Pickled Pike, Anyone doing this with the pike you catch ice fishing?

[Agronomist_at_IA]

I started to pickle pike about 2 years ago, after a trip to Devil's Lake ND where I left with bag fulls of pike.

I used these to ways, didn't care for the cajun, but the first one is awsome with some of the extra things I throw in for a twist.

Here is a recipe that I found:

I've used the recipe several times and found it to be quite excellent!

Pickled Northern Pike Recipe

This recipe can be used with any fish but northern pike works best. Before using this recipe be sure to freeze the fish at least 5 days. This will destroy any parasites that are present in the fish or bacteria that may have been picked up during the cleaning process.

Ingredients

5 pounds of fish chunked

2.5 cups of canning salt

1 gallon of bottled water

1 quart distilled vinegar

5.5 cups of sugar

4 teaspoons pickling spice

1 cup dry white wine

1 onion cut into pieces

In a plastic container dissolve the 2.5 cups of salt in the gallon of bottled water and add chunked fish. Refrigerate for 48 to 72 hours. Remove fish and rinse in cold water. Cover fish with white vinegar for 24 hours and refrigerate.

Remove fish from vinagar and pack in jars with pieces of onion. Cover with the following solution.

--1 quart distilled vinegar

--5 1/2 cups sugar

--4 teaspoons of pickling spice

--1 cup dry white wine

Bring all ingredients to a boil except the dry wine. When solution has cooled add the dry white wine and cover fish. Seal with lids that have been scalded. Refrigerate at least once before eating.

(Note for a twist I will add some of the following olives, Jalapeno pepper slices, Banana Pepper slices, Peperoncini peppers (whole), or Asparagus sticks,)

Cajun Pickled Pike

* 4 cup white vinegar

* 3.5 cup white sugar

* 7 bay leaves

* 15 whole cloves

* 2 tsp. whole allspice

* 4 tsp. whole mustard seed

* 2 tsp. whole black peppercorns

* 2 cups sweet white wine

* 4 cup pickling salt

* 2 qt. cold water

* 4 lb. skinless pike, bones removed, cut into 1 inch chunks

* 4 cups additional white vinegar

* 4 medium onion, thinly sliced

* 2 lemons, thinly sliced

* 1.5 tsp Cajun spice

First day:

Combine 1 cup vinegar, sugar, bay leaves, cloves allspice, mustard seed, cajun spice and peppercorns in a saucepan. Bring ingredients to a boil and reduce heat. Simmer for 5 minutes. Cool. Add wine. Pour into a plastic or glass container. Let pickling syrup sit at room temperature for 4 days.

Mix pickling salt with cold water; stir thoroughly to dissolve salt. Pour over cutup skinless fish and refrigerate 48 hours.

Third day:

Rinse fish with cold water and cover fish chunks with vinegar. Refrigerate for 24 hours.

Fourth day:

Drain fish and discard vinegar. Loosely layer fish, onion and lemon in glass or plastic containers. Completely cover with pickling syrup and cover tightly. Refrigerate for five days, stirring once or twice during that time.

Ninth day:

Pickling is done. Pickled pike may be stored covered with the pickling syrup in a closed container in refrigerator for up to 5 weeks. Makes approximately 4 qt.

[curtistodd]

Absolutely! I just made my first batch of pickled pike in early November after I caught a 7lb and 4lb on open water, and got another couple bags of fillets from relatives.

I used a recipe similar to yours. The salt water soak, the vinegar soak, and the final brine. I used pickling spice, cloves, bay leaves, peppercorns, mustard seed. Some Jars I added mild banana peppers, and some I added Hot jalepenos. Some i left plain. I turned out awesome, now I cant wait to hit the ice hard. I always see large pike when i sight fish for gills, Im gonna keep some now. Ive also heard that in the winter largemouth bass make a good pickle. I know of a small lake near me thats full of 3lb bass. Might go keep enough for a batch and try it.

My batch made 10 jars, but about twenty people asked me for one!!

[cavalierowner]

I used to do that, but haven't done so in a while. My recipe made a whole 5 qt. ice cream bucket and I seemed to be the only one who ate it. The recipe uses Silver Satin wine and is really good. I'm going to have to see if I can find it.

[Iambjm]

I love pickled pike, just got done eating a batch. I usually give some to some of my friends, I also use Silver Satin in mine.

[TylerS]

Got some pike brining in the fridge as we speak. Great way to eat up some snot rockets...and Lord knows we have plenty in Nodak!

[fire29]

I would really like to pickel them, I just havnt tasted any that I like yet. My budy will eat a jar at a time, says it's the best ever, I cant even eat a piece. I will try this receipe, if I dont care for it Im sure one of my friends will. Maybe its just me.

[TylerS]

I would really like to pickel them, I just havnt tasted any that I like yet. My budy will eat a jar at a time, says it's the best ever, I cant even eat a piece. I will try this receipe, if I dont care for it Im sure one of my friends will. Maybe its just me.

It definitely can be an acquired taste

[Finlander]

Pickled fish! Yuk! The only thing I like to eat pickled is Pickles!

[Agronomist_at_IA]

I would really like to pickel them, I just havnt tasted any that I like yet. My budy will eat a jar at a time, says it's the best ever, I cant even eat a piece. I will try this receipe, if I dont care for it Im sure one of my friends will. Maybe its just me.

I like the extra stuff in it, but not the pike. I usually take an give most the jars to people that I know. When beer time hits, it is supprising how fast the stuff goes. I gave one to the local bar owner, and he called asking for more. Kinda suprises a guy what you'll eat when drinking.

[shortfatguy]

I use the silver satin wine also. Save and freeze the ybone sections from any pike you fillet and add them to your batch for pickling. Beats throwing them in the trash and the pickling dissolves the bones.

[Iambjm]

I even did a batch of pickled LM Bass last year and everyone who tried it liked it.

[popriveter]

While growing up, my dad would occasionally keep a limt of little hammer handles to pickle, but we'd fry or broil pike large enough to easily remove y-bones. I hold large pike in high regard and wish more of us would release most of the large ones. If I was pickling, I'd keep four 1.5 lbers instead of one 5 lber. That said, I'll probably fry the 5 lber. Maybe pickling little guys would help me grant a pardon to one or two more quality pike per season.

I love the idea of freezing the y-bone strip and adding it to the batch.

[Gordie]

I use about three different recipes and My grandmother has pickled just about every kind of fish in search of the perfect flaover and pike and panfish is always what she went back too. I remember once when she said try this and then told me what it was it was sheephead all I will say is I will never try that again.

This is what else I have added with the pickled pike

Califlower

brocilli

celery

hole jalapeno's

slices of red or green bell peppers

whole green beans

garden oinions

green or black olives

The list could go on and on

I need to get some pike I have a bunch from Devils Lake I may have to make up some brine when I digg out my stuff I will add the recipe

[Rob M]

quick question- does a jar of pickled pike count towards your possession limit?

[popriveter]

It would be pretty tough to determine how many pike are in chunks in the jars. I can't imagine a CO counting and enforcing pickled fish unless a guy was in flagrant violation of possession limit. interesting question.

[drakerebel]

does anyone have a steller recipe where there isn't a call for boiling the ingredients? i came across one before but it has escaped.