Pickeled Fish

BK-Here ya go.. It was my grandmother’s recipe and my dad and brother love the batches I made last winter…

Part 1:
1 Cup Salt
2 Quarts water
2 Quarts Fish (I used all pike)
Put in a large bowl and store in a fridge for at least one day, I left mine for 48hrs…

Part 2:
Wash fish in cold water, dry on paper towels, put back in bowl, cover with white vinegar and refrigerate for 24hrs.

Part 3:
Drain the vinegar off the fish.

In a saucepan boil for 5 mins;
2 1/2 cups sugar
3 tsp pickling spice
1 1/2 cup water
2 1/4 cup white vinegar

After taking off a boil, add 3 cups white port wine.

Slice lemons and onions in 1/4 slices (depending on your liking. I used two lemons and a large onion)

In a quart jar (may need more than one, I had so many pike to pickle I was using the large pickle jars) add a layer of fish, then a layer of lemon and onion, then repeat with fish, lemon, onion, fish etc until jar is half full. Add some of the liquid then continue to layer. You don’t want to pack it too tight cause otherwise there is no room for the liquid mixture.. when finish packing fish, lemon and onion then add the liquid to just below the neck of the jar.
I do boil my lids for the quart jars, and since you are using hot liquid over the fish, no need to warm the jars. Simply boil the lids, wipe the rim of the jar with a dry towel (for a good seal) and place the lid and ring on the jar. and Voila, one month later in the fridge you will have some great pickled fish!! Good eats
I will post a pick as a reply to this so you can see how I layered mine..

Here is a picture of one of the big pickle jars that I did of pickled fish.. Yum Yum

Also for first timers, or if you did not know, you do not have to filet the y-bones out of the pike when you pickle them, during the pickling process the y-bones dissolve naturally, so take the filet off the skin, take out the rib bones, cut into about 2″ pieces and you’re set…

I prefer pickled northern as well

Thanks Jen,
I went to IDO this morning to specifically look for a new pickling recipe, and here it is. It looks very yummy, I can’t wait to get started.

Just add some crackers and a cold one!

I’ve been meaning to pickle some pike for years but have never gotten around to it. 2012 may be the year! A few questions:

1) What is a good size for pickling pike? I assume the bones dissolve more easily in smaller pike.

2) What’s a rule of thumb for how much fish can fit in a quart jar? One fish per jar? More?

3) What can go wrong, and how will I know if I have screwed up?

Thanks!!!

1) What is a good size for pickling pike? I assume the bones dissolve more easily in smaller pike.

Most the fish I caught last year were on a lake with no size limit, we threw the “big ones” back for breeding. A lot of people don’t have this option due to legal lengths on lakes. But I have found the 28″ and under have worked just fine.. Also when I pickle mine, I make em sit for a month in the brine before even trying em and that allows for the dissolving of the bones, other recipes I’ve seen just allow for one week of pickling… So I can’t imagine that a bigger fish wouldn’t have it’s y-bones dissolve when brining for a month..

2) What’s a rule of thumb for how much fish can fit in a quart jar? One fish per jar? More?

Again I was having about 20 pike at a time when I was doing the large pickle jars (usually ending up doing a qt jar along with the pickle jar), so I’m guessing divide that by about 4qt jars, so about 5 pike for one qt… That is a guess.. With the recipe above I’m guessing you will end up with 4qts due to adding lemon/onion/liquid and the fish firming up in the salting/vinegar process (Parts 1 & 2)

3) What can go wrong, and how will I know if I have screwed up?

Not really much you can screw up, I like to leave mine in the salt water for two days, they get really nice and firm that way.. My personal preference for sealing the lids on the quart jars I don’t think really matters as long as the ring and lid is on there tight, since the pickle jars don’t have a way to “seal” a lid, and they turned out just fine.. (I would still recommend heating the lids in a sauce pan with a little water to a boil for about a min or two in case you don’t eat them all right away.. Just make sure that the qt jars are sent through the dish washer or washed with soap-water at a very high water temp to sterilize them.. Also make sure when you take your lids out of the water, wipe them with a dry towel and the rim of the jar with a wet paper-towel followed by a dry one, this ensures a proper seal.. If your fish end up slimy then something went wrong.. but I know with anything you pickle, your end product should not be slimy… Pretty easy recipe… Good luck and I hope they turn out great like mine have in the past..

One more thing, I don’t know if most people know this, but when canning anything, you should slide a table knife along the edge of the jar in several different spots to make sure there are no air bubbles in the jar, air bubbles can cause spoilage… you may need to add more liquid to top it off due to the air bubbles coming up… Good luck everyone!!

looking good!!!

I’ve heard of “pickeled Fish” but yet have to taste them.

I have yet to keep a northern for table fare. If I ever get the chance to fish with a friend that knows how to do both (filet / cook or preserve) I will “I’m Sure” convert!

The jury is still in deliberation for my trial.
Maybe then the snakes might make the inside of my boat and become table fare.

Denny, if you like herring you’ll turn your nose at it after having pickled northern. I was always leery about it, but once I tried it…well, I’m done with the slimy herring.

Man oh man I Love Pickeled Herring!

pickled pike nothing better

Not trying to steal any of Jen’s thunder here, but this topic has come up before and I wanted to get this recipe somewhere. The red pepper adds a nice touch.

Pickled Fish (Refrigerator Variety)

Step 1 > Catch The Fish (Cauliflower, inside joke).

Step 2 > Filet the fish and cut into bite sized pieces.

Step 3 > Make Salt Brine, 5 parts water to 1 part canning salt (regular will do) enough to float an egg. Soak fish in Brine 24 to 48 hours.

Step 4 > Pour off salt brine, then rinse then soak in pure white vinegar for 24 to 48 hours.

Step 5 > Pour off vinegar, then rinse, then layer fish in jar, layer of sliced onion, then fish, etc. Do not pack tightly.

Make pickling brine with the following ingredients:

1T Mustard Seed

1T Whole Clove

1T Whole Allspice

1T Ground Allspice

1T Crushed Red Pepper

6 Bay Leaves

1C Water

3-4C Sugar

3C White Vinegar

Place 5 items in cheesecloth and loosely wrap and tie. Boil all ingredients until dissolved. Let cool or throw a few ice cube in the brine. Then pour over fish and refrigerate for 24-48 hours. Eat !!!

I had been looking for this to put up for some time and just found wandering through some old flash drives looking for something far more important, but here it is.

Mark

Which 5 items?

Denny:

Sorry the first 5 items in the spice bag…

Mark

1T Mustard Seed
1T Whole Clove
1T Whole Allspice
1T Ground Allspice
1T Crushed Red Pepper
6 Bay Leaves

I thought since the Allspice was ground, maybe the Bay leaves went into the bag instead. ?

DennyO:

Probably not necessary to put any of into the bag if you don’t mind the bigger stuff (clove, mustard seeds, etc.) eatin’ or pickin’ it off the chunks of meat. And you could probably crush the bay leaves and put them into the bag as well… I think the recipe actually came to me and it did not call for the spice bag…

Mark

Thanks Mark. It makes sence in my head.
That is if anything ever does!

Kind of amped to get a few pike this weekend to try my hand at pickled pike!

Jen, how long after canning can you eat? Do you wait a full month in the fridge before opening?

I’ve got some pike soaking in saltwater!

Hello Dear

I went to IDO this morning to specifically look for a new pickling recipe, and here it is. It looks very yummy, I can’t wait to get started.

Huh? wh??

Well, Jennifer Aniston, will have to view the recipes without being a member.

Jen Hanson..that looks delish..it sounds like a lot a work though.