Many people are fond of fishing, while each pursues its own goal: hobbies, leisure activities, sports, food extraction. Regardless of whether amateur or sports interest is driven by fishermen, everyone wants to get more trophies, but bigger. To achieve the best results in fishing, people have learned to apply many additional methods. From state-of-the-art gear to special complementary foods. And the most advanced fishermen use the latest substances containing pheromones for fish.

Complementary feeding in the place of fishing is a very successful and long-known method, carried out both before and during the catch. Now, when there are more people who want to get a good catch than the fish itself, it is not always effective to feed them with the usual food products (porridge, bread). At a minimum, it is necessary to add flavoring or aromatic components to them, to which cold-blooded inhabitants react.

The joint long-term work of chemists, biologists, ichthyologists and other scientists has led to the production of special substances that attract fish, which are successfully used in all types of fishing.

Reference! Attractants for fishing are means consisting of a mixture of various components that lure fish to the place of fishing, acting on its taste and smell organs.

The chemical composition of attractants is very diverse; they include inorganic, organic elements and their compounds. These funds are completely or partially soluble in water and it is in it that they exert their effect. Conventionally, attractants can be divided into traditional and synthetic (based on pheromones).

Traditional attractants

Various food products have always been used in fishing, they do not need to be specially purchased, most often most are present in any kitchen. It is worth using products that have a specific taste and smell:

1. Food products such as:

• vanillin and similar confectionery spices;

Photo 1. Cinnamon and vanilla are the most common bait flavorings.

1. Some medications have an effect similar to the above products - corvalol, turpentine, camphor, “Zvezdochka” balm.
2. Extracts from dung worms.
3. Mixtures based on animal blood.
4. Fishermen confirm the effect of kerosene in the same direction.

Photo 3. Corvalol has also been used in fishing for a long time.

These products have a different purpose than luring fish. Their effect has not been proven by scientists or studies, but at the same time they have been used effectively in fishing for a long time. Traditional attractants are determined by the experience of our ancestors.

Pheromone baits

Modern scientific research in the field of fisheries began to use pheromones as bait almost two decades ago. The effectiveness of these funds has been proven and patented back in 2001. Their action is directed to the natural receptors of fish.

It has long been known that these silent creatures communicate with each other by exchanging specific signals that are sent using pheromones. As in humans, hormones are synthesized, so in fish certain pheromones are produced in different situations. Thanks to them, fish individuals flock, reproduce, feed - exist. It should be noted that the olfactory abilities of these aquatic inhabitants are more developed than that of dogs.

Reference! Pheromones used for fishing are biologically active substances of synthetic origin, identical to natural pheromones, which are secreted by fish.

Long-term study of the vital activity of fish allowed scientists to artificially synthesize substances that attract their attention. But it happens that the interest of aquatic inhabitants alone is not enough. We all had cases when the fish walk around, but do not bite. Thus, modern bait with pheromones is aimed at:

• to attract attention;
• stimulation of hunger;
• flock reflex.

Pheromones that stimulate hunger represent the most modern group. These artificially synthesized substances are identical to natural ones, which are produced in the body of hungry individuals. They help to enhance the natural feeling of hunger in fish, prompting an immediate search for any food. Thus, it is not easy for the fish to swallow the bait; it is actively looking for any kind of food.

Attention! Due to the use of pheromones for fish, they achieve its attraction, contribute to a good bite due to hunger, as well as accumulation a large number individuals in the place of fishing, thanks to their gathering in flocks.

Attractants with pheromones for different types of fish

Different fish populations prefer certain foods and react more actively to odors that are specific to them. This is due to the nature of the fish habitat, climatic conditions, water body, natural food. The less related the fish species, the more different their tastes. Based on this, producers create baits aimed at attracting specific populations.

These baits consist of components with a specific taste and smell, which are of interest to a specific type of fish. Most often these are elements of the feed with which she is already familiar. But with the inclusion chemical substances that have an effect on fish, such as acids:

• glycine;
• dairy;
• glutamic and the like.

Propylene glycol substances also attract the attention of fish. The effect of attractants is directed not only to the taste preferences of fish, but also to instincts. Therefore, the effectiveness of baits using pheromones that attract the attention of a particular fish is much higher. Thus, attractants have been developed for catching crucian carp, pike, catfish, pike perch, carp, bream and others. There are universal attractants for predatory or peaceful fish.

Predatory fish are more likely to forage for food, relying mainly on vision. Therefore, he is interested in bait and swallows soft baits (polymer, silicone) well, but because of inedibility, he often spits them out. This is where the possibility of impregnating a soft bait with an attractant containing pheromones and other attractive components comes to the rescue.

Form of release of pheromone baits

Pheromone-based baits are widely produced by well-known manufacturers who are developing and working closely with chemists, biologists, ichthyologists. Small firms also produce baits, but their technologies are largely based on traditional food additives or animal blood extracts.

Such pheromones for fishing can be made by hand. The most interesting components for fish, which are often at hand, are discussed above. It remains only to study the information about the preferences of certain species for which the potential catch is designed. And then you just need to prepare the desired mixture.

Bait with pheromones is implemented in various forms:

• gels;
• dry mixes;
• solutions;
• sprays.

It is worth stopping your choice on the form most convenient for a particular fishing.

Rules for using bait with pheromones

Depending on the form of release and the concentration of the active substance, groundbaits are used in pure form (spray, gel) or diluted in the amount of water or feed prescribed according to the instructions. For example, the well-known attractant Ultrabyte is available in 5 ml ampoules. According to the instructions, this concentrate is supposed to be diluted in 0.5 liters. water. To avoid cost overruns, you can dial required amount using a medical syringe, and then dissolve in an appropriate volume of liquid. But at the same time it is recommended to solder the ampoule or close it up with fishing plasticine to preserve the properties of the active elements.

With pheromone concentrate you can:

• handle bait, tackle;
• add to feed;
• to be thrown into water (some attractants are produced in special water-soluble polyethylene packages, ready to be immersed in water as a whole).

Manufacturers claim that pheromone baits are not always effective with other flavored products. Such a complex of substances can attract fish, but with the same success and scare away.

Pheromone attractants are effective at any time of the year, regardless of whether the outside temperature is below zero or above zero. It is worth considering that the components quickly lose their activity in the open air, in less than half an hour. While in the aquatic environment, they affect the receptors of fish for 7 - 9 hours. Attractants completely decompose in the aquatic environment in half a day, without rendering negative impact on the reservoir, as well as the vital activity of fish.

To prepare the bait, you will need:
1. A large pan in a duet with a colander.
2. Large plastic bowls.
3. A set of wooden spoons and shovels.
4. Measuring cups and spoons for adding liquid ingredients.
5. Rags. Packages.

For a pound of bait, you need heels of chicken eggs. Break them into a bowl, stir until smooth. Stir in sweetener, flavor, and other luring, attractive ingredients. Oddly enough, fruity scents are very suitable for this. Add the dry part of the bait (flour and salt) to a mixture of eggs and various additives. Pour in slowly, stir with a spoon. In the end we knead this mix with our hands. The mass should be homogeneous. So that the mixture does not stick to your hands, treat them with vegetable oil.

The first variant of fish bait (for the lake) From the resulting mass, roll out the sausages up to 3 cm thick. Divide them into pieces and roll them into balls. They are now ready to cook. Boil the water, put the balls in the prepared colander, lower it slowly into the pan so as not to spill the boiling water. The round shape is important for stagnant water: a lake or pond. A long boil will help protect the bait from bream - the bait becomes tough. After boiling, place a colander in a sink to drain off excess water. Then transfer to a rag and let cool completely, about 2 hours. Everyone, they are ready. Divide into bags, be sure to date and label the scent, and store in the fridge freezer.

The second option for bait (for running water) If your fishing will take place on a river, then there is no need to make a ball-shaped bait. For faster cooking, you can simply cut the sausages, or you can roll them out to 1 cm and cook them whole. About 1 minute. When it cools down, simply chop the sausage into small pieces. From half a kilogram of dough, about a thousand portions of baits are formed.

The third option (for the coastline of the reservoir) The yield will be hundreds of cubes of different sizes and densities, ideal for feeding licorice along the river bank. So, after kneading the dough, you mold it into a brick. Wrap the film as tightly as possible, you need to achieve the release of all or almost all of the air. Then let it sit in a pot of boiling water for one hour. The "brick" may not submerge completely, so the load from above will not interfere. After boiling over low heat, take it out and clean the mixture from the film. Let it cool down. After cooling, cut it into cubes, but do not forget that the upper layers will be floating. Separate them and store them in a separate bag.

Of course, you can use the bait fresh, that is, do not heat it. So it is easier for her to reveal all her taste properties of the mixture, the signal for the fish will be stronger. A significant disadvantage is that such a bait attracts weedy fish, they gnaw at it faster than a noble carp will notice it. But the raw mix cannot be cast over long distances. And therefore it must be deep-fried.

Simple tips at the end of the article:
- Do not use sharp baits;
- If you are fond of tobacco, wash until the smell disappears completely.
- Do not forget about other strong odors (soap, diesel fuel (gasoline), shaving cream, etc.);
- Carefully approach the cleanliness of the used dishes, as they form a noble environment for the growth of bacteria.
- Make sure that the heat treated bait has cooled completely, otherwise it will deteriorate under the influence of ice.
- Remember, the main enemy of the prepared groundbait is moisture during storage. By adding rice to the bag, you significantly reduce the water content.
- For long-term storage, use a preservative.

So, we have considered the question of how to prepare fish bait at home. Use only such complementary foods, which, according to the article, are most suitable for different bodies of water. Then you will ensure yourself a good bite and a wonderful catch.

The fish bite is quite changeable and often depends on various factors, among which it is especially worth noting the smell of the bait and bait, because very often even a small change in it can both improve the bite and kill it. As you already understood, we will talk about what flavorings for fishing exist and how to correctly use them.

It is impossible to 100% guarantee that using this or that flavoring agent you will surely fill your cage with trophies, so you should always take as many different flavorings with you and start experimenting. After all, it often happens that in one pond the roach will peck, smelling the smell of vanillin, and in another, serve coriander, and in the third caramel, here you have to try. It happens even in the conditions of one reservoir, today the fish is caught with one flavoring agent, but in the evening it does not work and it is necessary to select another.

It is necessary to use flavors in cold water (the concept of cold water is quite extensible and for some reservoirs it is up to + 10˚С, for others up to +15 ˚С) you need to be very careful, since their presence in the bait can completely kill the bite, so it is worth adding at a minimum , proceeding from the concept "it is better to underfill than to pour", and the flavorings themselves should have a mild, spicy smell, as well as flavorings with an animal smell. At the same time, warm water is a period of experimentation, sometimes fish can bite even the most daring and unusual smells, for example, such as kerosene, although still one of the most versatile, working in most conditions, will be “fruit” and “sweet” aromas.

Types of flavors

Flavors, depending on their condition, can be divided into three types:

Dry flavors... Among them, the most popular and versatile are garlic and anise flavors.

Dry-flavoring

As for application, dry flavors are added to the already moisturized groundbait. The advantage of dry flavors is that they allow you to quickly attract fish from all over the area and at the same time not scare them off with a persistent smell, but unfortunately this effect will not last long.

Liquid flavors are added to the water that you will use at, they have a more persistent smell and last longer than dry flavors, although their range of action is much shorter. Many liquid flavors for fishing are based on corn syrup, and as a result, this flavor acts on bait not only as attractant (attractant - a synthetic or natural component that causes the creatures around him to desire to move towards the smell), but also gives the bait a pleasant taste. When adding this flavor, it is important to remember that it also glues the bait a little. When you add alcohol-based flavors to the bait, only the smell of the bait changes, many anglers recommend using these flavors when fishing in cold water, but in hot weather they evaporate rather quickly and their effectiveness decreases. But oil-based flavors do not make sense to use in cold water, as they become viscous in it.

liquid flavor

Dry, as well as liquid branded flavors, it is recommended to use at the rate of 250 g (ml) for 6-8 kg of bait, depending on the competition of fishermen near you. It is important to remember that in cold water, their content in the bait should be minimal and they should only be used if the bait in its pure form did not work.

Aerosol flavors- serve both for flavoring ready-made bait balls, and for flavoring large baits (boilies) for carp. Also, with the help of aerosols, the nozzles for the predator are flavored.

Mainly aerosols are represented by the following aromas:

• Spices and herbs;
• Fruit;
• Dairy, caramel with cream;
• Meat and fish;

In cold water, it is spring and autumn, it is better to use fragrances for catching aquatic inhabitants

with meat and fish smells, if they do not work, then you need to try spices and caramel, but when they are no use, then fruit smells. In summer, on the contrary, it is better to start with fruity aromas, then try caramel and spices, and finally fish and meat.

However, I would like to note that aerosols should be used when your bite is weak and you want to strengthen it. If the fish does not bite at all, then it is better to try changing the nozzle or conjuring with bait, add some interesting ingredient, since otherwise the pshikalka is unlikely to save.

Dips and activators

Dips, in short, these are the flavorings for the nozzle. Often they are presented as a liquid in which the bait is dipped, as a result of which the bait acquires a flavor that should arouse the fish's interest. When fishing, it is desirable to have as wide a range of dips as possible, not only different tastes, but also their shades, for example, the smell of "vanilla" from one company is slightly different from the vanilla smell of another. As mentioned earlier, a fish is like a pregnant woman, it is rather difficult to guess what she wants at the moment. Branded dips are often written Dip or dips, these are ready-made mixtures in which you can simply dip the bait and fish. In addition to liquid dips, there are aerosols.

As dips, you can also use flavors for bait, they just have a slightly weaker aroma concentration, and liquids for making baits yourself, the concentration of aroma in which is so strong that they need to be diluted otherwise you will scare off all the fish. Usually they are diluted with various kinds of oils (hemp, corn, unrefined sunflower) in a ratio of 1 to 10.

In addition to artificial dips, there are natural ones, which are made from what you have in the refrigerator, and they do not have to be liquid. We melt the flavoring agent we have chosen to a powder state and sprinkle on the nozzle a day before the start of fishing. For ground dips, garlic, cinnamon, vanilla, anise, coriander, cinnamon, fennel, curry are suitable, they can be combined or added separately. The proportions must be selected empirically, but for about a 200 ml jar of nozzle you need 1 teaspoon of garlic, cinnamon, vanilla, anise, coriander, cinnamon, fennel, curry half a teaspoon.

As for liquid dips, you can use fish oil, hemp and garlic oil, vanilla, when mixing, it is necessary to observe the ratio of 1: 1, except for fat, it goes 1: 2. It is worth remembering that we immerse the nozzle in a liquid dip before casting it, and if after casting within 5-10 minutes there is no bite, then it is necessary to reload by changing the nozzle to a new one.

activator

The activator is aromatic concentrated powder additives that enhance the smell of various branded baits (duplicate them), and also cause an increased appetite in fish, this is necessary, for example, when you stir a purchased bait with breadcrumbs or earth, and do not want the smell to subside. If you add an activator to an already moistened groundbait, then the powder is poorly absorbed into it, and when you throw the ball into the water, you will get a powerful, but rather short-term effect. By adding activator to dry groundbait before it is moistened, you will achieve a longer effect, albeit with a smaller radius.

Signature fishing flavors

At the moment in stores there is a huge selection of flavors presented by various manufacturers. Flavors are divided

• according to tastes: anise, strawberry, chocolate, nuts
• fish species: ide, crucian carp, bream, roach.

The most reputable manufacturer is a French company « Sensas " she has a very wide and high-quality range of products, less well-known, but also very effective flavors of an English company Dynamite Baits and " Richworth " and American "Megastrike"... also in Lately a Polish company actively launched its advertising program "Traper", it is worth noting that her bait and flavorings give a good catch and are in demand among anglers and athletes.

The disadvantage of these manufacturers is their rather high price, so it makes sense to pay attention to their Russian counterparts, as a budget replacement for Sensas fragrances is UNIKORM "Aromatiks" from the company "Sabaneev", since they produce flavors for fishing, completely duplicating the French manufacturer. One of the best manufacturers in terms of price-quality ratio, is a Russian company « Silver Bream ". Decent carp and crucian baits are produced by a Russian company Greenfishing.

Natural flavors for fishing

Home fragrance

• Sunflower seeds(fried and finely ground), sunflower unrefined oil or makuha - bream and crucian carp respond well to them
• Anise (Anise oil and powder)- a kind of universal flavoring agent, all representatives of carp react perfectly to it, especially successful fishing for roach with its help. Add 1 drop to half a kilogram of groundbait. Groundbait should not have a strong odor.
• Garlic it is crushed and added to the bait or bait, but you need to be careful not to overdo it. In addition to the garlic heads, you can use the garlic arrows, which must be chopped and added to the groundbait. Great for catching crucian carp and bream. You can also use garlic oil as well.
• Dill and fennel, moreover, dried dill can also be used, but fresh finely chopped dill is more catchy. It is used for catching carp fish, and can also attract catfish.
• Honey and gingerbread it is used for catching any peaceful fish, tench and bream react very well to it.
• Black currant It is used to attract crucian carp and bream, its leaves are chopped finely or brewed in boiling water, and when it is infused, they are added when the bait is moistened.
• Peach with banana suitable for catching carp in warm water, especially in summer.
• Mint and lemongrass finely cut and added to the groundbait, especially if the mint grows on the shore of the reservoir.
• Chocolate a good choice for, bream and other carp fish.
• Coriander and basil excellent flavors for catching bream. Ground basil also works well with most flavors.
• Caramel and vanilla another universal flavor for catching carp species.
• Ground coffee beans and cinnamon bark good flavoring for catching bream and large roach. You can also use instant coffee, although its effect is worse.
• Corn great for catching bream and roach, but primarily carp.
• Maggot interesting for roach, carp, crucian carp, silver bream and other representatives of peaceful fish.
• Tutti frutti and strawberry used for fishing in warm water, especially in summer. Carp, bream and crucian carp respond well to them.
• Fresh pigeon droppings, but not wild pigeons, but pigeons fed by pigeons with cereals are used to catch roach.
• Cocoa used for catching most types of white fish.
• Squid attracts both predatory fish (catfish, burbot) and large carp and grass carp
• Blood good flavoring for catching bream, add a mayonnaise jar to 3 kg of bait
• Peanut fried and finely ground , great for luring bream, carp and tench.

When adding flavors to the groundbait, you need to adhere to the rule "it is better to underfill than to pour", and you should not plump them immediately into the entire prepared groundbait, but add them in separate portions, and if one does not work, you will try to use other flavors you have at the next additional feeding for fishing.

If you want to learn how to fish, then you should start by choosing a fishing method, that is, you need to understand which tackle is best for you and like, based on the place of fishing and your fishing preferences. There are different ways of fishing, they depend on the gear used in practice.

Here are the main, so to speak, sports fishing methods: bottom, float and spinning fishing methods. There are other methods of fishing, for example, with circles, a string, an elastic band and even a net, but this is not good, therefore we will only talk about the bottom, float and spinning methods.

For inexperienced fishermen who have just started on the fishing trail, we advise you to buy fairly simple and inexpensive fishing rods, and if you break them out of inexperience, it will not be so sorry, but if the budget allows, you can take something more impressive, but in a hurry to immediately buy the most expensive not worth it, get some fishing experience and knowledge, and study well at least one fishing method, which, most likely, is a regular float rod, even without using a reel. This method, although the simplest, but at the same time not every body of water can be suitable for it. So choose your fishing method wisely.

Float type of fishing.

This method of fishing is one of the simplest, so it is very suitable for a beginner angler to master. The float rod is very simple and therefore easy to use. You can catch quite a few types of fish with float gear, but it also has its own limitations.

Float tackle, most often, is used on stagnant water - in ponds, lakes, reservoirs and in small rivers. According to the results of fishing, the float fishing method is in no way inferior to other fishing methods, although everything of course depends on the fishing conditions. Having the necessary equipment with a float rod, you can catch crucian carp, roach, perch, bream, carp, bleak, and other types of fish.

Such versatility and simplicity of a float rod makes the float method of fishing very common: it is used by both beginners and real veterans of the fishing business. The main disadvantages of the float fishing method include poor wind resistance, that is, waves and wind strongly affect the visibility of the float. Another disadvantage is the fishing distance, which is much inferior to the bottom fishing method, such as a feeder.

Photo of a small carp caught with a float rod.

Spinning

The spinning method is used on reservoirs with running and standing water - in ponds, lakes, reservoirs, rivers, streams and seas. The spinning rod is intended mainly for predatory fish: pike perch, perch, pike, asp and even catfish. For fishing with a spinning rod, you will need a short rod, reel, fishing line or line, sinkers, spinners, wobblers, twisters and other fishing lures.

The essence of the spinning method is as follows: a fisherman, using a spinning rod and a reel, throws a lure into the water, which imitates the movement of a fish. By winding the line on the spool of the reel, the lure seduces the predatory fish and grabs it, thereby clinging to the hook. The spinning method of fishing is very mobile, and the fisherman is constantly on the move, which distinguishes this method from all others.

Bottom type of fishing

The bottom method of fishing is a tackle that consists of a rod, reel, line, hooks, weights and bait. The bottom type of fishing is so called because they have to fish directly from the bottom. Bottom fishing rods are feeder and conventional. The usual classic donk is a relatively old tackle, in contrast to the modern feeder. Usually, heavy loads are placed on, which provides long-distance casting. In this way, fish are caught from the banks, stationary boats, and flowing bodies of water.

Stuffed pike

Both in the menus of fashionable restaurants and in the kitchen of any hostess, undoubtedly, there is fish. Why? The answer is simple: baked carp, grilled trout, steamed salmon, capelin in batter, fish cakes, baked pike in the oven - all this is not only divinely delicious, but also very nutritious and healthy. Of the freshwater fish that are best suited for cooking and, as a result, will delight you with a juicy and rich taste, you can select carp, crucian carp, carp and bream. But, of course, the real queen in the fish kitchen is the pike.

Despite the fact that pike meat is slightly bony, due to its very low percentage of fat, pike meat is considered dietary. In addition, this fish has a truly specific smell and taste - having tasted it, you will not confuse it with anything else. And this is not fiction, for example, in tsarist Russia, and even in England of the last century, pike dishes were highly valued, and if properly prepared, they were considered a special delicacy. Previously, we described recipes for making pike fish soup, and in this article we will tell you about several recipes for stuffed pike.

Methods for stuffing pike

There are several ways you can stuff a pike. Whole fish looks incredibly impressive and appetizing on the dish. The preparation of such a culinary masterpiece requires a certain skill, because in this case, the pike skin must be pulled off with a “stocking” from head to tail without damage.

If there is no desire to demonstrate "aerobatics", then you can cook stuffed steaks - cut the pike into transverse round slices and cut meat with bones out of them with a narrow knife, leaving a thin layer of pulp on the skin. Then fill the skin rings with the stuffing paste, leveling the slices with a knife.

The easiest way is to simply gut the pike and fill its belly with pre-prepared filling, and then sew up the edges with threads or fasten them with toothpicks.

Stuffed pike by type of preparation

Stuffed pike can be baked in foil, salt, thermal sleeve, boiled in a fragrant broth, poultry stewed in an "acidified" medium or in melted fat, or simply steamed.

Pike meat is slightly dry. Therefore, when cooking in the oven, the carcass is often greased with mayonnaise, and pieces of bacon are added to the filling. To better preserve natural juices, the pike is wrapped in foil or a baking bag. Prepare fish at high temperature 40-50 minutes. Readiness is checked with a toothpick - a transparent fat should come out at the puncture site, and not a cloudy liquid.

Boiled stuffed pike is cooked in a gosper or a saucepan. Vegetables are placed at the bottom (onions in half rings, beets and carrots in circles), a little onion peel for a golden color, the ridge and offal of fish for richness. A stuffed carcass or portioned pieces are placed in this mass, poured with sunflower oil, and then poured with boiling water so that the water only slightly covers the fish. Cook on the smallest heat for about 1.5 hours. The lid must be tightly closed. Boiled pike is consumed cold.

Stewing technology is not much different from the process of cooking stuffed fish. In this case, you will need dishes with a thick bottom, and you only need to pour boiling water over the fish by one third.

What pike is stuffed with

Usually, the pike pulp, after removing the seeds, remains insufficient to fill the skin, so a variety of ingredients are mixed into the filling: bread crumb, vegetables, prunes, mushrooms, cereals, nuts, other fish, herbs, etc. Classic minced meat includes bread soaked in milk, onions, eggs, herbs, salt and pepper. The European version consists of all kinds of spices, crab sticks, lemon and rice grits. In the Russian version, mushrooms and buckwheat with onions are more often used.

Stuffed pike - a step by step recipe with a photo

In fact, there are many ways to cook this freshwater fish, as they say, there would be a pike - there are recipes. They are good baked, but also great for boiling, grilling, steaming, or in a slow cooker. In addition, excellent pies and pies are made from this fish, pike cutlets are a real delicacy, and those who like to experiment can even try to make pike mousse or pudding.

But today we will talk about one of the most delicious cooking methods for pike - stuffing. It is generally believed that stuffed pike is a traditional Jewish dish, but in reality it is not entirely true. Excellent recipes for stuffed pike have existed since ancient Russia, therefore, this dish is most likely a symbiosis of cultures and culinary traditions.

Preparation of products for cooking stuffed pike

So, for the preparation of a classic pike stuffed with vegetables, we need, in fact, the pike itself of medium size. This is approximately 1.5-2 kilos. In fact, it all depends on the number of servings. The pike mentioned above is enough for 6-8 people. In addition, you need a bow. Here, the main thing is not to skimp. Some culinary experts even argue that it is worth using almost as much onion as fillet. But I suggest the best option - stop at 2-3 large onions. We also need 3 slices of dry loaf or rolls, 1 chicken egg, 2 carrots, and 3 small beets. In addition, pike loves all kinds of seasonings and spices, so, in addition to standard salt, sugar and pepper, stock up on oregano, basil, parsley root, celery root, cloves, allspice and a handful of onion husks.

Cutting pike for stuffing

First, you need to clean the fish. This is a simple but messy process that shouldn't be done in the kitchen. It is best to do this on the shore, immediately after fishing, or on the balcony, covering the floor with newspaper. Then we cook, in fact, the fish itself. With a sharp knife, cut off the pike's head and remove the eyes, gills and entrails from it. The whole difficulty is that the insides of the pike must be removed without boiling the belly. In no case damage the belly, otherwise the minced meat will simply fall out and you will ruin the whole dish.

Then you need to remove the skin from the fish as if you were removing a stocking from your leg. Carefully so as not to damage the skin itself, using kitchen scissors and a sharp knife. To do this, cut the fillets under the skin in a circle and pull off the skin millimeter by millimeter, reaching the tail fin, carefully cut or break the spine.

After that, scrape off the remnants of the meat from the skin and bones, put it in a separate container. Since the skin of the pike is very dense, this should not be difficult. Thus, you should have pike skin, as well as separate bones and a plate of meat.

Minced meat

Now let's start cooking. Peel the onion, chop coarsely and fry in sunflower oil for a few minutes until a characteristic golden color. We soak stale bread in milk, you can also use water - this already depends on personal sympathy. Then we pass the fish meat through a meat grinder twice. Here, by the way, there is a very important point - after you skip the meat for the first time - disassemble the meat grinder and clean it of the accumulated bones. As we already said, pike meat is very bony and this must be taken into account. Small bones will soften during cooking, but large ones can bring a lot of unpleasant sensations.

After passing the meat through the meat grinder for the second time, we pass the already slightly softened white bread. Before that, you need to squeeze it out thoroughly, getting rid of excess liquid. And then mix the meat, bread and fried onions together. Add to this mixture a raw egg, and then season it with salt, pepper and a little - 1 teaspoon of sugar and 2 tablespoons of raw cold water. Now this filling needs to be mixed very thoroughly or, better, even kneaded by hand.

We stuff our skin and head with the resulting mixture, if we are going to serve it too. Do not stuff too much filling, otherwise the skin will crack, but at the same time, if you regret the filling, the skin will sag. It is the golden mean that is important here. After stuffing the pike, pierce the skin in 2-3 places with a toothpick.

Then take a large saucepan. It is best that its diameter matches the length of the pike. If you don't have one, you can gently roll the fish into a ring. At the bottom of the pan, put the onion peel and the bones we have left. Top it off with coarsely chopped carrots and beets. There should be just enough vegetables to cover the bottom of the pot. Add bay leaves, finely chopped dry or fresh parsley and celery roots and place our pike on top along with its head. After that, we leave the whole thing in the refrigerator for 3 hours.

Cooking and serving stuffed pike

After taking out the pan, add another teaspoon of salt, half a spoonful of sugar, allspice and cloves. Now carefully pour boiling water over our fish so as to completely cover it with liquid, and set to cook. Bring the dish to a boil, make a very small fire and leave the pike to simmer for about an hour.

After that, you need to drain the liquid and put the pike on a suitable dish, after cutting it into pieces corresponding to the portions. You can decorate this whole thing with vegetables that were prepared with fish, as well as olives and a little mayonnaise. Having done all this, you need to let the pike cool down, because this dish is usually served cold.

Useful video - how to quickly clean fish from scales

Cleaning fish with a fillet knife

Cleaning fish with boiling water

Oven-baked stuffed pike

However, the pike does not need to be boiled. No less delicious pike, stuffed and baked according to the recipe in the oven. To do this, you need to stock up on pike of the same size - 1.5-2 kilos. There is simply no point in stuffing a smaller fish - a lot of work, but little result. In addition, we need an egg, processed cheese, a spoonful of semolina, 1-2 onions, 2-3 slices of white bread or a loaf, 50 ml of cream with a fat content of 10%, herbs, lemon and mayonnaise. Use foil and parchment for baking.

Cutting fish and preparing minced meat

The fish preparation process is identical to the previous one. The main thing here is accuracy and attention; we clean the fish, get rid of the entrails, separate the fillets and remove the skin.

Then the pike head, skin and meat must be marinated separately to get rid of the characteristic river smell. To do this, we use pepper, salt and lemon, put everything in a vacuum container and leave it in the refrigerator for about 2 hours.

Now, in fact, the turn of the filling. Soak the crumb of white bread in the cream. Then grind the pike meat with a meat grinder or blender. Before doing this, you need to make sure that you have gotten rid of all the large bones in the meat and it is really ready to eat. Add a raw egg, cereals, squeezed crumb of bread, chopped onion, finely chopped greens to the meat and season it all with salt, herbs and pepper to taste. Then grind it all into a homogeneous mixture and rub in the processed cheese with a spoon.

Baking stuffed pike in the oven

We spread foil on the table in 2 or even better 3 layers, and cover it with a parchment sheet on top. This is essential to prevent the fish from sticking to the foil. Then we stuff our fish with a spoon or with our hands. By the way, so that the minced meat does not stick to your hands, dip them in cold water... Having completely filled the skin with minced meat, insert the head there and coat our pike with mayonnaise from head to tail. Then we tightly wrap the fish and foil and put in the oven, preheated to 180 degrees. Stuffed pike baked in foil, cook for about an hour. If the fish is larger, you can bake a little longer.

Serving baked stuffed pike

After removing the pike from the oven, let it cool completely, and only then unfold the parchment and foil. You can even put the fish in the refrigerator for several hours or even a day, and only then print it, decorate and serve it. It is very good to sprinkle the pike with lemon juice before serving, and use lettuce and mayonnaise or sour cream sauce with horseradish for decoration.

Useful video - how to cut fish into boneless fillets

Baked stuffed pike, photo

Baked stuffed pike, video

Jewish stuffed pike

We have already said that stuffed pike is considered a national Jewish dish. Therefore, it would be a real sin not to offer you an ancient recipe for this dish. So stuffed pike is a Jewish recipe.

Preparing food for pike cooking in Jewish way

The dish includes fish, several slices of white bread (depending on the size of the fish and the amount of minced meat you need, you will need 3 slices of bread for a fish weighing 1.5 kilos), a raw egg, 50 grams of butter, a quarter glass of milk, 2 onions, 6 laurel leaves, plus salt and pepper.

The main difference from the recipes described above is that for the preparation of Jewish stuffed pike, fish, cut into slices, are used and served with the bones. This dictates the specific preparation of the fish. Therefore, we cut off the head of the peeled fish, get rid of the gills and fins, as well as all the entrails. For this, a very sharp knife is usually used, which must be carefully inserted into the belly along the side of the wall and cut off the insides. The guts will fall out on their own. Then we take out the caviar together with the film attached to the spine, peel this very film, and then add the caviar and milk to the minced meat.

Butchering fish to cook pike in Jewish style

We cut the fish into pieces 5-7 centimeters thick and from each piece with the help of a knife we ​​take out the meat so as not to tear the skin and not separate it from the bones. Thus, you should be left with fish rings of skin, spine and ribs with three holes - two small on either side of the spine and one large where the insides used to be.

Cooking minced pike in a Jewish way

For the filling, soak the bread in milk. Then we scroll the fish meat, bread and finely chopped onion through a meat grinder several times to get rid of the bones and get real minced meat. Add butter, egg and season it all with salt and pepper. After that, the resulting mass must be beaten well.

Cooking and serving pike in Jewish style

After that, we take a large saucepan, the bottom of which is covered with chopped carrots, beets and one more onion. We put the head and tail there. After that, we stuff our fish, filling all three holes with minced meat and carefully fold the pieces on top of the vegetables. If the pike was large and there were too many slices, alternate balls of vegetables and stuffed fish in a saucepan. On top of the last layer of fish, fold the vegetables again and fill it all with salted water with bay leaves. There should be just enough water so that it covers the top layer of vegetables by a couple of millimeters.

We put the pan on the fire and wait for the water to boil. After that, we reduce the fire to a minimum and leave our pike on low heat for an hour and a half. When the fish is ready, turn off the heat and leave it to cool along with the broth. Only cold fish can be drained and removed from the pan. Subsequently, the broth that you have left can be used to prepare a side dish. Usually boiled potatoes are served with stuffed pike, and the fish itself is decorated with lemon slices.

Cooking stuffed pike in a slow cooker

Via modern technologies you can not only prepare the dish easier, but also much faster. To make sure of this, I offer you a simple, but original recipe for cooking. The result is the most delicate pike stuffed with rice and prunes.

Preparation of pike and minced meat

We clean the pike as we have already learned: cut off the head, remove the eyes, gills and entrails. Thus, we are left with a carcass with a backbone and ribs. Then we rub it with a mixture of salt, pepper and various herbs, grease the fish abundantly with mayonnaise and leave it in a cold place to marinate for 2 hours.

During this time, we prepare the filling. Boil the rice until half cooked, mix it with finely chopped prunes. Add onions and carrots there, giving them before sautéing. Mix all the components of the filling and stuff the pickled fish.

For cooking, select the "Baking" mode in your multicooker, grease the container with butter and put the pike there. If the container is small, you can fold the fish into a ring. Such delicious food is being prepared for only 1 hour, in fact, until the end of the regime.

Pike stuffed with mushrooms

If you like mushrooms, then I will share with you another simple recipe, as a result of which you will get a delicious stuffed pike.

For it you will need a small pike - about one and a half kilograms, 250 grams of mushrooms - best of all champignons, a jar of olives, 2 raw chicken eggs, 2 medium carrots, 2 small onions, bread and milk for soaking, and, of course, oil for frying and spices for taste.

We clean the fish from the husk, cut off the head, remove the gills, eyes, cut out the insides from the skin and clean them, separating the bones from the meat.

Clean, cut into halves or smaller (depending on size) mushrooms and fry them in olive oil, add seasonings, salt and pepper.

In the same way, we clean and cut the carrots into small cubes, fry them a little together with the onion on butter... Until the onion acquires its characteristic golden color.

After that, we pass the pike meat and bread through a meat grinder, before that, well soaked in milk. Add eggs, herbs, 10 grams of sunflower oil, seasonings - mix. And then mushrooms, carrots with onions and chopped olives. Mix everything again, add a little lemon juice and stuff our pike with this mixture.

By the way, before baking, you can coat the pike with mayonnaise or a beaten egg, creating a kind of batter. We spread the fish on a baking sheet and leave in the oven heated to 180 degrees for 45 minutes. The pike is ready

Pike stuffed with rice

Ingredients:

Fresh pike - 1kg

Rice - 100 g

Bow - 1 large head

Carrots - 1 pc.

Mayonnaise or yolk (for lubrication)

Salt, pepper (to taste)

Cranberries, herbs, mayonnaise, lemon (for decoration).

We take a fish weighing 1000-1200 g (for baking the most optimal weight), clean it from the scales, wash it, but not gut it.

Cut off the head with a large knife in a circle. We take out all the insides along with the head.

We tighten the skin, starting from the head. It is more convenient to do this with your thumb, pushing it between the skin and the pulp.

It is good if meat fibers remain on the removed "stocking" - that is safer and tastier. We act very carefully near the fins. Having reached the tail, we cut it off along with the ridge. Sew the hole from the tail with a thread.

Separate the pike flesh from the bones.

We pass the pike fillet through the fine mesh of the meat grinder.

Boil rice in salted water. Cool it down.

Fry onions and carrots.

We mix the fish mass with rice and frying. Salt and pepper.

Not very densely, but evenly fill our pike with minced meat.

We put the fish on a sheet of foil, apply the head, grease with mayonnaise or yolk. Now you can completely wrap the carcass, leaving a small air gap between the foil and the top of the fish. Before sending to the oven, pierce the foil in several places with a toothpick.

We keep the pike in the oven for about an hour at 180 degrees, after which you need to unfold the foil on top and send the fish again to bake until golden brown (for about 30 minutes).

Let the pike cool down, and then turn on the imagination and decorate it to your taste and color.

How to decorate stuffed pike when serving

A specialty such as stuffed pike implies the appropriate decoration. The fish is placed on a large oblong porcelain or cupronickel plate. Lemon is considered an ideal decoration for any fish dish - thin yellow circles not only look great externally, but also ennoble the smell of fish, give it a piquant taste. In the design of the dish, they also use sprigs of herbs, onion rings, olives, cranberries, red currants, lettuce, carrots. Sometimes cherry tomatoes and cucumbers, cut into slices, are placed along the carcass. The back of the pike is covered with a pattern, squeezing mayonnaise out of a pastry syringe. On especially solemn occasions, the pike is poured with liquid gelatin to give it an appetizing gloss.

When decorating a dish, it is important to observe the measure - additional "accessories" should not clutter up the plate, because the main character on it should still be stuffed pike.

Super bait

Fish bait. Leave the jar of maggots on the shelf of the fishing store and go to the pond to look for caddis larvae. You will catch more on them.

There was a time when the fishing shop around the corner did not yet sell maggots and boilies, ready-made dough and vanilla potatoes. Then the fishermen had to fish, only relying on their knowledge of the processes occurring in nature.

Those times also include the observation of a fisherman on a pond for houses crawling along the bottom, which were glued together from grains of sand, fragments of shells or pieces of wood. These houses looked like quivers for arrows and hid nondescript gray-brown larvae, which in the shape of the houses were called “quiver flies” (Trichoptera, in Russian - caddis flies).

They turned out to be very good bait for trout, grayling, perch, tench and all white fish: from cautious chub to burly bream. Since then, without mentioning caddis larvae (also called Sprock) as catching baits, no book on fishing has been imagined.

Morning does not always start, as in study guide fishing. Eltsy refuse to take a bunch of maggots for the umpteenth time

Especially in early spring (when due to the cold it was impossible to get worms or maggots), the caddis was considered a way out and a miraculous means of achieving success. Only the year-round availability of commercially available standard baits such as maggots, crawlers and dungworms put an end to the caddis era.

It turned out to be easier to reach out to the shelf of a fishing store for bait than to thrust it into icy water for a caddis florist. The quiver larva is currently experiencing a rebirth. "Back to the caddis flies", and even saving money - this is now the motto. Learn how to breed maggots at home without much difficulty from this post.

Since a lot of the tricks of lovers of antiquity were also dictated by the lack of money, some anglers with little experience now also remember this. But remembering is only half the battle, since questions immediately arise: where and how to collect the caddisfly, how to plant it and where is it most expedient to catch it? Ask your grandfather or check out our pictures.

A glance at the small flat stream shows why the maggots are not of interest to the fish: there is plenty of food everywhere. Caddis larvae scramble in crowds on the concrete of the dam

But it's so easy to catch this coveted bait. A daphnia net with a rectangular frame is slowly passed over the concrete. Now these little insects can't get away

The net is full, and there are live larvae in almost all the houses. This only happens in spring and early summer.

The larvae in the houses are stored in a cold place, in the air and without water. Those of them that will be immediately attached to the hook are taken out of the houses, and those unused after fishing are released into the wild.

This is how the larva is taken out of the shell. The house in front is shortened by about 5 mm ...

... then lightly press on the rear end of the house - and the head of the larva appears!

The head is carefully but firmly held with the thumb and forefinger ...

... then the larva is slowly pulled out of the house

If you want to offer the fish a particularly tasty morsel, then simultaneously attach two or three larvae to the hook

But the most catchy is a single larva, planted behind the thoracic part on a hook made of thin wire

Second run: After the maggots did not work, the bait of the season is now on the hook. Will it be better to fish with caddis flies? The bait, supported by a light float, drifts far forward. When fishing in a narrow, calm stream, you should avoid anything that could frighten off shallow fish.

The first success when fishing with a sensitive float in shallow reservoirs for the larva of caddis flies. When the underwater part of the float is painted in a discreet green color, it does not frighten even a careful chub.

Even with a careful bite, the soft larva is “chewed”. Replace it after every bite.

Fish more and more greedily grab the caddis flies. A critical eye confirms that this roach was spotted properly

With the help of a miracle bait, we finally managed to catch a super-careful dace

At one point, the stream widens into a particularly promising pit. Here our bait falls slowly into the center of the swirls

A real fighter - an ide - immediately reacts to this trick. Now he seeks to break out of the whirlpool he himself created and reach the salvation thickets of Elodea

However, it's too late! The strongest inhabitant of the stream, after a short, stubborn resistance, was defeated

In the afternoon I had to go downstream for other caddis lovers