each side in the allocated own juice.

Herring fillet salted with lemon

You can deliciously salt herring so that later, enjoying a delicious fish, you will not have to be distracted by such trifles as seeds, but of course there will be more preparatory work.

A very good recipe for herring salted with lemon:

  • 2000 g of herring;
  • 50 g of rock salt;
  • 25 g of sugar;
  • 2 lemons;
  • 5-6 bay leaves;
  • 12-15 peas of allspice.

How to salt the fillet with lemon:

  1. The fish must be washed, gutted, and the fillet separated, making every possible effort to remove all the bones. Cut the fish into small pieces. Wash the lemon with a brush in hot water, wipe dry and chop in circles.
  2. Pick up an enameled pan or a round plastic container into which a plate for oppression can enter. Next, lay the fillet and slices of lemon in layers of the selected container, pouring them with salt and sugar and spices.
  3. Set the fish oppression at the rate of 0.5 kg of cargo per 1 kg of fish. For a day send the fish to the refrigerator, then swap layers, re-install the load and keep it in the refrigerator for another 2-3 days.

Fillet prepared in this way can be used for salads, for example, herring under a fur coat or sandwiches.

With vinegar

Vinegar not only reduces salting time, but also changes the structure of the meat, making it tender and melting in the mouth like butter.

It is noteworthy that the marinade prepared according to this recipe does not make the herring sour:

  • 125 ml of water;
  • 100 ml of vegetable oil;
  • 7 g of salt;
  • 7 g of sugar;
  • 10 ml of vinegar;
  • 5 g of ready mustard.

Salting Algorithm:

  1. Thaw herring, cut off its tail and head, gut the insides, cut off the fins and remove the skin. Further, the fish can simply be cut into slices without taking out the bones, but can be turned into a fillet.
  2. Combine all the marinade ingredients together and mix. Put the prepared fish in a glass jar or other container, pour the marinade and put it in the refrigerator for one to two days.

Vinegar for this recipe can be taken as a regular table, but you can use other types of it (apple, wine, balsamic). After a day of exposure in the refrigerator, you can try the marinade and add a little more vinegar, if it seems that it is not enough.

Dutch recipe

This is an old recipe for dry salted herring with vegetables and lemon, which will make you forget about purchased fish, because such an appetizer flies first from any table.

To prepare fish according to the Dutch recipe for one serving, you will need:

  • 1 fish;
  • 100 g of onions;
  • 1/4 lemon
  • 45 g carrots;
  • 15 g of sugar;
  • 15 g of salt;
  • 5 bay leaves;
  • 5 peas of black pepper.

Salting herring in steps:

  1. We prepare vegetables. We clean the onion and cut the rings. Remove the carrots from the carrots, wash them and three on a coarse grater; you can use the Korean carrot grater. We carefully wash the lemon and cut it into slices with the skin, removing the bones.
  2. Prepare the fish in the same way in the previous recipe. Next, lay in a clean and dry glass jar in layers: onions, bay leaves, carrots, lemon and fish. Sprinkle the fish slices on top with sugar and salt and put a few peas of pepper.
  3. Thus fill the container to the top. The last should be a layer of vegetables. Close the lid tightly and put in the refrigerator for two to three days.

In order for the marinade to be evenly distributed in the jar, it is recommended to turn it upside down several times a day.

Salty herring, rich in useful and valuable substances for the human body, is not only an independent snack, but also a product used in the preparation of many dishes, as its salting at home allows you to control the quality of the ingredients used.

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