Many sprats traditional for the Russian table are associated with only one dish - classic sandwiches. However, with this hearty and tasty fish, you can cook many interesting salads that will add variety to your usual menu.
Pick your recipe
The key to a delicious salad with sprats is the good quality of the fish itself. To do this, you must be able to choose the right canned food with sprats.
How to choose and prepare sprats for salads
- The color of the fish can vary from golden brown to light yellow. It all depends on the country of origin of the manufacturer of canned food and the method of smoking the product. However, if the sprats are black or with tarry smudges, it is better not to use them.
- Inside the jar, the fish should be intact, even, and fit snugly together. Even if you plan to cut them for a salad, the original integrity of the carcass is an indicator of quality.
- Pay attention to the composition of canned food. Ideally, sprats should contain only fish, vegetable oil and salt, and fish - at least 75%. It is easy to determine even visually: the fish should not "swim" in oil, but only be covered with an even layer of it.
Why can the taste of sprats vary significantly if the composition of the canned food is always the same? It's all about the sawdust on which the fish was smoked: they are responsible for the unique taste of the final product.
Salad with sprats "Tenderness"
This salad is suitable not only for the daily menu, but also will be an excellent decoration of the festive table. The salad is very juicy and tender, and it tastes good even several hours after preparation, when the ingredients are infused and well soaked.
You will need:
- Sprats - 2 cans (about 250 g);
- Onion - 1/2 head;
- Chicken egg - 4 pcs.;
- Large sour apple - 1 pc.
- Lemon - 1/4 pcs.
- Semi-hard cheese - 150 g;
- Mayonnaise - 150 g.
Step-by-step recipe for cooking.
- Hard boiled eggs.
- Drain half the oil from a can of fish. Mash the sprats with a fork with the remaining oil.
- Finely chop the onion and scald with boiling water (to remove excessive sharpness). Squeeze and cool, then mix with sprats.
- Peel the apple, grate, sprinkle with lemon juice.
- Separate the egg whites from the yolks and separately rub on the finest grater.
- Grate the cheese.
- Spread the ingredients on a flat dish in the following sequence: apples, grated protein, a layer of mayonnaise, sprats, cheese, a layer of mayonnaise, grated yolk. Garnish with fresh herbs before serving.
Salad with sprats and crackers
Why is bread considered an ideal “companion” for sprats? It's all about the fat content of the fish and the traditional oil dressing of canned food itself. That's why rye or white bread crackers fit perfectly into a salad with sprats.
You will need:
- Bread “Borodinsky” - 3-4 slices;
- Fresh tomatoes - 2 pcs. Medium size;
- Sprats - 1 can;
- Granular mustard - 2 tbsp.;
- Sour cream 10% - 2 tbsp.;
- Parsley, salt to taste.
Step-by-step recipe for cooking.
- Cut the bread into cubes and dry in the oven (10-15 minutes at 180 C) until golden brown. Rusks may remain slightly soft inside.
- Dice the tomatoes.
- Remove the sprats from the jar, cut into several pieces.
- Mix mustard with sour cream, salt.
- Mix the tomatoes and crackers in a bowl, add the dressing and mix gently so that the crackers are completely covered with it.
- Add sprats to the salad, mixing very carefully so that the pieces of fish are not crushed.
- Garnish with greens and serve immediately so that the crackers do not have time to swell.
Warm salad with sprats and pasta
This salad turns out to be extremely tasty due to an interesting combination of ingredients, and at the same time very satisfying. By the combination of macronutrients (proteins, fats and carbohydrates) and calorie content, such a simple salad may well replace a full meal.
You will need:
- Durum wheat pasta - 200 g (in dry form);
- Zucchini - 150 g;
- Bulgarian pepper - 100 g;
- Onion - 1 head;
- Sprats - 1 can;
- Egg - 2 pcs;
- Olive oil - 2 tbsp.;
- Lemon - 1/2.
- Italian herbs seasoning, or a mixture of dried oregano, basil, granulated garlic, dried tomatoes.
- Salt, dried herbs - to taste.
Step-by-step recipe for cooking.
- Boil pasta in salted water. To prevent them from sticking to each other, add a little olive oil (1 teaspoon) to the water. Throw in a colander and cool a little.
- Cut bell pepper, zucchini and onion into rings. If you have a grill, bake vegetables on it. If not, fry them in a pan until half cooked, pre-lubricating it with olive oil using a silicone brush. Vegetables should not be fried and softened, it is better that they remain a little crispy, but with a golden brown.
- In a separate bowl, mix olive oil, lemon juice and dried herbs. Let it brew for 10-15 minutes.
- Mix pasta, vegetables and sprats (you can put them whole, cut large carcasses in half).
- Cut the boiled eggs into quarters and lay on top.
- Pour salad dressing.
Nice salad with sprats
The main thing in this salad is the taste sensation of each ingredient separately, without mixing the components. This effect is achieved due to a sufficiently large cutting of components and a minimum amount of refueling.
You will need (in 3 servings):
- Sprats - 1 can;
- Green beans - 200 g;
- Quail eggs - 12 pcs.;
- Cherry Tomatoes - 12 pcs;
- Potato - 2 pcs.;
- Olives - 1 can;
- Olive oil - 2 tbsp.;
- Wine vinegar - 1 tbsp;
- Dried basil - 1 tsp;
- Lettuce leaves;
- Salt, pepper to taste
Step-by-step recipe for cooking.
- Boil green beans in salted water.
- Hard-boiled eggs and cut into halves.
- Cut cherry tomatoes in half.
- Boil potatoes, peel and dice
- Mix olive oil with dried basil and wine vinegar, mix thoroughly with a whisk or fork, let it brew for 10 minutes.
- Put lettuce leaves on the dish. Arrange the prepared ingredients on top, in random order, add whole olives. Sprinkle with oil, pepper and salt.
The salad can not be mixed until served.
Salad with sprats "Diving fish"
For this salad you need whole, dense carcasses, since it is from them that the presentation of the dish depends.
You will need:
- Onion - 1/2 head;
- Champignons - 300 g;
- Green peas - 1 can;
- Chicken egg - 4 pcs;
- Canned sea cabbage - 100 g;
- Refined sunflower oil - 1 tbsp;
- Mayonnaise - 150 g;
- Sprats - 1 can;
- Green onion - 1 bunch;
- Semi-hard cheese - 150 g.
Step-by-step recipe for cooking.
- Chop mushrooms and onions finely and fry in sunflower oil until they are rosy.
- Strain the green peas.
- Hard-boiled eggs and grate on a fine grater.
- Strain the seaweed and chop finely.
- Cheese natritene fine grater.
- Lay the ingredients in a medium-depth round plate in layers in the following sequence: mushrooms with onions, green pot, mayonnaise, seaweed, egg, mayonnaise, cheese.
- Place chopped green onions along the circumference of the plate (imitation of grass around the pond).
- Stick vertically into a salad of sprats and the tips of green onion feathers.
Put a salad plate in a bowl so that there are 1-2 fish in each serving. This dish looks very well in section, so it is recommended to cook it in a transparent plate.