If an uncut sterlet has fallen into your hands, consider yourself very lucky. All parts can be used for cooking, even the fins and tail. It has a wonderful taste and is a delicacy. Butchering a sterlet is not that difficult, but there are several key points to consider.
It is necessary
- -sterlet
- -large knife with a thick blade
- -wide cutting board
- -colander
- -boiling water
Instructions
Step 1
Rinse the fish, transfer to a large wooden board. Remove the head first. To do this, under the pectoral fins, make an incision obliquely towards the head and sever the cartilage. The pectoral fins are located almost next to the head.
Step 2
Remove the eyes from the head, cut out the gills. Rinse your hair well. You need to use it within an hour, or immediately put it in the freezer. The gills should be discarded.
Step 3
Remove large ossified scales from the side of the abdomen and from the sides of the carcass. You need to clean it from the tail to the head. Then, free the back of the sterlet from sharp "thorns", they are also called bugs. Direct the knife blade away from you and do not grab the bugs with your hands.
Step 4
Cut the belly from the tail to the head. Gut the fish, remove the entrails.
Step 5
Make a neat cut in the tail up to the spine, about an inch from the fin. You do not need to cut it completely. Slowly rotate the tail around its axis and twist the vizig, the string located near the spinal column. This is the most important part of butchering a sterlet. The entire vizig needs to be removed. If it breaks, make a cut above and remove the remainder with a thick needle. Set the cut off tail to the head.
Step 6
Peel the fish skin. To do this, take a knife as when peeling potatoes, grab the skin in the tail and pull it towards you. It can be removed simply like a cover. If you have difficulty removing the skin, scald the fish with boiling water.
Step 7
Place the fish in front of you with its back up and cut perpendicular to its length into 1, 5-2 cm thick links, starting from the head.
Step 8
Put the resulting pieces in a colander and pour over boiling water. This is necessary so that they retain their shape during further heat treatment. Scalding helps to avoid protein clumps on the fish links.
Step 9
From the cut pieces of sterlet, you can make wonderful fish soup, casseroles, fry, bake or smoke. The head, fins, and tail are best for making soups.
