Mackerel in onion skins and tea leaves

Step-by-step preparation

Cooking time: 3 day

1. STEP 1

   

   How to pickle mackerel in onion peels and tea leaves? Prepare your food. If the mackerel is frozen, defrost it first. It is better to do this gradually, transferring it from the freezer to the refrigerator on the bottom shelf. I took the tea in bags, it’s more convenient, I don’t have to clean the fish from the tea leaves later. But you can take regular, loose ones. Tea should be unflavored, pure black. In addition to salt and sugar, you can add any spices.

2. STEP 2

   

   First prepare the brine. How to make brine? Take a pan of a suitable size and pour water into it. Add salt, sugar and seasonings if using. Add tea or tea bags, tearing off the paper tags. Add onion skins. Use a spoon to press it down so that it disappears under the water.

3. STEP 3

   

   Place the saucepan with the brine over medium heat and bring it to a boil. Boil the brine for one or two minutes, then turn off the heat. Leave the brine to cool to room temperature.

4. STEP 4

   

   Gut the defrosted fish. To do this, cut it along the belly from head to tail and remove the entrails. It is also better to remove the black film that covers the inside of the abdomen.

5. STEP 5

   

   Cut off the head, you can also remove the tail. Rinse the gutted fish well.

6. STEP 6

   

   Strain the cooled brine through a sieve.

7. STEP 7

   

   Place the prepared mackerel in a container suitable for salting. This can be a plastic or glass container, a jar or a plastic bottle with the neck cut off. Fill it with brine. Place the container with the fish in the refrigerator. Periodically remove and turn the mackerel so that it is evenly salted. You can eat fish after 3 days. Bon appetit!

Comments on the recipe

Alyona

12.08.2023

4.9

This is our favorite mackerel recipe! We have been preparing fish this way for many years. We started making it in a plastic bottle (cut off the narrow part). But there were inconveniences: the bottles were stored on the refrigerator door, the fish we sell is large, almost up to the top of a 2-liter bottle, and when the door was closed, the marinade splashed out. The decision was made to buy a plastic container. I’ll share the already verified proportions for a container measuring 28*18, height 11 cm. 2-4 fish can fit in it, depending on the size. For 2 medium-sized fish I need 2.5 liters of water. The quantity is measured simply: put the cut fish, ready for salting, in a container, fill it with water, pour this water into a measuring cup. To this amount of water I need 4 handfuls of onion peels, 7 tablespoons of salt, 4 tablespoons of sugar, 4 tablespoons of black tea. We buy the cheapest tea, sometimes granulated, or in bags, they are easier to throw away, but I cut off the paper labels. The author of the recipe, katushafin, says: “I took the tea in tea bags, it’s more convenient, and I don’t have to clean the fish afterwards.” Don’t be afraid, you don’t need to clean anything, because before pouring into the fish, we strain the brine through a sieve, see step 6. To sum it up, I’ll say: the fish turns out incomparable! Onion peels and tea give it a beautiful golden color, like smoked fish, and the taste is a real delicate delicacy!

Maria

12.08.2023

4.7

Katya, she pressed her finger in the wrong place. I wanted to click “like” on the contrary, but my hand trembled. (The fish is very beautiful and probably delicious! I will definitely do it.

Lyuba

12.08.2023

4.6

Is it possible to marinate fish in pieces at once?