Hot and cold smoked omul: recipes, photos, calories

Omul is a commercial Siberian fish of the Salmon family. Its meat is surprisingly tender, tasty and incredibly fatty. In terms of taste, omul is not inferior even to salmon. It can be baked, boiled, salted, smoked and fried. One of the dishes that not only the inhabitants of Siberia love is the smoked and hot smoked omul.

Hot and cold smoked omul is a real Baikal delicacy

Composition and calorie content of smoked omul

Omul meat contains a large amount of minerals, trace elements and vitamins. The fish feeds mainly on plankton and crustaceans, so its fillet contains an increased amount of various microelements.

Omul is a low-calorie fish, despite the fact that the meat contains a large amount of polyunsaturated fatty acids. 100 g of fresh fish fillet contains only 100 kcal, in the finished product their amount is somewhat higher.

The calorie content of cold smoked omul is 190 kcal, hot - an average of 223 kcal per 100 g.

Nutritional value of 100 g of omul meat:

Beneficial features

When eating cold smoked omul meat, the human body can receive both benefits and harm. It is recommended to use it for various diseases of the cardiovascular system. Even with the most severe obesity, omul can be completely harmlessly included in the diet. The meat of this Baikal fish is rich in essential and essential amino acids, which are "building blocks" for all cells of the human body.

Omul meat is rich in such useful substances:

• potassium, has a beneficial effect on the functioning of the heart and other internal organs;
• polyunsaturated Omega 3 acids improve metabolism, the functioning of the nervous and cardiovascular systems;
• phosphorus helps to strengthen the tooth enamel;
• vitamins A, PP, D affect redox processes, help fight sleep disorders;
• B vitamins are essential for the full functioning of the reproductive and central nervous system.

Omul fillets also contain trace elements such as chromium, chlorine, fluorine, nickel, zinc and molybdenum. They are active participants in all processes in the human body.

Contraindication to eating omul is only individual intolerance to seafood and food allergies.

Preparing omul for smoking

According to experts, cold and hot smoked omul can overshadow many fish delicacies with its taste. Freshly caught fish or frozen raw materials are used for smoking. The main thing is that the omul is not spoiled. The shelf life of frozen carcasses is 6 months.Omul is prepared for smoking in the same way as other fish. Preparation consists in cleaning carcasses, gutting, removing gills and scales (optional). The fish is then washed, salted or marinated, depending on the method chosen.

Salting or pickling

All smoking recipes involve dry pickling or pickling. Omul carcasses are salted for an average of 1-3 hours. The time depends on the size of the fish and personal taste preferences. Dry salting involves rubbing the carcasses with salt, inside and out. Then the fish is put under oppression and placed in a cool place.

Sometimes the recipe provides for salting without oppression. Choosing one or another method, you need to understand why this is being done. The oppression helps to remove moisture from the fibers of the fish. When mixed with salt, a strong brine is formed, called brine. Thus, when using oppression, liquid is removed and the meat is salted. But in order to get more juicy pulp, it is recommended to simply sprinkle the omul with salt and send it to the refrigerator for a day.

You can also use black pepper, mustard, a variety of herbs and lemon juice for dry pickling. These seasonings will not only give the fish an original taste, but will also help break down the fibers and mask the characteristic fishy smell.

Also omul can be pickled before smoking. Prepare a marinade based on water, with the addition of salt and bay leaf. In order for the seasonings to completely dissolve and give off their aroma, the brine must be heated and brought to a boil.

Marinating should take less time than salting, since salty brine penetrates the fish meat much faster. After removing from the marinade, it is necessary to remove excess salt from the carcasses. This can be done by soaking in clean water for several hours. Then the carcasses must be dried by hanging in a cool ventilated area.

To make the omul meat juicy, hang the fish upside down

Drying time will depend on the size of the fish. A few hours will be enough for small carcasses, while large omul sometimes has to be dried for about a day. Do not smoke undried fish, as the result will be an unusable product.

Cold smoking Baikal omul

Cold smoking is the most popular way to cook omul, as it allows you to maximize the taste of fish. The product prepared in this way will be stored for a long time, while retaining almost all the nutrients and vitamins.

Cold smoking omul (pictured) is a kind of "languishing" at a low temperature, about 25-30 ° C. It lasts for several days.

Using alder wood or fruit trees for smoking, you can give the finished product an original taste and aroma.

A classic recipe in a smokehouse

Traditionally, cold smoked omul is cooked in a smokehouse. Its design provides for the passage of smoke at a distance of 1.5-2 m. In modern smokehouses, cold smoke is created using a special smoke generator. The process cannot be interrupted, but even if it does have to be done, the breaks should be short.

When cold smoking omul, be sure to monitor the temperature in the smokehouse. The temperature should not rise above the permissible limits, otherwise the taste of the finished fish will not be smoked, but boiled. The process can be interrupted only after 6-8 hours from its beginning.It is not recommended to interrupt until this time, since during this period the fish is especially susceptible to bacterial attack. The degree of readiness of omul is determined by the characteristic golden color of the carcasses.

In a marching way

In field conditions, you can smoke omul using a metal bucket with a lid. Inside it, several shelves are built from a mesh woven from a wire with a diameter of about 3 mm. Such shelves will not fall through, the bucket has the shape of a cone.

In the middle of the camp smokehouse, they put sawdust or other material for smoking and hang it over the fire. The internal temperature is checked by evaporating droplets on the lid of the bucket. If the smoking process goes well, then the water should evaporate and not sizzle. Temperature control is carried out by placing wood in a fire or by raking coals.

At home without a smokehouse

You can smoke omul at home without a smokehouse using the Liquid Smoke fragrance.

Recipe:

1. Gut the fish carcasses and cut off their heads.
2. Dip them in salt and wrap them in white paper sheets.
3. Wrap the carcasses in newspapers in several layers.
4. Leave in a dark and cool place to brine for 4 days.
5. Make a solution for smoking at the rate of 50 ml of "liquid smoke" per 1 liter of water.
6. Leave the fish in the prepared mixture for 24 hours.
7. Carcasses are washed and dried.

Hot smoking of Baikal omul

Different peoples of the North have a wide variety of recipes for making hot smoked omul. There are those that have survived since ancient times. Baikal fishermen also have their own secrets of cooking.

Classic smoking in a smokehouse

Before smoking, fish must be rinsed from excess salt. Then it is placed in the smokehouse for about 40 minutes. Smoking temperature + 80 ° С. It is best to smoke omul on chips of garden trees, poplar or willow.

Step-by-step instructions for cooking hot smoked omul as in the photo:

1. Wet wood chips.
2. Spread the wood evenly over the bottom of the smoker.
3. Place a drip tray on top.
4. Place fish grids above the pallet.
5. To cover with a lid.
6. Place the smokehouse over an open fire.

To prevent the cooked omul from becoming bitter, it is recommended to release steam after 10 minutes from the start of smoking by opening the lid of the smokehouse.

At the stake

Omul can be smoked in nature, immediately after fishing. In this case, smoking can be carried out without any special devices - on a fire with the help of willow leaves. Branches are not suitable for this. The cooking time for hot smoked omul is about 20 minutes.

Step-by-step cooking process:

1. The fish carcasses are sprinkled with salt and left for 2 hours.
2. A fire is kindled in such a way that the wood burns out while salting is taking place.
3. Willow leaves are harvested.
4. Salted fish are washed and wiped off.
5. A layer of willow leaves 10 cm thick is spread over the coals.
6. Fish carcasses are placed on top of the leaves.
7. From above, the fish is also covered with foliage.
8. Make sure that no fire breaks out.

Fish prepared in this way cannot be stored for a long time; it must be eaten as soon as possible.

On the grill

You can cook hot smoked omul and grill. For this, the fish must be prepared in the traditional way - cleaned of scales, gut, rinse and dry inside with a napkin. Next, you should adhere to the recipe:

1. Sprinkle the inside and outside of the carcasses with salt and sugar.
2. Transfer the fish to a bowl, cover with cling film and refrigerate for 1-2 days.
3. Rinse carcasses and dry in a well-ventilated area for about 24 hours. It is not recommended to dry it longer, as the abdomen may dry out.
4. Kindle the coals in the grill and after they burn out, pour shavings of some aromatic wood, for example, cherries, on top.
5. Put the fish on the wire rack, after inserting spacers - toothpicks into the belly.

It is necessary to smoke the fish on average for about 40-50 minutes, periodically turning the carcasses for even smoking on all sides

Storage rules

Store cold and hot smoked omul properly. Failure to comply with the rules can not only worsen the taste of the product, but even lead to spoilage. Hot smoked omul is stored for no more than 3 days, while it should be kept in the refrigerator all this time. Cold cooked fish have a shelf life of about 4 months. Omul, smoked with liquid smoke, can be stored for about 30 days.

Smoked fish is best stored in vacuum packaging. Thus, sterile conditions will be created for the product, which, accordingly, will significantly extend its shelf life. But even when storing omul in a vacuum package, do not forget about the recommended times. After their expiration, it is strictly forbidden to eat fish.

Conclusion

Cold smoked omul, as well as hot, is a tasty and healthy dish. You can cook this Baikal fish in different ways, both traditional and quite original. There are a wide variety of recipes for preparing this smoked delicacy, using which everyone can enjoy a delicious fish dish.

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