Hot smoked perch: how to smoke in a smokehouse, recipe for cold smoking at home, calorie content

Hot smoked perch is a classic delicacy of Russian cuisine that is easy to prepare at home. The naturalness of this dish is definitely beyond any doubt. Using our tips, you will get an exquisite dish that will delight a noisy company at a picnic, at the dacha or in the forest.
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Smoked perch

Fragrant smoked perch is one of the most appetizing and affordable delicacies for connoisseurs of smoky dishes. There are several recipes for cooking fish: hot and cold smoking, as well as cooking in a mobile smokehouse in an apartment and in a stationary apparatus on the street.

Cold smoking method

How to smoke sterlet

Cold smoked perch is characterized by cooking the fish at a low temperature for a long time.

For small carcasses, 24 hours will be enough, and for large ones it will take up to 2 days at a temperature in the smoking chamber of 25–30 degrees. Start smoking perch by preparing the carcasses. Wash the perches.

Cut off the heads from large specimens and clean out the guts, removing the black films inside.

Dry the fish with a napkin and sprinkle with coarse sea salt, enough to cover the fish carcasses. Place the preparation for pickling in the cold for a day, covered with cling film.

Rinse the workpieces thoroughly with running water to remove any remaining grains of salt, wipe, hang and dry in a place with a draft. Wrap each carcass in gauze and secure with large stitches of thread so that during cold smoking, soot and ash do not settle on the fish.

Hang the carcasses in the smoking chamber, light a fire using wood made from fruit trees, and make sure that the temperature in the chamber does not exceed 30 degrees.

For convenience and to speed up the process, you can divide the carcass into 2 fillet halves.

Cold smoking of fish requires 24 to 48 hours, depending on the size of the carcasses. Perch smoked at low temperatures turns out elastic with a slight smoky aroma and a pleasant fishy taste. The energy value of the prepared dish is only 199 calories per 100 g.

In the smokehouse, it is better to use branches of fruit trees, raspberry and bird cherry bushes. Experienced cooks combine several types of wood to create the perfect flavor. A couple of juniper branches or 2-3 pieces of sugar thrown at the bottom of the smokehouse will help give the fish a golden color. Serve fresh salad, boiled potatoes and juicy greens with smoked perch.

Cold-smoked perch can be stored refrigerated for about a week, but hot-cooked fish can only be consumed for 3 days. There are several recipes to extend the shelf life of smoked meats:

Prepare a strong saline solution, soak a cotton towel in it and wrap the carcasses tightly with this cloth. Wrap the resulting workpiece in paper again. This fish can be stored for up to 3 months.
Place the perches in food-grade plastic containers or vacuum bags. After this, place the workpiece in the freezer. The shelf life is also 3 months.
The fish, wrapped in burlap, is placed in a box and sprinkled with non-pine sawdust. Perch is stored at a temperature of +50 degrees in the cellar.

Important! The fact that the perch has gone bad is indicated by the sour smell of the meat and a dark coating that is slippery to the touch. The carcass needs to be pierced with a toothpick in the place above the spine

If there is an unpleasant odor, it is strictly forbidden to use this product. Violation of this rule can result in severe food poisoning.

When hot-smoked, the soft whitish meat of perch literally melts in the mouth and comes off the bones, and the smell of smoke in this case is much stronger and richer. Cold cooking produces delicious, elastic meat with a pleasant texture and a light smoky aroma. You should absolutely not eat perch that tastes “smelly.”

Storage conditions

Hot smoked sea bass can be stored for several days in the refrigerator. You can increase the shelf life to two weeks if you use vacuum packaging. If such packaging is not available, the finished smoked products must be wrapped in paper so that other products do not absorb the smell of smoke.

Sea bass is a real delicacy that is not only tasty, but also healthy for the human body. Regular consumption of the dish will solve many health problems. At the same time, the delicacy prepared at home is much healthier and tastier than purchased products, because it does not contain any harmful additives or preservatives. The main thing is to buy fresh raw materials to get a truly tasty delicacy.

Hot smoked perch is a very simple and very tasty dish that can please a noisy company in nature, somewhere near the water with a bottle of beer. But preparing such a fish will not be difficult. The main thing is to properly process the perch and you can start drying. The fish turns out juicy, moderately salted, with a smoky aroma and tender meat. It is also important that such a dish is natural, without additives, for example, liquid smoke or preservatives.

Cold smoking sea bass

First recipe with marinade

Juicy, tasty cold-smoked sea bass is prepared in a marinade with seasonings: for 1 liter of water and 1 kg of carcasses, take 1 tbsp. l. sugar, 5 peas of different peppers, 2 pcs. cardamom and cloves, 4 pcs. juniper berries, 10 coriander grains, 1 tsp. mustard seeds, 6 tbsp. l. salt with a slide.

All dry spices are brought to a boil in water, then boiled for 5–10 minutes and cooled to room temperature.

Note Vladimir Kuznetsov Professional smoker

It is forbidden to pour hot marinade, it will ruin the structure and bring the carcasses to partial readiness.

While the marinade is cooling, gut the fish, remove the head and pour in the washed sea bass for a day. When the marinating process is over, wash the delicacy and wipe with a paper towel. They are dried for another 8 hours, placing spacers in the bellies.

Ideal results can only be achieved in a factory smokehouse equipped with a compressor and smoke generator:

If the wood chips were wet, they are dried in the oven at 60 degrees, then poured into a smoke generator up to half the volume.
The prepared sea bass is placed on the grates in a smoking container or hung on loops on hooks.
They install a smoke generator, turn on the compressor, and set fire to the wood chips.
They are smoked for 10 to 12 hours, depending on the size of the carcasses, at a temperature of 25 degrees.
The fish is dried for another day or two.

Second recipe with dry pickling

Note PAN SMOKED www.youtube.com/channel/UC9G7oJwpda9x5doLossnLSA

The carcasses are washed and sprinkled with salt, outside and inside. Salt during the day.
After this, soak the fish in water for 30 minutes.
Wipe with napkins or paper towels.
For convenient placement of carcasses in the smokehouse, loops are made.
To dry the perch, hang it under a fan for 1 hour.
Peach chips are poured into the smoke generator and set on fire.
Smoked for 8 hours at a temperature of 30 degrees.

When cold smoking, it is extremely important to take into account a number of subtleties and secrets. The main one is the use of absolutely dry wood chips

It is this that will provide a beautiful shade to the product and protect it from darkening or acquiring a tart taste. Ideally, it is better to smoke chilled or fresh fish.

During cooking, you should not often open the smokehouse - it should be completely closed, and the carcasses inside the unit should be kept at a distance from each other, without touching. You can check readiness by separating the bones from the meat - it comes away easily.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=1SFADh7CeI8%3F

Marinade for smoking

Let's reveal the secrets of preparing a spicy marinade for smoking. To do this you will need a mixture of the following seasonings:

1 tablespoon sugar;
cardamom or cloves - 2 pieces;
coriander - 10 pieces;
6 tablespoons salt;
juniper berries - 4 pcs.;
black pepper - 5 peas;
1 teaspoon mustard.

It is necessary to combine all the ingredients in a separate container. Place the saucepan on the fire, pour in some water, then add spices. Cook for about 10 minutes. Then let it cool. After the above steps, you can marinate the perches.

How to smoke perch at home, secrets of the masters

Every fisherman, whether professional or amateur, can easily recognize a perch if the latter is hooked.

In addition to the characteristic yellow-green color with dark stripes on the back, it is distinguished by the peculiar shape of the dorsal fin.

The perch seems to consist of two parts, one part is hard and has spiny rays, and the other is softer. Similar spines are also present in the anal fin.

Perch is a predator, this is evident even at the first meeting. A disproportionately huge mouth with many teeth is the result of nature’s work so that even small individuals can feed on small fish. Some perches can even have fangs.

Anyone who has ever caught a perch will probably remember its small scales, which fit so tightly to the body that sometimes it seems as if it were some kind of skin.

If we talk about large representatives, then in the river you can find perch weighing only a few hundred grams, while marine species are larger and weigh more than 10 kg. Perch has its own natural enemies, even in the underwater world; it can easily become a victim of larger predators.

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We have already mentioned the color of river inhabitants, but sea bass is completely different from its fellow. You can distinguish it not only by its characteristic red color, but also by its huge eyes.

Despite the fact that perch is not considered a commercial fish, it lives in all types of water bodies in the northern hemisphere. The only thing it needs for life is a weak current, the presence of vegetation and animal food. Marine representatives prefer shallow water, although they can thrive in the depths.

Useful qualities of perch meat

Fish as a food product is recommended not only for adults, but also for children. Nutrients can be transferred to the baby in the womb, so there is no question of including seafood in the diet.

However, many today prefer to create a menu based on the total energy output, mistakenly discarding fish, considering it a high-calorie product. A nutritious product should not be confused with a high-calorie product.

For a clear example, consider the chemical composition of perch meat. To begin with, we note that its calorie content does not exceed one hundred thousand calories. This indicator is calculated for 100 g of product, so with simple operations you can calculate the energy yield of the entire dish.

Smoked bass is nutritious and low in calories.

The next point is the method of preparing the fish. It is traditionally believed that smoked foods are harmful to the body. We must destroy this stereotype, as it has no basis. Smoked perch is even lower in calories than, for example, fried or boiled, and the amount of nutrients is preserved as much as possible when the product is processed with smoke.

There are rumors about the dangers of such food due to the presence of carcinogens, but with proper smoking, the level of harmful deposits may not be so significant.

Due to its rich content of vitamins, proteins and microelements with such a caloric value, perch is classified as a dietary food. Even those who are prescribed a strict diet can eat fish in any form.

Smoking perch is the most common method of preparing it.

The smoke-soaked delicacy will not only be an excellent snack, but will also fill the atmosphere with warm memories that accompany the entire smoking process carried out at home.

Thanks to the variety of microelements that enter the body in its pure form, the functioning of the heart, nervous system, and endocrine system is normalized, metabolism is improved, and cholesterol levels in the blood return to normal. The most amazing property is that with regular consumption of this fish, the aging process of the body slows down.

How to salt fish for smoking

Unfortunately, the salting procedure does not boil down to the banal addition of salt to the container where the carcasses are stored. Salt must effectively penetrate the fibers of the fish to remove excess moisture, otherwise all conditions for the growth of bacteria are created there.

It is impossible to quickly salt fish, so you need to calculate the time. First, the carcass is butchered. There is no need to remove the scales.

Firstly, it will become a kind of protective shell and will retain the secreted juice.
Secondly, it is very difficult to remove scales from a perch carcass, and when it becomes smoked, the skin will come off easily.

All cutting comes down to removing the entrails. Some experts advise leaving the entrails and gills if the carcasses are small. We recommend separating at least the gills.

Keeping fish in brine for a long time is called marinating; it is necessary to break down the fibers and kill microbes in them. After marinating, salted fish is already considered edible. There are two ways to salt fish before smoking: dry marinating and liquid marinating.

With the dry method, salt is mixed with ground black pepper and the resulting mixture is thoroughly rubbed on each carcass inside and out. The salted fish is placed in a bowl and covered with cling film on top. It should remain in this state for at least 6 hours. River perch has a specific smell that you should not get rid of; it is the smell of fresh fish. You should not use a lot of spices, as they will not do any good and will take away the taste of the fish.
Liquid marinade is prepared by adding salt and spices to hot water. The water is heated so that the ingredients dissolve better and release their flavor. But the fish should only be placed in the cooled marinade. The amount of salt depends on the desire of the cook, because some people like lightly salted foods.

It is almost impossible to over-salt fish. Firstly, this is its property, and secondly, in both cases described, the next step will be soaking the carcasses in clean water for some time. After removing excess salt, you will have to ventilate the perches so that all the moisture comes out.

Hot smoked sea bass at home

You should pour 2-3 handfuls of sawdust into the smokehouse and light a fire under the device. After 30 minutes the fish will be ready.

Hot smoked sea bass has a calorie content of 170 kcal, cold smoked sea bass has a calorie content of 200 kcal. The main component is protein (25 g). It contains a small amount of fat (9 g), no carbohydrates at all. Therefore, such fish can be consumed without fear by those who are watching their weight. In addition, the very process of smoking sea bass in the country or in the forest creates a lot of positive impressions.

Before cooking, fish should be prepared:

cut the abdomen from the anus to the head;
take out the insides;
rub with salt inside and out;
place in an enamel container;
dig with a plate and put pressure (cobblestones or a 3 liter jar of water).

After 2 hours, remove the resulting brine from the perches with your hands and place on a wire rack or hang for further cooking.

If you are using a factory mini-smokehouse, then it is better to use 2 levels at once so that the unit does not run idle. You can buy already gutted and headless carcasses, defrost them naturally and rub them with salt on all sides. Then follows:

light charcoal;
place a tray and put 2 handfuls of sawdust, preferably alder;
pour boiling water into the water seal (if provided);
install grills with fish;
close the lid and turn on.

Note! Half an hour after reaching a temperature of 85 degrees, the fish will turn out with juicy, tender flesh. If you need it more dense, for example, for beer, then you should turn the perches over and add wood chips

In 20 minutes the fish will be ready.

You can also smoke sea bass according to a spicy recipe, for which you will need:

7 pcs. headless, gutted carcasses;
3 tbsp. l. oils;
3 dec. l. lemon juice;
2 tsp. garlic;
2 tsp. dried ginger;
salt, pepper.

Mix all ingredients, except fish, coat the perches and leave in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Smoke for half an hour on alder chips.

In addition to the hot method, there is also a cold smoking option.

A few secrets of success

In order for the product to turn out tasty, aromatic, red-golden in color, a number of conditions must be met:

The wood chips should be as dry as possible. Wet wood will give the finished product a dark color and a tart taste.
It is better to use fresh or chilled fish, especially for cold smoke treatment.
For the hot method, there is no need to remove the scales - this way the juices will remain inside, which will make the pulp moist and tender.
The smokehouse lid must be closed tightly to prevent air from entering the sawdust and causing it to ignite.
The carcasses are placed without touching each other so that the smoke envelops them from all sides.
In ready-made perches, the meat is easily separated from the bones, and the skin is easily separated from the pulp.
When drying sea bass after salting, they should be protected from flies and other insects.

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By following all the rules and taking into account all the subtleties of preparation, you can get a dish worthy of the most discerning gourmets.

Recommendations for smoking fish

1. In nature, to keep the coals hot, I surround them with two large wet logs. They don’t have time to fully “get busy.”

2. For aesthetes, at the last stage of cooking you can sprinkle the fish with lemon and add a few sprigs of dill. But you need to put them on the perches, and not on the grill (otherwise they will just burn).

3. An important component of the recipe is wood chips (aka sawdust, aka twigs). In the photo - it is alder (from the store). But for gourmets, I would recommend large sawdust from any fruit tree. Apricot or apple are suitable. And if the cook is not lazy, then shavings from “live” cherries are even better. To do this, I finely chop the twig with an ordinary fishing knife. True, you will have to try. This will take at least half an hour. Walnut chips are absolutely not suitable

Cold and hot smoking

To deliciously cook a product smoked with natural smoke, you need to use a special device. The oven, which is used by residents of apartment buildings, only provides some kind of imitation of the process. Baked fish will have to be additionally treated with liquid smoke. Hot smoked perch is prepared in a smokehouse under the influence of smoke with a temperature of about 100°C degrees. Cold smoking has some significant differences. The results are also different.

In the first case, the fish will be smoked for less than an hour. Its meat becomes loose, the bones are easily separated. In consistency it looks like it is not baked, but has a characteristic taste and smell. This fish can be stored for only a few days. Despite this, recipes for hot smoking are more often found on various forums, due to the simplicity and speed of preparation. This fish is great to cook at the dacha for a family dinner or lunch.

You can smoke fish with cold smoke only after a few days. The resulting meat will be elastic, with a pronounced fishy taste. In this form, it retains many vitamins and nutrients. The smokehouse is designed so that the smoke cools down to 27°C degrees before entering the fish section. Cold smoked perch will last for several weeks in the refrigerator. The difficulty is that it is difficult to smoke fish without interruption, and this is the main condition. For perch, smoking with cold smoke for a day will be enough. As a result, you will be able to prepare your favorite dish deliciously and enjoy it with pleasure.

Storage tips

If you want to preserve smoked fish, follow these tips:

Freshwater and cold-smoked sea bass are better stored. At a temperature in the refrigerator chamber of +2+4 °C, you don’t have to worry about their quality for at least 3-4 weeks. If you want to store longer, freeze in the freezer.
Hot smoked fish under the same conditions will last much less - from 3 to 7 days.
For long-term storage, you need to properly salt the perch for hot smoking, because if there is a lack of salt, the products will spoil faster.
If you want to store fish, do not cut it. For long-term maintenance, it must remain intact after smoking.

Storing perch in a food container

Preparing fish for salting

For salting, it is best to choose carcasses of approximately the same size. The ideal weight of perch for salting is up to 500 grams. It is not at all necessary to clean a small fish of husks and entrails - just rinse it under running cold water and remove the gills.

If the fish weighs more than a kilogram, then it is advisable to clean and gut it:

place the fish on a kitchen board and remove the scales from it; Using a sharp knife, make a longitudinal incision through the entire belly, remove the intestines, liver, gall bladder, caviar and milt; remove the gills, as well as the first dorsal fin; Using a clean, dry cloth or multi-layer paper napkin, thoroughly blot the fish, paying special attention to the intra-abdominal cavity.

How to remove scales (video)

Cleaning scales from a perch is a labor-intensive and thankless process, but there are ways that can make it easier:

The video describes 3 ways to clean perch, quickly and efficiently:

It is not necessary to remove the scales for salting. But if there is a need to do this, there are three simple methods:

Scald with boiling water - the scales are removed much easier, the skin remains undamaged;
Remove the scales along with the skin - cut the fish along the ridge and remove the dorsal fin, grab the edge of the skin and carefully cut it off the fish with a knife;
For this method, the perch must first be frozen:

3.1. Using a knife, cut off the skin from the ridge and belly along with the fins;

3.2. Remove the tail fin;

3.3. Use a knife to pick up the skin from the side of the tail and remove it;

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Preparation

First you need to prepare the perch for smoking.

Fish is sold chilled or frozen. Frozen food is thawed before processing.

After this, the head of the sea bass is removed. For freshwater, you can leave it. But it is advisable to remove the gills. The dorsal fin of both individuals can be removed, since it is spiny and can injure during processing.

Perch cleaning

The scales are not cleaned before smoking. The entrails are removed through a hole in the abdomen.

You can salt perch before smoking by dry salting, rolling semi-finished products in medium-sized 1st grade salt (100 g of salt per 1 kg of product). Place the carcasses in a dish, on a base of salt, sprinkle each row with salt and pour it on top.

You can salt perch for hot smoking by adding ready-made fish spices. You can choose a range of spices to suit your taste: black pepper, white pepper, ginger, garlic powder.

Salting perch using the dry method

You can also salt or marinate the perch for smoking. The brine is prepared from water and salt in a ratio of 10:1. Carcasses must be completely immersed in liquid.

You can marinate sea bass for smoking by adding lemon juice, ginger, olive oil, hot red pepper and dried garlic. This mixture is applied to the carcass and wrapped in cling film.

You can salt perch for hot smoking 2-3 hours in advance, and for cold smoking - salt it for 48-72 hours.

After salting, the semi-finished products are washed, blotted with napkins, and dried. For the cold method, you can dry it by hanging it in the shade for 24 hours.

Calorie content, composition and beneficial properties

Sea bass meat contains polyunsaturated fatty acids omega-3, vitamins E, A, C and D, high protein and fat content. It also contains minerals such as iodine, phosphorus, copper and chromium, which are rarely found in other products. All this provides great benefits for the body, since sea bass:

is a source of easily digestible protein and a supplier of antioxidants that prevent the development of atypical cells;
stabilizes the level of bad cholesterol;
improves endocrine processes;
protects the nervous system;
prevents the occurrence of heart disease, atherosclerosis, and lack of nutrients in the brain;
restores skin and mucous membranes.

However, smoked sea bass can be hazardous to health if consumed in excess, because it contains some carcinogens, a lot of salt, and insufficient heat treatment does not destroy 100% of harmful microorganisms and parasites.

Calorie content and nutritional value of smoked sea bass
Parameter	Hot smoking	Cold smoking
Calories	207 kcal	199 kcal
Squirrels	17.4 g	26.4 g
Fats	15.3 g	10.4 g
Carbohydrates	0 g	0 g

What method do you use to smoke sea bass?

HotCold

Properties and composition of smoked fish

Sea bass has very fatty meat. It stays fresh for quite a long time. In addition to fat, the meat of this fish contains quite a lot of minerals, vitamins, and proteins. Due to the content of a sufficient amount of taurine, with regular consumption of perch it is possible to maintain the desired level of cholesterol in the blood. The substance has a positive effect on metabolism and takes part in the synthesis of other amino acids.

It is worth eating sea bass regularly if there are pathologies of the cardiovascular system, with high blood pressure and atherosclerosis. In addition, the rich composition of perch meat has a positive effect on the condition of nails and hair, which become healthier and more well-groomed. Experts recommend adding sea bass to your diet for pregnant women and older people. It is advisable to eat this healthy fish at least a couple of times a week to replenish the reserves of vitamins and minerals in the body.

Calorie content

Despite the fact that the meat is quite fatty, it is completely calorie-free.

100 grams of sea bass contain literally 100 kcal. Hot smoked products contain slightly more calories. You can eat this tasty delicacy even during a diet, but you should not overuse smoked meats, because this can negatively affect your health.

Preparing hot smoked perch:

Step 1: prepare the fish.

First of all, we need to thoroughly rinse the perches under running cool water and then gut them. To do this, place the fish on a cutting board and use a knife to make an incision along the belly from the rear lower fin to the head. After this, with clean hands we take out all the insides and again rinse the perch well on all sides under running water.

Note: It is not necessary to remove the head or gills. This is according to your wishes

But we leave the scales in any case. Now lay out the fish in layers, alternating it with salt. You need to add as much salt as possible

Important: you can even manually rub each perch with plenty of salt. After this, mix the fish well with clean, dry hands and leave for 1 hour.

Then, we rinse it again under running water and, using kitchen paper towels, wipe it dry to remove excess liquid. This is a very important process, since it determines how the perch will be prepared: either smoked or boiled. After this, transfer the perch back to a clean, dry bowl.

Step 2: prepare the smokehouse.

Since we will be smoking perch in the fresh air, first we will prepare the smokehouse itself. So, we lay out tree branches at the very bottom. After this, install the smokehouse grate. Now, using firewood and matches, light the fire and immediately put the smokehouse on the fire

Attention: the fire must be medium. Therefore, if the wood gets very hot, it is best to wait a little and only then put the smokehouse on the fire.

Step 3: prepare hot smoked perch.

As soon as the smokehouse is on fire, it is necessary to immediately place the perch on the grill before smoke begins to emerge from the twigs. So, we place the fish at a short distance from each other so that the dish can be smoked on all sides. Cover the smokehouse with a lid and immediately after the first smoke appears, set it aside for 15-25 minutes depending on the size of the fish. After the allotted time, using oven mitts, open the lid, then move the smokehouse to the side away from the fire and leave it in this state to cool a little for a while

Important: when opening the lid of the smokehouse you need to be extremely careful not to get burned. Therefore, when we open the lid, we try to stay away, and then we give the smoke accumulated in the container the opportunity to escape, and only after that we move the smokehouse to the side

Using a fork or kitchen tongs, transfer the perch from the grill to a special serving dish and we can serve it to the table.

Step 4: serve hot smoked perch.

Immediately after cooking, we treat our friends and family to delicious fish, along with alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. Bon appetit!

Tips for the recipe:

– Attention: if we smoke the fish on bird cherry, then the color of the perch will be more saturated golden, and if on an apple tree, then the color may be a little lighter. Therefore, do not worry, since the color in this case is not responsible for the readiness of the dish

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– In addition to branches of trees such as alder, apple and cherry, you can use branches of other trees, for example, oak, maple, poplar, as well as fruit trees other than pear.

– If you mix fish with salt with your hands, be extremely careful not to prick yourself. Therefore, after you have rubbed the fish with salt on all sides, transfer it to a large, thick food bag. And shake the bag in your hands so that the fish and salt are mixed again.

– Before cooking, fish can not only be salted, but also dried. To do this, after 15-20 minutes of salting, take the perch out of the bag or from the bowl, place it on a clean surface or hang it. We leave the perch in this state for 20-30 minutes, and only after that we wash off the salt from the fish and wipe it dry.

– Hot smoked fish is not intended to be stored at room temperature. Therefore, after preparing the perch, it is imperative that the dish be placed in cling foil and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5-7 days maximum.

– To prepare hot smoked perch, it is best to use small fish.

Selection and preparation of red snapper for smoking

A chilled or freshly frozen product is suitable for smoking. You can buy ready-made fillets. When buying a perch, you need to evaluate the carcass - it should be smooth, without damage or bruises. When pressed, the meat is elastic and does not disintegrate into fibers. The eyes are clear, shiny and protruding (sunken and cloudy - a sign of stale fish). If the perch is frozen, there can be a maximum of 10% ice. Once defrosted, it should have a slight fishy smell.

Red snapper is very easy to prepare for smoking, since it comes to stores in the form of already cut carcasses, often frozen. First of all, it needs to be defrosted naturally in the general chamber of the refrigerator. To do this, place the carcasses in one layer in a container and, to prevent the fish from chapping, cover it tightly with cling film.

If the perch is not cut, the procedure is as follows:

Make an incision in the abdomen (from the anus to the head), remove the entrails.
Rinse the carcass, remove the black film located on the inner surface of the abdomen.
Next, cut off the head and fins. Leave the tail. Do not remove the scales.
Wash the carcass again and wipe dry with paper towels.
Start the salting or marinating process.

Red snapper is most often smoked whole, so cutting is minimal

How to pickle sea bass for smoking

For dry salting, you only need fish and coarse salt.

Preparation procedure:

Rub the carcasses on all sides and place in a container, sprinkling with salt.
Place in the general compartment of the refrigerator for 10 hours.
At the end of the marinating process, the perch should be washed and dried for 3-5 hours.

How to marinate sea bass for smoking

To marinate sea fish, you need to prepare a brine from water, salt, sugar and various spices to taste. As seasonings you can use black and allspice, mustard seeds, cardamom, juniper berries, and cloves.

For marinating, it is recommended to use enamel dishes. The brine needs to be brought to a boil and boiled for 3-4 minutes. Then wait for it to cool and put the perch carcasses into it. Place to marinate in the refrigerator for 6-8 hours under pressure. A stone or a jar of water is usually used as a load. Next, rinse the fish and hang it out to dry for several hours.

Should I gut it?

Some fishermen recommend not gutting the perch before salting it. In most cases this concerns small fish. If the carcasses are large, then it is better to cut them. This will eliminate the risk of a bitter taste. Preparing for smoking looks like this:

An incision of 2-3 cm is made between the fins from the pharynx towards the anus.
The insides are pryed with a knife and pulled out. This will help remove them intact, including milk, caviar and bile.
Cut off the intestines at the anus.
Remove the gills along with the shoulder girdle.
Wash and wipe the carcass so that no traces of blood remain.

It is better to carry out gutting with gloves, since the fins are quite sharp and the scales are hard.

Is it possible to smoke perch?

The prey of fishermen is often river perch - a medium-sized (15-30 cm) greenish-yellow fish with black transverse stripes and spiny fins.

Compared to other types, it may seem a bit dry. In addition, it contains a lot of bones. However, the pleasant delicate taste allows you to smoke river perch with both hot and cold smoke. Smoked fish has an interesting taste, characteristic only of this species. By the way, you can smoke perch not only in a specially equipped smokehouse, but also in your own personal plot.

Attention! Considering the labor intensity and duration of processing with cold smoke, perch in most cases is hot smoked.

The average weight of fish is 200-300 g

Hot smoked perch

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The predatory redfin perch, despite its small size, is very tasty when smoked. And to make this aromatic dish on the go, you don’t need a lot of effort and ingredients.

Preparing perch for hot smoking

Smoking has been a necessary measure of fish processing since ancient times. This way, the fresh catch could be safely brought home, although over time, the taste of smoked fish became more important than the need to maintain its freshness. Hot smoked perch, for example, has a very short shelf life, but usually such tasty fish is swept off the plates almost immediately!

Smoking perch in a smokehouse begins with preparing the fish. This can be done immediately after catching in order to quickly send the perches to salting, and, accordingly, smoke them faster. And all you need for such preparation is nothing: a sharp knife, clean water, coarse salt and some kind of plastic container where we will put the fish.

The perches do not need to be cleaned, which is a plus in camping conditions. It is enough to gut them, cut out the gills and wash them properly. Then comes the next stage - salting.

Before salting perch for smoking, prepare convenient containers: a plastic box or an enamel bucket. For greater disinfection, you can line its bottom and walls with cling film. There are only two ways to salt perch for smoking - dry salting or in brine.

In field conditions, the first one is, of course, easier to implement. Place an even layer of salt on the film at the bottom of the container. We place the perches on it with their bellies down. Cover with a layer of salt, and if there is still fish left, place it on top, on the second level.

Sprinkle with salt again: you don’t have to spare it; it’s very difficult to over-salt the fish due to the characteristics of its skin, which absorbs a strictly defined amount of salt.

After two hours, fill the bucket with clean water and send the salted perches there. They need to be washed thoroughly and then laid out to dry - hot smoked perch will be tasty if it is well dried before being sent to the smokehouse.

How to quickly make a smokehouse for perch

Most often, fish are smoked in special metal smokehouse boxes equipped with a durable metal lid, grates for storing food and handles for moving from place to place. You can, of course, take such a unit with you if the dimensions of the car allow.

If you don’t have a smokehouse at hand, you can make do with improvised means: a baking sheet with a high bottom, cut into even finger-thick cherry rods, and a roll of durable foil.

To create a smokehouse, we use a baking sheet or tray - we will place wood chips, brushwood and rotten wood in it. We place cherry twigs crosswise on top of the baking sheet to form an impromptu lattice - the fish will be placed on it.

Then we form a dome over the entire foil structure, securely wrapping it to the edges of the pallet. Now such a smokehouse can be sent to the fire!

How to smoke perch: how long?

So, the smokehouse is ready, all that remains is to lay lumber, dead wood, branches, chips, and rotten wood on its bottom. The best ones are alder, beech, oak or ash. You can add one sprig of juniper for a fragrant haze or a bunch of freshly dried hay.

We install a grate or lay down branches, and place the perches on them, belly down. This way excess moisture will come out of them faster. We seal the smokehouse and send it to the fire. You can forget about it for 15-25 minutes. As soon as the first smoke streams out from under the lid or foil, we begin counting down the time.

We take out the cooled hot smoked perch, and we can already take the first sample! If you fall for other inhabitants of rivers and lakes, take a look at our collection of recipes - there are good articles about:

Hot smoked bream
poking asp
Hot smoking of burbot.

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How to quickly make a smokehouse for perch

If you don’t have a smokehouse at hand, you can make do with improvised means: a baking sheet with a high bottom, cut into even finger-thick cherry rods, and a roll of durable foil. To create a smokehouse, we use a baking sheet or tray - we will place wood chips, brushwood and rotten wood in it. We place cherry twigs crosswise on top of the baking sheet to form an impromptu lattice - the fish will be placed on it. Then we form a dome over the entire foil structure, securely wrapping it to the edges of the pallet. Now such a smokehouse can be sent to the fire!