Bream is one of the most coveted trophies for freshwater fishermen. This representative of the carp family has excellent taste, and in salted or dried form it is an integral attribute of every gathering over a glass of foaming beer.
In order to pickle bream at home, you don't have to be a culinary "guru" - you just need to have an idea of all the intricacies of the old recipe for pickling. By the way, this recipe is suitable for salting not only bream, but also any other freshwater fish.
Preliminary preparation
Anyone who has decided to master the technology of salting freshwater fish at home should know that only fresh raw materials can be dealt with. It is hardly worth buying fish in the supermarket to prepare this super popular dish, since it is almost impossible to know exactly how much time has passed since the moment when it was caught from the bottom of the reservoir and placed on the counter. Therefore, it is best to use fish caught with your own hands or purchased in the morning hour on the market for salting, even on a spontaneous one.
Before starting the actual process itself, you should decide in what form the fish will be salted: in gutted or whole. One can proceed from the popular opinion that it is necessary to gut the bream only if there is no caviar in it. However, this is a purely individual matter, you just need to know that gutted fish is always salted better, which negates the possibility of the development of all kinds of dangerous microorganisms in it. In addition, fish without entrails always lasts longer.
How to pickle and dry
Thoroughly gutted fish (it is important to also remove the gills during gutting) should be thoroughly rinsed under running cold water. After that, you need to find a suitable container for pickling among the kitchen utensils. It can be an enamel or aluminum basin, a bucket or other roomy dishes.
Before placing the fish, salt must be poured onto the bottom of the container. Breams can be laid with their bellies up or on their sides; each new layer of fish must be generously sprinkled with salt. After all the fish is laid, it must be covered with a lid or wooden board and put under pressure. As oppression, you can use a stone wrapped in a plastic bag or a five-liter jar filled with water.
The fish should be salted under pressure for five to ten days in a dark and cool place. The optimal place for high-quality brining is a cellar or a dark closet. The degree of readiness of the bream is quite easy to determine - if the back of the fish has acquired a characteristic stiffness, you can safely proceed to drying it.
Before stringing the fish for drying on thick fishing line or wire, it must be thoroughly rinsed in cold water and soaked from salt and accumulated mucus. To prevent flies and other insects from landing on the fish during the drying process, it can be placed in a hand-made wooden container covered with gauze. The first sample can be taken after five to seven days.
