What exactly is dried fish?
There are many types of dried fish, including dried and salted, wet and salted or frozen.
In principle, by removing water from the fish, it prevents the growth of microorganisms and bacteria inside the meat. The ideal type of fish for drying usually has a low fat content, because it is stored longer with less fat. Common types of fish suitable for this purpose are:
- Cod
- Scale
- Haduk
- Atlantic mackerel
- Sardine
- Herring
- Tuna
Why do people do that?
Removing moisture from fish has existed as a method of preservation for thousands of years. This was especially important with the growth of commercial fishing in the 15th and 16th centuries. Fishermen needed a way to prevent their fish from spoiling while being transported to different ports.
Another way to preserve fresh fish is to can. If your family’s dependent on fish for food security, learning how to keep fresh fish can be a good idea.
Common methods of Dried fish
When using this method of preserving fish, you want to use the freshest possible fish to get the best results. The easiest way to start using very salty salt water is 3 parts water to 1 part salt. With the salt water of the fish, you remove the blood from the meat.
Another traditional way to preserve fish involves dry salting, which is exactly what it looks like. After cleaning the fish, put them in a dry basket and cover them with salt. Use about one-third the weight of fish in salt.
Cover the basket and leave for 9 to 10 days. Salt removes all the moisture from the fish and starves the bacteria so that they cannot grow.
Modern technology means that you can make fish juice in the pond or even make smoked fish using a coal smoker. Read the manual carefully before doing this. And make sure to wash all parts of the dryer in warm soapy water before and after preparing the fish.
Alternatively, you can remove the moisture from the fish to preserve it.
Place the fish on a wire rack or shelf with good airflow underneath. Make a small fire underneath and turn the fish over every other day. Keep in mind that it takes longer for the fish to dry completely, so check them every day.
