Another sea predator belonging to the perciformes, mackerel, is very popular among residents of the Black Sea coast. Moreover, the representative of this particular region has long surpassed its oceanic “sister” in fertility and taste characteristics. In addition, it contains virtually no bones and boasts an impressive list of chemical elements. Thus, horse mackerel is considered a unique source of omega-3 acids, iodine, magnesium, sulfur, zinc and phosphorus, as well as vitamins PP, B9 and C. In addition, preparing horse mackerel does not require much time or any special skills. Experienced fishermen even roast it over fires, directly on the shore. However, we will try to prepare it differently.

A set of products for preparing cold smoked horse mackerel:

• horse mackerel fillet (800 g);
• white onion (2 root vegetables);
• mustard (30 ml);
• green onions (3 arrows);
• water (200 ml);
• black pepper;
• lemon (1 fruit);
• 3 bay leaves;
• salt to taste;
• tarragon.

Recipe for cold smoked horse mackerel

1. If there is no opportunity to purchase pure horse mackerel fillets, it is quite possible to prepare this dish from whole carcasses of this sea creature. To do this, we cut off the fish’s head, fins and tail, and also get rid of completely unnecessary entrails and bones. The resulting fillet, like the purchased fillet, is thoroughly washed and dried with a towel.
2. Next, place the horse mackerel in a suitable deep bowl and begin preparing the marinade. Namely: combine artesian water with fresh lemon juice and mustard, add salt, tarragon, bay leaves, thinly sliced ​​white onion and black pepper. Mix the resulting mixture well, but carefully and pour it directly onto the horse mackerel.
3. Then tightly close the dish with a lid (if necessary, you can use a regular flat plate) and put the fish fillet in the refrigerator for 3 days. After which our horse mackerel will become unusually tender and fragrant. And with the addition of green onions and a slice of rye bread, this dish is destined to become a favorite snack for everyone who is lucky enough to try it.

Properties of smoked horse mackerel

Horse mackerel fish is considered the most common type of fish that lives in the Black Sea. Smoked mackerel is the most popular among domestic consumers. Few people realize that mackerel is not just one specific species of commercial fish, but a whole family, which, according to scientific classification, belongs to the genus Stavrididae.

Fish such as horse mackerel are eaten all over the world. As a rule, canned fish is made from fish, as well as various snacks and appetizers. As mentioned earlier, smoked mackerel is in great demand, which is distinguished by its excellent taste. During the smoking process, horse mackerel is exposed to smoke, which acts as a natural preservative.

Smoked horse mackerel, like other types of fish, can retain its distinctive taste and consumer characteristics over a fairly long period of time. During the smoking process, the chemical composition of mackerel fish undergoes some changes, which involve a significant reduction in the amount of initially contained useful compounds and biologically active components.

Although it is worth noting that the chemical composition of smoked mackerel is enriched with a large amount of fluorine, and also contains molybdenum, zinc, sulfur and vitamin PP. It is worth noting that doctors and nutritionists strongly recommend reducing the consumption of smoked horse mackerel and other smoked meats in the daily diet. The thing is that regular consumption of smoked horse mackerel in large quantities causes irreparable damage to the human body.

Smoked mackerel contains harmful and even carcinogenic compounds. This state of affairs is associated with the method of production of smoked horse mackerel. When smoking fish in the modern food industry, so-called liquid smoke is used. This is a completely synthetically produced chemical compound, which in large quantities can act as a toxic poison on the human body.

When eating a large amount of smoked horse mackerel, digestive problems may occur, as well as allergic reactions and serious diseases of other organs of the human body. However, if consumed in moderation, smoked horse mackerel will not cause significant damage to a person’s health or well-being. Smoked horse mackerel can be found everywhere in grocery stores located in the Russian Federation.

As a rule, small specimens of horse mackerel are used to prepare smoked and dried snacks or everyone’s favorite beer snacks. Large fish are also smoked whole, after gutting them. Smoked mackerel is served as an independent snack or the product is used to prepare other culinary products. Smoked horse mackerel can be an ingredient in a fish salad or appetizer.

Calorie content of Smoked mackerel 88 kcal.

Energy value of the product Smoked horse mackerel (Ratio of proteins, fats, carbohydrates).

Smoking is a technology for heat treatment of fish (or other products) with smoke during moderate burning of wood using sawdust. This treatment gives the product a special taste and aroma, prevents the oxidation of fats, destroys various bacteria and prevents their reproduction for a certain time.
Simply put, smoking is the processing of fish using smoke.

Smoked fish can be prepared at home without any special effort. To do this, it is enough to have in stock the fish itself, salt, firewood, sawdust, a smoking apparatus and some free time.

Which fish is best to smoke?

There are no categorical recommendations in this matter - it all depends on individual preferences and tastes.
The main types of fish popular for smoking: roach, silver bream, flounder, beluga, rudd, pike perch, salmon, mullet, bream, tench, burbot, perch, halibut, stellate sturgeon, kaluga, sterlet, roach, carp, saury, pike, herring, mackerel, horse mackerel, sterlet, ram, silver carp, cod, eel, ruff, sabrefish, shemaya, ide and others.

How to prepare fish for smoking?

Gutting

After gutting, it is most convenient to cut large fish into two halves (lengthwise). Medium-sized fish are subject to ordinary gutting. Well, small fish don’t need to be gutted at all. There is no need to remove the scales.

Salting

At this stage, the fish must be thoroughly rubbed with salt. If the dorsal part of the fish is quite thick, then it is recommended to make longitudinal cuts on it and rub salt there too. The approximate amount of salt is from 3 to 6% of the weight of the fish (large ones require more than small ones).

There are also methods for keeping fish in a container with a saline solution under pressure.
In addition to salt, some recipes call for processing fish with all kinds of herbs and spices.
The duration of salting can be different (from 5 to 16 hours), but preferably at least three hours. If, after smoking is complete, traces of salt are visible under the fish scales, then the amount was excessive.

Drying

Salted fish should be dried - to do this, you can hang it for a couple of hours in a well-ventilated place. Remains of brine and salt must be removed (for example, you can wash the fish and then wipe it with a clean cloth, or simply dry it).

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What kind of firewood is needed for smoking fish?

Firewood, sawdust, or both are used to smoke fish. Firewood is needed to maintain temperature, sawdust is needed to produce good thick smoke.

Sawdust should be from wood species that do not contain resins (mainly coniferous and birch).
The best tree species for smoking: juniper (can even be combined with berries), grapevine, beech, alder, ash, oak, maple, fruit trees (apple, cherry, plum, etc.)

Sawdust should not be rotten, wet, covered with mold or mildew, or contain bark.
Depending on the design of the smoking apparatus, its chamber may be open or closed - the requirements for firewood will depend on this.

If the smoking chamber in which the fish is located is in direct contact with firewood, then the same requirements apply to them as to sawdust. In the case of a sealed chamber heated from the outside, any firewood can be used.

What is a smoking apparatus?

In general terms, a standard smokehouse consists of two parts: a container for burning wood and a container for impregnating fish with smoke, connected to each other. Industrial options may have a more complex design.
How to smoke fish in a smokehouse? There can be many options.

You can buy a smokehouse ready-made, or you can make it yourself. Here are some simple smoking chamber recipes:

• Russian stove.

The simplest option. The fish is suspended inside the pipe (chimney), and smoking occurs as the wood burns. The main difficulty is to choose the right height at which to hang the fish: it should not hang too low, otherwise it may burn or cook, and if you place it too high, the smoking process will be greatly delayed.

• Portable (camping) smokehouse.

A convenient option for smoking fish directly near the body of water from which it was caught. Materials needed: metal bucket with lid and grid, metal rods or wooden stakes.
Sawdust is poured into the bottom of the bucket. The fish is placed on the grill and placed in a bucket. The bucket is closed with a lid and suspended over the fire using stakes or rods.

The temperature is adjusted by adding firewood or raking coals, as well as by the distance from the fire to the bucket. To make it easier to determine the temperature, you can drop water on the lid of the bucket: if the water immediately starts to boil, then the temperature is too high, and if it evaporates without boiling and does not hiss, everything is fine.

At the end of the smoking process, you should wait until the bucket and fish have cooled down, and then dry the fish.
Do not forget that before smoking river fish, it must be salted for at least several hours.

• Earth smokehouse.

What you will need: a small plot of land (1-2 m²), a shovel, an undamaged metal barrel, rods or grates, an additional sheet of metal.
The bottom is removed from the barrel and converted into a lid. The fish is secured inside the barrel using a grate or rods, and the barrel is covered with a lid.

A hole is dug in the ground with a depth and a diameter of approximately 0.5 meters (the diameter of the barrel will be the guideline). A smaller hole (firebox) breaks out on the side of it, leading to the surface. A fire is lit in the firebox, and the exit from it is closed with a metal sheet (damper).

The temperature is regulated using the lid and damper.

• Smoking container.

A rectangular container is made from scrap metal (but you can also take a barrel, placing it in a horizontal position) and a chimney is made in it. Inside the container you need to place a grill with fish and it is advisable to add a tray for collecting fat.

Sawdust is poured into the bottom of the container and a fire is built underneath. The bottom of the container heats up, the sawdust begins to smolder and saturate the fish with smoke.

What are the smoking methods?

There are two main methods - hot smoking and cold smoking (although there is also the option of “artificial smoking”). Fish prepared in various ways differs not only in taste, but also in other characteristics.

Hot smoking

The main advantage of hot smoking fish is a very simple technology, the product is fattier and juicier. And the main disadvantage is the shelf life: after the smoking process is completed, the fish must be consumed within three days, otherwise it will begin to deteriorate.

For hot smoking, you can take not only fresh, but also frozen fish.
The process of hot smoking fish takes on average from half an hour to an hour (in some cases more than an hour), and consists of two stages:

Drying

In duration, this period takes 20-25% of the total smoking time. Excess moisture comes out of the fish. This is achieved thanks to thick smoke and not very high temperature.

Actually smoking

The fish becomes saturated with smoke and begins to acquire a specific smell. The smoking temperature should not exceed +100°C, otherwise the output may not be smoked, but boiled fish. The bulk of the moisture is retained inside the product, so it remains soft and juicy.
After finishing smoking, it is recommended to dry the fish for several hours so that it “ripens”.

Cold smoking

This is a more complex and painstaking technology and requires much more time. The fish loses a lot of moisture, as a result of which it becomes a little dry in taste, but it gains the ability to be stored in the refrigerator for three months or longer.

The difference with the hot smoking method is longer salting and a longer smoking period.
Salting of fish is carried out for 1-2 days, after which the fish must be thoroughly dried.

Then smoking is carried out at a temperature not exceeding +40-50°C for five days, with three-hour breaks to cool the fish. To reduce the temperature of the fire, the firewood is covered with a thick layer of sawdust, and the flame is maintained at a minimum level (there should be low smoldering). A good result can be obtained by cold smoking in the chimney of a Russian stove.

“Smoking” with liquid smoke

In recent years, the technology of using liquid smoke has been gaining momentum, which is not actually smoking, but allows not-so-honest entrepreneurs to produce a product that is only similar in appearance and smell to smoked one.

The technology of such pseudo-smoking is very simple. The fish goes through a gutting process, then it is salted using a large amount of salt (about 20% of the weight of the fish) for 2-7 days, then dried for 2-3 hours.
After this, the fish is immersed in a container filled with a solution of liquid smoke for 2-6 minutes (depending on the weight), and dried for about a day at a temperature of +25-27°C.

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Hot smoked horse mackerel rich in vitamins and minerals such as: vitamin B1 - 11.3%, vitamin PP - 53.5%, potassium - 14%, phosphorus - 32.5%, iodine - 20%, cobalt - 200%, copper - 11% , chromium - 110%

What are the benefits of hot smoked horse mackerel?

• Vitamin B1 is part of the most important enzymes of carbohydrate and energy metabolism, providing the body with energy and plastic substances, as well as the metabolism of branched amino acids. A lack of this vitamin leads to serious disorders of the nervous, digestive and cardiovascular systems.
• Vitamin PP participates in redox reactions of energy metabolism. Insufficient vitamin intake is accompanied by disruption of the normal condition of the skin, gastrointestinal tract and nervous system.
• Potassium is the main intracellular ion that takes part in the regulation of water, acid and electrolyte balance, participates in the processes of conducting nerve impulses and regulating pressure.
• Phosphorus takes part in many physiological processes, including energy metabolism, regulates acid-base balance, is part of phospholipids, nucleotides and nucleic acids, and is necessary for the mineralization of bones and teeth. Deficiency leads to anorexia, anemia, and rickets.
• Iodine participates in the functioning of the thyroid gland, ensuring the formation of hormones (thyroxine and triiodothyronine). Necessary for the growth and differentiation of cells of all tissues of the human body, mitochondrial respiration, regulation of transmembrane transport of sodium and hormones. Insufficient intake leads to endemic goiter with hypothyroidism and slowing of metabolism, arterial hypotension, stunted growth and mental development in children.
• Cobalt is part of vitamin B12. Activates enzymes of fatty acid metabolism and folic acid metabolism.
• Copper is part of enzymes that have redox activity and are involved in iron metabolism, stimulates the absorption of proteins and carbohydrates. Participates in the processes of providing oxygen to the tissues of the human body. Deficiency is manifested by disturbances in the formation of the cardiovascular system and skeleton, and the development of connective tissue dysplasia.
• Chromium participates in the regulation of blood glucose levels, enhancing the effect of insulin. Deficiency leads to decreased glucose tolerance.

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Horse mackerel is a unique inhabitant of the underwater world, which residents of the Black Sea coast were the first to meet. Previously, fishing simply fried it over a fire, but today in the world of modern technology, there are many ways to cook it completely differently. Thus, in the search for new flavor solutions, cold smoked horse mackerel appeared.

The usefulness of a product is easy to determine; just familiarize yourself with the set of vitamins and macroelements contained in it. Cold smoked mackerel boasts the highest percentage of niacin - vitamin PP. It is also worth highlighting a sufficient amount of sulfur, chlorine and fluorine, which a person needs every day. Horse mackerel is also rich in elements such as chromium, fluorine, and zinc.

In order to compile a complete list of substances that cold smoked horse mackerel possesses, you will need several blank sheets. Every gram of this fish charges us with energy for the whole day and replenishes the reserves of useful micro- and macroelements in our body.

Beneficial features

The amount of beneficial compounds in smoked horse mackerel is significantly inferior to fresh, but it has its own charm, and it should certainly be present in the diet. However, moderation is necessary in everything. In excessive quantities, smoked horse mackerel can cause irreparable damage to your body. With moderate consumption, horse mackerel takes part in all life-supporting processes.

Healthy fatty acids are an excellent preventative against many diseases and also have a rejuvenating effect. Among other things, fish contains fish oil, the beneficial properties of which need not be commented on at all. In some cases, smoked mackerel is also used in dietary nutrition; the main thing is to choose a type of fish with a minimum fat content.

Application

Horse mackerel is a fish known all over the world and widely used in cooking. Most often, cold-smoked horse mackerel is used to make snacks and appetizers. This method of use has gained popularity due to the unusual taste of smoked horse mackerel. The desired effect is achieved through exposure to smoke, which replaces artificial preservatives. In this form, fish can be stored for a long time without losing its taste. Don’t be afraid to experiment, and cold smoked horse mackerel will become your favorite food product.

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