How and how much to cook herring?

Boiled herring can be eaten as a standalone dish or used as an additional ingredient in combination with other foods. After boiling, the herring changes its taste and will differ from the traditional fried version.

The nuances of cooking herring:

• before cooking, the herring must be washed, gutted, cut off the head and fins;
• if the fish is frozen, then it is recommended to completely defrost it before cooking (this can be done with cold water or in a natural way);
• before cooking, you can remove the skin from the herring (for this, you must first make an incision along the back of the fish, which will make it easier to remove the skin);
• the skin may not be removed before cooking (this is an individual decision, the presence or absence of skin does not affect the taste and aroma of the herring);
• you can cook herring in a regular saucepan, double boiler, multicooker or pressure cooker;
• if the herring is boiled in water, and not steamed, then the liquid must be taken in such an amount that it completely covers the fish;
• you can cook the herring whole or cut into pieces (you need to gut the fish in any case);
• it is necessary to lay the herring in boiling and pre-salted water;
• if you add a small amount of vegetable oil and spices in the process of cooking herring at your discretion, then the fish will be more juicy and aromatic (thanks to the oil it will cook quickly and evenly without losing its shape);
• as an addition to boiled herring during its preparation, you can add pepper, bay leaf and onions (these ingredients will enhance the taste of the fish);
• it is necessary to cook the herring under a closed lid, periodically removing the formed foam with a slotted spoon or spoon (the presence of foam is not a deviation or a sign of poor fish quality);
• based on the herring and the broth obtained during its preparation, you can make a soup;
• if the herring is steamed, it is recommended to supplement it with fresh herbs or onions (water in a double boiler is poured into a special container, so the ingredients are immediately mixed with the fish);
• you can cook only fresh herring without the slightest defects and signs of spoilage (the skin of the fish should not be damaged, there should be no yellow spots or plaque on it, and its aroma cannot contain extraneous or suspicious odors);
• the readiness of the fish can be checked by the detachment of meat from the bones (in cooked herring, this process is very easy, if the bones are not separated from the meat poorly, then the herring is not cooked).

If soup is cooked from herring, then first you need to boil the fish, then remove it from the pan and cook other products in the broth. A few minutes before the soup is ready, the fish is returned to the bowl with the soup and cooked over low heat under a closed lid.

How much to cook herring

The average cooking time for herring is 10-15 minutes. If the fish is small and cut into pieces, then it is ready, maybe in 10 minutes. A large, whole herring takes a little longer to cook. In any case, 15 minutes is the maximum cooking time for this type of fish. If you digest the herring, then it will begin to lose its shape and pieces will begin to fall apart.

Boiled herring is used to prepare many types of dishes: appetizers, pates, casseroles, as well as other culinary experiments. If after cooking the herring is planned to be chopped, then it should be cooked a little longer. On average, this time will be 20-25 minutes.

When boiling herring in a double boiler and a pressure cooker, the cooking time will not differ. The fish is always cooked within 15 minutes. In a pressure cooker, herring can cook a little faster, especially if the fish has been cut into pieces beforehand.

In a slow cooker, herring is cooked the longest. In this case, the cooking process will take about 1 hour. After this method of cooking, the fish will not resemble a boiled, but a stew. In a slow cooker, the herring can be cooked separately or vegetables (carrots, tomatoes, peppers, onions and even potatoes) can be added immediately.

A useful recipe for making herring – we offer a video recipe: