Content
Tuna, cold smoked or cooked hot, is an exquisite and very delicate delicacy. The taste of the fish is close to that of steamed veal. Smoked tuna at home retains excellent juiciness, does not lose its original taste. Fillet is suitable as a cold snack, you can use it for making salads, sandwiches.
The benefits and calorie content of the product
Cold smoked tuna, the calorie content of which is only 140 kcal per 100 grams, is nutritious and dietary at the same time. But even this is not important, but a balanced chemical composition, rich in vitamins and minerals. Only 30 g of sea fish per day - and the risks of developing pathologies of blood vessels and heart will decrease significantly, testosterone content will be normalized. The valuable microelements that are part of the fish activate the work of the brain.
With proper processing, valuable meat does not lose its nutritional and taste properties, it is not susceptible to the effects of microbes, pathogens. The calorie content is low, so you can safely include a delicacy in the menu when dieting.
The rich composition provides a number of beneficial effects from eating fish:
- improved metabolism;
- strengthening the immune system;
- normalization of pressure;
- restoration of blood microcirculation;
- prevention of blood clots;
- stabilization of the heart rhythm;
- improved brain activity;
- strengthening of joints, bones;
- elimination of bad cholesterol;
- cleansing the liver, restoring the work of the pancreas;
- decrease in the severity of depressive syndrome.
Tuna is an effective remedy for rejuvenation. A diet based on this fish will prolong life, cleanse the body, and help achieve longevity. The Japanese consume tuna all the time, and the average life expectancy in the country is over 80 years.
Limitations and contraindications
Cold smoked tuna meat can accumulate mercury, therefore, in case of kidney failure or a tendency to allergies, it should not be consumed. Pregnant women, small children, too, do not need a delicacy. Other contraindications are gastrointestinal tract pathologies, gastritis.
Good, fresh tuna is very healthy, but safety precautions should not be forgotten
Selecting and preparing tuna for smoking
Hot smoked tuna at home is easy to cook, but troublesome. First, the carcass is cleaned, salted. The benefits and safety of the product depend on the correct execution of the manipulations.
Buy fresh, beautiful springy fish with brightly colored meat. You can take frozen tuna, in which case it is first allowed to thaw. For uniform cooking, choose individuals of equal size, cut them into neat pieces. The cutting sequence is mandatory:
- Remove the insides from the incision in the belly.
- Remove the head.
- Cut off tail, fins.
- Skinning.
If the smokehouse is small, the fish will be better milled. An incision is made on the back to separate the meat, the carcass is divided into 3 pieces. The fillet is smoked, an exquisite delicacy, it can be pickled, seasoned with special sauces.
Pickling and salting
To properly pickle hot smoked tuna, you need to use standard dry marinating. It will help maximize the natural flavor of the fish. Salting technology:
- Fillets, carcasses of fish are coated from different sides - they take a tablespoon of rock salt on the fish.
- The product is infused for half an hour at room temperature.
- After salting, the tuna is sprinkled with lemon juice, sent to the smokehouse.
The fish will have original taste and aroma properties if the pickling procedure is carried out correctly. For dressing, it is best to take a few glasses of water, one and a half soy sauce, a little honey, salt, garlic, ginger, a mixture of peppers. Any marinade recipe can be used - no restrictions.
The final color and taste depends on the preparation of the fish.
Hot smoked tuna recipes
Tuna can be cooked by hot smoking. You need to take fresh fish with a uniform color. The presence of stains indicates that the product is stale, cloudy eyes too.
In the smokehouse
In the smokehouse for cooking, take:
- 4 fillets or 2 medium-sized fish;
- a tablespoon of salt per fish;
- lemon;
- chips.
Rub the carcasses with salt, let them stand for half an hour. Then heat the coals, put wet sawdust in the smokehouse, put the device in the grill on the coals.
Before being sent to the smokehouse, the fish is sprinkled with lemon juice, placed on a grate, oiled with oil, the box is closed. After the appearance of smoke, you can measure the time, smoke the tuna in the smokehouse until cooked for about half an hour. Refrigerate and refrigerate.
Smokehouse tuna should be consumed within 3 days
On the grill
A popular way of hot smoking is on the grill. Ingredients:
- tuna steaks - up to 1 kg;
- marinade - 100 ml;
- honey - 1 tbsp. l .;
- pepper, cumin, fish seasoning.
Shake honey in soy sauce, add fish seasoning and the rest of the spices. The steaks are optionally replaced with fillets. The meat is poured with marinade, kept in the refrigerator for several hours, or overnight.
Then you can start smoking tuna on the grill. The average readiness time is half an hour, it is important not to overdo it.
It is easy to overexpose carcasses on the wire rack, this cannot be allowed
In smoking paper
Delicious fish comes out in smoked paper. Products:
- tuna - about 500 g;
- sauce - tastes;
- special paper - 4 sheets.
This amount is enough for 4 servings. The paper acts as wood chips and gives the finished dish a luxurious aroma.
The paper is soaked in water for 10 minutes, the fish is cut into pieces, laid out on paper along the strips, coated with sauce, oil. After that, it remains to tie the strings, put the rolls on the grill and smoke for 10 minutes on each side.
Tuna in paper comes out juicy, served with vegetables
Cold smoked tuna recipes
For cold smoking, they usually take a smoke generator - a productive device, convenient to use. The main thing is to set the temperature correctly. The cooking process takes about 5 hours at 30 degrees. The brazier is also used.
Cold smoked tuna fillet with honey
To cook juicy, tasty fish in honey, you need to take:
- crockery and cutlery;
- tuna;
- coals;
- honey;
- seasoning.
First, the meat is prepared - washed, dried, marinated. For the marinade, use oil, soy sauce, pepper and salt. Young onions are cut into thin rings.
Coals are kindled in the grill, making sure that the heat is uniform. Sprinkle the grate with oil, lay the pieces of tuna, peel side down, on it. The finished dish is served on a wire rack, pre-poured with honey.
A good fillet will make a delicious smoked meat
Cold smoked tuna belly recipe
The bellies, prepared using cold smoking technology, will be saturated with smoke and will be very fragrant. Products:
- tuna belly - 1.5 kg;
- alder sawdust;
- marinade sauce.
Honey, ginger, garlic, pepper, salt will add piquancy to the sauce. Fish is cleaned, cut, spices are chopped. Grind peppers and other spices with a spoon, add honey, grind again. Add water, soy sauce, mix, pour the meat, put it in the refrigerator for a day. After it is dried, put on the grill of the smokehouse and simmer for a couple of hours at 40 degrees. The dampers should be slightly open. Then the temperature is raised to 60 degrees and the abdomen is kept for another 6 hours.
Cold smoked tuna looks very appetizing
Storage rules
In industrial conditions, special equipment is used for storing smoked meats. For long-term savings, the following conditions are needed:
- high-quality ventilation;
- stable temperature regime;
- optimal indicators of air humidity.
Hot smoked fish at home should be stored for no more than three days at a temperature of -2 + 2 ° C. In production, this period can be much higher.
The optimum humidity in the room where smoked fish is stored should be 75-80%, and 90% is suitable for freezing. Cold smoked tuna lasts much longer, because it contains a lot of moisture, salt, and bactericidal components. At temperatures from -2 to -5 ° C, the meat will lie quietly for 2 months. You need to watch the fish so that it does not grow moldy.
Smoked tuna at home is usually kept in the refrigerator, previously wrapped in parchment or foil. If you do not do this, the strong smell will spread to other products and it is difficult to remove it from the refrigerator compartment. It is forbidden to store spoiled, insufficiently fresh dishes next to fish.
It is much safer to use a salt composition than paper. Water and salt are taken in a 2: 1 ratio. A piece of thin fabric is impregnated in the solution, the product is wrapped, thick paper is laid on top, the meat is sent to the lower section of the refrigerator. Parchment is used for freezing - it keeps the aroma well. In private homes, fish are usually placed in cloth bags and hung in the attic. You can put smoked tuna in small boxes, be sure to sprinkle with sawdust, chopping.
Average recommendations for storing homemade smoked tuna in the refrigerator:
- 3 days for hot method;
- 10 days for a cold one.
The air must be dry, otherwise the risks of mold formation will increase significantly. If the product is frozen, the shelf life will increase to 90 days.
Smoked fish, including tuna, does not lie for long
Conclusion
Cold smoked tuna takes longer to cook than hot cooked tuna. The fish is tasty, healthy, does not lose minerals and vitamins during processing. In the case of hot smoking, it is important not to overexpose the meat, otherwise it will be "enriched" with carcinogens and will be too dry. For a long time, ready-made tuna does not lie, it is very important to follow the rules for its storage.
