Pickled Pike

[mandersl]

This year I'm going to try to pickle some of the pike I catch, I have a recipe and it doesn't look to difficult. I've eaten it only a few times but I love the stuff. I've heard that the pickling will dissolve the y-bones from the pike... My question is do you still have to remove the y-bones or can you just fillet it like a normal fish and let the acid due its work? Right now I'm leaning toward the y-bone removal but if anyone has tried different I think it would be a little easier to prepare.

Anyone have any experience?

[ajb05854]

The bones will dissolve. Just make sure you freeze the fish first. Pike can contain a tapeworm that humans can contract. I've seen a much better publication about it, but this has the basic details.

http://www.extension.umn.edu/distrib...ion/00009.html

[DarryH]

Sorry...the only thing I like pickled is myself........
of course, not when driving, hunting, or even fishing !!!!

[MissHailey]

This year I'm going to try to pickle some of the pike I catch, I have a recipe and it doesn't look to difficult. I've eaten it only a few times but I love the stuff. I've heard that the pickling will dissolve the y-bones from the pike... My question is do you still have to remove the y-bones or can you just fillet it like a normal fish and let the acid due its work? Right now I'm leaning toward the y-bone removal but if anyone has tried different I think it would be a little easier to prepare.

Anyone have any experience?

My buddy contracted the tape work that the comment below is talking about! Be Careful!

[Huskeryakker]

My wife picked my pike but it was after it was frozen a few weeks. Never new about any worm so glad we did it the way we did. I don't think a worm would live in the vinegar but I don't want to try it anyway. It is a great way to eat some of the pike. Good luck.

[clarkzilla]

I'm in the process of pickling some pike for the first time, I'll try and post a report on how it went

[pumpnlead]

Great advice on this thread! Let us know how you like it.

[clarkzilla]

I have never had pickled pike before I did mine so I couldn't base it off of anything. But mine was good with a lot of flavor, took it to work and everyone liked mine better than the other guys "amazing recipe". Now that I think about it, I don't even remember what recipe I used

[clarkzilla]

Cut pike into bite size. no need to de-bone, unless it's a monster. Put fish in plastic pail or tupperware, use 5/8c salt per qt of fish. Cover with white vinegar and refrigerate for 5-6 days, stirring daily. Remove fish from brine, rinse for 1/2 hour under cold water. This is important to remove salt. When cleaned, put into qt widemouth mason jars, alternate fish with some thin lemon slices and thinly sliced white onions. Throw a garlic clove in if your feeling brave!


The magic sauce as follows: makes 2qt jars worth. 2c sugar, 2c vinegar, 4 bay leaves, 1tsp whole pepper corn, 1tsp whole allspice, 2tsp whole mustard seed, 1tsp whole cloves. Boil for 5 minutes to reduce sugar, COOL sauce (IMPORTANT not to cook the pike) and pour over the fish/onion/lemon. Ready the next day. gets better with age.


1 2-footer makes about 2qt's or so. Best served with sharp chedder, good crackers and a cool lienies.

this is not mine! I found it online and used it (first one on google) best I've ever had!

[snowgoose100]

This months In Fisherman has an article on pickled pike.

[RedRiverDeuce]

I picked up this recipe(s) from my best friend, who's Dad is one of the camera men for in-fisherman. They all use this one over there. I have only tried the normal one which is great, never tried the creamy pickled fish, although i heard it's amazing, but doesn't last as long in the fridge.



I use a 2 Qt jar, it works great for the avg size pike. Fillet and take the the rib bones out, don't worry about the Y bones, if the fillets are real thick I'll fillet them in 1/2, slice them about the size of a cracker. They say to freeze the fish for a couple days to kill parasites.

Brine:
1 Qt white vinegar
1 C canning salt

Dissolve salt and vinegar, pour over fish ( I usually fill a 2 Qt jar a little over 1/2 way with fish). Seal, cover and refrigerate for a week, turn the jar over a few times. After a week drain and rinse fish.

Syrup:
1 Qt white vinegar
2 C sugar
2 Tbs pickling spice
1 white onion sliced thin

Heat vinegar to boiling, dissolve sugar, COOL COMPLETELY! Put fish, onion and pickling spice into your 2 qt jar, pour cooled syrup to the top, refrigerate for another week, turn the jar over a few times to keep things mixed up. (If you don't like the spice floating around and sticking to your fish when you eat it you can take a some cheese cloth, put your spice on it, tie up the corners and make a loose 'tea bag'. It works great and the flavor is the same). Fish is ready to eat after a week.

This is a great recipe for plain pickled fish. For a way different taste try this:

1 C sour cream
1 Tbs sugar (optional)
Dill weed (I don't measure, add to taste)
Any spice will work, cracked pepper, horseradish, mustard even lingonberries, whatever you like.

After a week in the refrigerator, take 1/2 your fish and onions out of the syrup, in a glass bowl combine with the sour cream and spice of your choice mixture, cover and refrigerate, after a day it is ready to eat. (Now you have 2 different flavors of fish out of the same batch).