Mackerel is a commercial species of fish from the group of perchiformes. Sea fish, and the question of where mackerel is found in Russia can be answered unequivocally - where there is a sea. But not every salt water body contains mackerel, it lives in certain climatic conditions. To catch her, you need to know some tricks.
Mackerel is a fairly large fish. The size of medium-sized individuals ranges from 62-66 cm in length. For a small company, you only need to catch a few pieces to prepare a delicious dish and feed everyone to their fill. Its meat is unusually tasty and nutritious, it contains a whole set of vitamins, fatty acids and minerals, but it is not easy to catch it. You also need to know where mackerel is found in Russia.
Description of mackerel
A medium-sized mackerel can weigh about 1 kg, the smallest specimens - from 300 to 350 g, and the largest - up to 2 kg. The body of this fish is similar in shape to a spindle, covered with small scales, silvery in color, with dark transverse stripes on the back and a greenish-blue ridge. The fin on the back of the mackerel is sharp, on the tail it is powerful, bifurcated, but the pectoral and lateral fins are poorly developed.
It is interesting that the quantitative content of substances useful for humans in mackerel fillets varies depending on climate and weather conditions. For example, the content of Omega-3 acids in the warm season can be 20-30% of the total mass, and in winter only 3%. The calorie index also changes accordingly. But the glycemic index (the rate of absorption by the body) is unchanged - 0. That is, there are absolutely no carbohydrates in mackerel, it can be eaten without fear by both diabetics and those who are losing weight.
Habitat and species of mackerel
Mackerel prefers oceans and seas with rather warm water, and it is almost impossible to find it in northern latitudes. This fish loves large areas, but often enters the seas, where even simple fishermen can catch it.
Like other species, mackerel is divided into several subspecies:
- African,
- Japanese (blue),
- atlantic,
- Australian.
This fish is schooling, and individuals of approximately the same size always flock into one "family". For its stable growth, development and spawning, the water temperature should fluctuate in the range from 10 to 20˚С. Shoals of mackerel are very fast, during the change of habitat, they can reach speeds of up to 80 km / h, and weak individuals simply cannot withstand such a pace.
In choosing a diet, mackerel is not picky. She is a predator, eats small crustaceans, a variety of plankton, sprats, squid. Both scientists and fishermen note that mackerel is unusually voracious, and where its shoal passes, there are practically no small fish left.
Where does mackerel live in Russia
Where is mackerel found in Russia? Its habitat, where commercial production is carried out - the Black, North and Barents seas, White, Marmara, Baltic seas. There is a lot of mackerel in the salt water bodies of the countries of the former USSR. Mackerel is supplied to Russian counters from the Far East and from the Murmansk region, from the CIS countries.
Fans of fishing go "to mackerel", as a rule, in the Kaliningrad region, on the shore of the Baltic Sea. But not all local bays can catch mackerel, as some of them - Kaliningrad, Curonian - are fresh, and this type of fish does not enter there. To make the "hunt" for mackerel successful, it is better to enlist the help or at least the advice of local fishermen. Only their many years of experience will make it possible to determine exactly when and into which bay a shoal of mackerel will enter, at what time of the year it is better to catch it, what and how.
How to catch mackerel
The time to successfully catch mackerel depends on the weather conditions and the characteristics of a particular climatic zone. For example, in the Baltic Sea it is caught from mid-May to late June, in Crimea - from May to early October, and in areas where it is colder (Murmansk, Kuril Islands) only in August-September.
Mackerel can be caught with nets, if allowed by the local Fishery Supervision, spinning and the so-called "tyrant". It is a construction of main and auxiliary lines, several hooks and a rod.
The bait for mackerel is selected taking into account the fact that this fish is predatory. The best options for bait for mackerel:
- spinner or wobbler,
- silicone imitators,
- fish fillet,
- shellfish,
- little crustacean bodies.
Experienced fishermen prepare homemade mackerel bait from the most unusual materials - they use bright colored textile threads, goat hair, flies from feathers of green ducks, turkeys with bright colors, guinea fowls. You can even make mackerel bait out of colorful beads or craft straws.
What can be made from mackerel
There are a lot of step-by-step and step-by-step videos of online recipes for preparing delicious and healthy mackerel dishes, and it is simply impossible to list them. Mackerel
- salted and smoked,
- boiled or fried,
- stew and cook over an open fire,
- make stroganin out of it,
- baked in foil and clay,
- stuffed, pickled.
It is very important to clean the mackerel properly before cooking. The carcass must be thoroughly washed, free of fins and entrails. Particular attention must be paid to removing the black film inside the carcass - micro particles of internal organs can remain on it, which spoils the taste of the fish, “kills” its characteristic aroma.
It is better to cook fresh mackerel - it retains its unique aroma, calorie content and energy value, characteristic taste and all useful substances only 20-30 days after catching. The best option is to catch the mackerel and cook it right away.
