Frozen fish is quite inexpensive, which makes it even more affordable for every family that has a smokehouse at its disposal. However, there are other advantages to smoked meats obtained at home:
- absence of dyes, preservatives, flavor enhancers, stabilizers and other dangerous components;
- using exclusively natural products.
The main advantage of any homemade food is its high taste. Try making smoked capelin one day. You will no longer purchase it in the store.
Grocery list
For hot smoking you will need:
- 1 kg of fish;
- about 100 g of salt;
- black pepper.
You can add a little more bay leaf, sugar or other seasonings, although for the first time it is better to limit yourself to the standard set. Some people have been using it for many years, preparing hot smoked capelin at home.
How to pickle capelin for smoking: tips
First, the purchased fish is defrosted. Do not use a microwave or other appliances. Let it thaw naturally. After this, the carcasses are washed and moisture removed. Gutting capelin is not recommended.
Place the prepared fish in a container, sprinkle with spices and salt. You can stir lightly so that the salt is evenly distributed between the capelin.
Salting lasts about an hour. Then the carcasses are washed under running water and dried again with paper towels. If time allows, place the fish on cutting boards or plates and leave in the air to ventilate moisture.
How to smoke capelin: a step-by-step guide
The smokehouse is being prepared. Chopped finished wood chips are poured into the bottom of the box. Beech has excellent properties. It is this that is proposed to be used for preparing the delicacy. A layer of wood chips, about 1 cm high, is poured onto the bottom, as shown in the photo.
Small containers are placed directly on the wood chips. The fat released when smoking fish will drip into the trays.
The fish is laid out on the grill, as in the photo. Having taken a kilogram of capelin according to the recipe, you will have to smoke it in two batches. The top of the box closes tightly. A fire is burning below or coals are smoldering, and hot smoked fish is being cooked inside.
It will take 25-30 minutes for the fish to become edible. During the specified time, the color of the skin will change radically. A golden hue is acquired, by which one can judge the readiness of the product.
The capelin is almost ready, but do not immediately remove it from the box.Let rest with the lid open for 10-20 minutes until cool. It turned out amazingly beautiful and at the same time tasty and harmless. Try it quickly! Bon appetit!
