How to dry the fish?

A dried fish is called slightly salted fish,which, after salting, was slowly dried in the open air at a temperature of 20-25 ° C. For drying most often use vobla, ram, bream, mackerel, but you can dry fish and species (fish, barbel, chira, mullet, Chekhon, etc.). The fatter the fish, the more delicious it will be in dried form.

Before you can dry the fish, you need it process and saline. Do not hurry to handle a freshly caught fish: first fold it in a bunch mixed with nettle in a cool place and soak for a couple of hours, and then ready for pickling.

Small fish (up to 30 cm long) can not be cut before salting, but large fish are needed for cutting. It is necessary gut through a deep longitudinal incision. Caviar or milk can be left and dried with them.

Then you need to string fish into twine, so as not to suffer from stringing alreadysalted fish before drying. For stringing it is convenient to use a large needle with the twine wrapped into it. In one hand, take the needle, and the second place the fish on it. Fish should be threaded on the twine through the eyes, the backs should be directed in one direction.

Stringed on the needle the right amount of fish (2-4large or 10-15 small), push the fish carcasses from the needle onto the twine and tie its ends to a simple knot. Then rinse the resulting ligaments in running water and chop the fish with salt. Salt should also be stuffed into the gills and into the fish through the incision. If the fish is large (more than 1.5-2 kg weight), it is necessary to make an additional longitudinal cut on the back and also to fill it with salt.

Then take capacious capacity (barrel, tub, etc.).), pour a salt solution (on 4 parts of water - 1 part of salt) to the bottom of the tank and not very tightly lay the fish bundles up in it with the belly. Fine fish can not be threaded on a string, but simply placed in an enameled container and covered with salt. After that, the container with the fish is covered with a clean wooden mug, and bending is put on top.

Duration of salting depends on the size of the fish, the temperature (in warmthe fish will salivate faster) and your personal taste - the more salted fish you like, the longer it needs to be salted. Usually, salting is required from two days to a week. Remove the salted fish from the container, fold it into a pile for several hours, and then rinse thoroughly in cold water.

After this, you can start directly dryfish. If you have not previously threaded the fish on a string - do it. Hang the ligaments of fish in the open air. Drying the fish is necessary on the sunny side, but in the shade and in a well-ventilated place. It is best to dry fish in spring or earlyin summer, in dry and not too hot weather. In the summer, fish oil can quickly rancid and spoil the taste of fish. The hanging fish carcasses must hang with their belly to the outside, not touching each other.

Very important protect the fish from flies, which can try to lay eggs in it. To do this, lubricate the fish with vegetable oil or a solution of vinegar or cover with gauze. In the second case, it is necessary to hang the fish with well-ventilated wooden boxes, tightly closed with gauze. When the fish dries, you can finish it without gauze - the dried fish flies do not pozaryatsya.

How long does it take to dry the fish? Depending on the size of the fish, it will be driedfrom two weeks (for small fish) to four or five (for large fish). After this time you can enjoy a beer (well, or tomato juice) with a salted, dried fish of your own preparation.