It is clear that river fish with an eternal problem of small bones cannot be compared with the juicy fatty fillet of its marine relative. But having mastered some methods of preparing bony fish, even holiday dishes can be prepared from it.
Pick your recipe
In the light of the last rise in price of products, it's time to switch to cheap river fish, which is not inferior in taste to sea fish. Of course, the latter is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, iodine and bromine, which is not found in river fish. But both of them are a source of valuable animal protein that contains essential amino acids, which is absorbed much more easily than meat protein. However, the love of the taste of river fish is clouded by a large number of small bones that discourage all desire to eat it. But experienced chefs say that there are at least three ways to deal with the bony structure of small river fish.
How to fry bony fish
It seems to no one a secret that many housewives, after removing the scales and insides of bony fish, still make incisions on both sides along the forks to the spinal part. Although this method is familiar to many, not everyone trusts it. Like, anyway, after frying a lot of small bones. This result is obtained if in a hurry the pulp near the ridge is not cut deep enough. And the intervals between the cuts are too large.
To make the correct cuts, you need to have a sharpened knife with a thin blade. It is best to place the fish on a cutting board so that the knife moves from the belly to the ridge. That is, put the fish with its back to itself. The distance between the cuts should be 5-7 mm. Having adapted, it can be made even smaller, or cut the entire surface of the fish into squares. After this treatment, it must be grated with salt, dipped in flour and sent to hot oil.
However, there is another subtlety - there should be so much vegetable oil that it reaches the peak of the ridge. Otherwise, small bones will really be felt. To river fish turned out tasty and juicy, you need to fry at high temperatures. Then the crust will be fried, and the flesh inside will remain tender. It will take longer to fry over a small fire, and the fish may turn out to be rather dry.
Baking fish bones in the oven
Oily fish species are baked in the oven, but you can also cook carp, bream, and crucian carp there. The preliminary cutting of the fish carcass is the same as in the previous version. If you want to eat fish and enjoy its taste, then you do not need to be lazy to make frequent longitudinal incisions. It is best to bake in foil, at the bottom of which a "pillow" is made of vegetables and herbs, and then the fish is put.
It is believed that river fish is "friendly" with seasonings and sauces, so you can grate the fish with a mixture of sour cream or mayonnaise with garlic, coriander, ginger and any other favorite spices. The optimum temperature for baking is 180 degrees. The dish will be ready in about 40–45 minutes. But if you need to get a golden crust, then you can leave the fish in the oven for another 10 minutes, revealing the foil and adding the temperature to 200 degrees. If the river fish cooked in the oven is large, then it will be quite a festive dish.