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Pickled Pike

sjuduckhunter

By sjuduckhunter
in Ice Fishing

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sjuduckhunter Apprentice

sjuduckhunter

Posted
Posted

I pickled a batch of northerns without freezing the fillets first. I now hear it is a good idea to freeze them first. Do you think I can achieve the same result by freezing the jar of already pickled fish without ruining them? Can I take the fish out of jar and freeze them and then return them to the jars?

I know this has been a topic here before, but I am too lazy to search through all the threads.

Thanks.

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Gordie Grand Master

Gordie

Posted
Posted

"No" dont freeze the jars you may have one heck of a mess to clean up.

I have pickled many many pike and have never run into a problem and I have done them fresh and frozen. To be totaly honest I think the fresh ones taste better. I no they say you should freeze them to prevent a parasite from living in the fillet but I have never had a problem.

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leechlake Grand Master

leechlake

Posted
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For the future, I cut and pasted from a previous FM post.

Cold pack pickling may eventually kill the parasites. Or maybe not. It is your insides.

Freezing is known to kill them.

There are pickling recipes that involve poaching the fish in hot liquid.

Here is a quote from U of M extension

Caution: the broad fish tapeworm

The broad fish tapeworm infection can be contracted by humans from eating raw or undercooked species of fish found in the Great Lakes area.

Those who wish to prepare raw pickled fish should first freeze the fish at 0° F for 48 hours.

The larvae of the broad fish tapeworm pass through smaller fish until they lodge as hatched small worms in the flesh of large carnivorous species of fish, like northern pike, walleye pike, sand pike, burbot, and yellow perch. This worm, if eaten by humans in its infective stage, can attach to the small intestine and grow to lengths of 10 to 30 feet.

The infective worms are destroyed readily either by cooking or freezing. Two recent outbreaks of this tapeworm in Minnesota were related to eating uncooked pickled pike. Those who wish to prepare raw pickled fish should first freeze the fish at 0° F for 48 hours.

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popriveter Community Regular

popriveter

Posted
Posted

You could pour the jarred fish into freezer bags, put them in the freezer for the 48 hours and then thaw and re-jar.

That way you'd kill the parasites and wouldn't bust the jars.

I wish I'd thought of this before my last pickling experience. I pickled w/o freezing and then read the parasite info. I tried the U of M recommendation of heating, but not cooking. It didn't work well at all for me. The texture of the fish was bad. I learned my lesson and will freeze from now on.

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merkman Grand Master

merkman

Posted
Posted

I tried the U of M recommendation of heating, but not cooking. It didn't work well at all for me. The texture of the fish was bad. I learned my lesson and will freeze from now on.

That will happen even if you don't pre heat... if you get in a hurry and don't let your brine cool down ALL the way you will end up with mushy fish...

heat = mushy pickled pike

.

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LuckyGPSFeller Newbie

LuckyGPSFeller

Posted
Posted

Eat it up. Worst case scenario you end up with a 30' tapeworm. For one that's big enough to get mounted. Also, it may help your stomach to digest any duck that you choke down. You're a winner either way.

Kidding aside, the best idea I've heard yet is to freeze a small batch in a baggie and see it affects the consistency (mushiness). If it's still good, freeze it all. If it's not, I bet the in-laws will find it a big hit during the holidays. wink

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