You have never cooked mackerel like this before: first you need to salt it and then marinate it

To make mackerel have a rich flavor and spice, it needs to be salted before cooking. You just need to observe the correct ratio of salt and water, and the fish will turn out very spicy.

The idea of cooking spicy pickled mackerel was published on the Instagram page of food blogger Ilona with the nickname thefoodhub.by_ilona . Chili pepper flakes in the marinade add a special flavor.

Special Ingredients for pickles:

• 2 mackerel
• 500 ml of water
• 100 g of salt

Ingredients for the marinade:

• 200 ml of apple, rice, or wine vinegar 6%
• 30 g of sugar
• 1 tsp. chili pepper flakes
• 6 peas of white pepper
• 6 black peppercorns
• 1/2 tsp. coriander seeds
• 1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
• 1-2 bay leaves
• 2 peas of allspice

Method of preparation (salting):

1. Clean, gut, and cut off the heads of the mackerel.

2. Wash thoroughly.

3. Dissolve the salt in water in a small tray and place the mackerel in it. Put in a cold place for 8-12 hours.

4. Turn the fish over from time to time.

Method of cooking (marinating):

1. Put all the spices for the marinade, except for the chili pepper, in a mortar and pound coarsely. You can also grind everything to a coarse crumb in a blender.

2. Mix the spices and all other ingredients for the marinade in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat and cool. If you do not like a very pronounced sourness, take 100 ml of vinegar instead of 200 ml and add 100 ml of water.

3. Drain the water from the pickled fish and pour the cooled marinade over the mackerel. Cover the tray and put it in a cold place for 48 hours. Turn the fish from time to time.

4. After the specified time, the fish is ready.