Mackerel with liquid smoke - a recipe at home

Hello! Today I will tell you how to cook mackerel with liquid smoke at home. In terms of taste and aroma, such a delicacy is in no way inferior to the store version, but at the same time you can be sure of the quality and freshness of the product. The main thing is to choose the right fish and observe the cooking technology.

How to choose and prepare fish

It is best to cook a delicacy from fresh mackerel, but you can buy it in this form only in several regions of Russia. Therefore, in most cases, a frozen product is used for smoking, which must be correctly selected and prepared.

Inspecting the carcass, you will need to pay attention to such points:

1. Appearance. The skin should not be dented, stained, or bruised. The eyes of the fish are black, shiny, without opacities, the gills are red. The abdomen is flat, not swollen.
2. Smell. A quality product may smell a little iodine and mud. A sharp "amber" with extraneous impurities should alert.
3. Weight and size. It is better to purchase a mackerel weighing at least 350 g and a length of 30-35 cm. Small fish are rather dry and more suitable for boiling.
4. The color of the back. Fleshy individuals are suitable for smoking. The wider the area with black stripes located along the ridge, the more pulp in the fish.

Preparation of mackerel for smoking includes the following steps:

1. Defrosting. The slower the carcass thaw, the better. They can be thawed at room temperature or on the middle shelf of the refrigerator. Putting fish in water or a microwave is not recommended. In the first case, it absorbs too much moisture and will creep away, and in the second it will lose some of the nutrients when heated. In particular, protein will curl.
2. Cleaning. It is necessary to remove the entrails, black film and clotted blood from the abdomen.It is not necessary to cut the fins; heads and tails can also be left. As for the latter, it is worth focusing on the size of the dishes in which the carcasses will be smoked - they should fit freely in length. But before cooking the mackerel with the head, it is necessary to cut the gills.
3. Washing. Rinse the fish under cool cold running water and do it efficiently, but quickly - it is undesirable that it absorbs excess moisture. Then you need to carefully blot the carcasses with napkins.

In preparation for hot smoking, mackerel is salted dry or in brine. Before the cold, this stage is most often passed and salt and other spices are poured into the water to which the carcasses will be poured, adding a prescription amount of liquid smoke.

What is liquid smoke?

Liquid smoke is a natural-based flavoring that mimics the effect of traditional smoking. Thanks to the concentrate, meat, poultry, fish or cheese acquire a characteristic taste, color and smell. It can be added during cooking or processed finished product.

The flavor is an aqueous solution of decay products of wood raw materials. In its production, alder, bird cherry, oak or aspen is most often used. When the rocks smolder, the smoke condenses and decomposes into soluble and insoluble fractions. The latter, represented mainly by ash and tar, are removed and the initial condensate is obtained. At the next stage, it is purified from other harmful compounds and distilled, and then infused. Liquid smoke enters the market, packaged in opaque or darkened plastic or glass bottles. Typically, the shelf life of the product is 24 months.

Did you know? There is an opinion that using concentrate is safer than smoking products in a traditional way. This is due to the fact that during the cleaning process, substances that are present in natural smoke and harmful to the human body are removed from it.

How to Smoke Mackerel with Liquid Smoke

• Preparation time: 2 hours preparation / 2 days smoking / 1-2 days drying.
• Servings Per Container: 8-9.

Having become acquainted with the method of cold smoked mackerel with liquid smoke, you will be convinced that it is not difficult to cook a delicacy yourself.

Ingredients:

• mackerel - 3 pcs. the same size;
• water - 1.2-1.5 l;
• onion peel - from 5-6 heads;
• sugar - 2 tbsp. l .;
• rock salt - 4 tbsp. l .;
• liquid smoke - 2-3 tbsp. l

Order of preparation:

1. Start with the preparation of the broth - you can fill the fish only with completely cooled liquid. Rinse the onion peel, place in a pan and fill with water.
2. Put the container on medium heat, bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook for 30 minutes. Stir the husk periodically with a spoon so that it does not stick to the bottom and walls. In the process, part of the water will boil, part - will be absorbed by the onion husk, as a result, 1 liter of the finished broth will be obtained.
3. Peel the slightly thawed mackerel, and then let it thaw completely and rinse.
4. Strain the cooled broth, add sugar and salt, mix until dissolved. Then pour in liquid smoke.
5. In a container of a suitable size, put the fish, fill with a solution, close the lid and put in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
6. Take out the container and turn the carcasses to another barrel, return to the cold for another day.
7. Remove the mackerel from the brine and hang it for drying in a dry, ventilated room (in spring and autumn, when the air temperature is moderate, it is better to leave it on the balcony). It will be suitable for use when the brine stops dripping, but you can leave it for 1-2 days to slightly fade.

 

Smoked fish is ready! And to give the appetizer a more attractive look, grease the carcasses with a small amount of vegetable oil - so the skin will not only gain a pleasant shine, but also will become more elastic and will not crack.