What are you planning to do with your early ice fillets?

[Guest]

What are your favorite recipes for early ice? I think that fresh fish strait from an iced over lake, kept fresh in a bucket of slush, and quickly processed are the best tasting fish anywhere!

Here is a recipe that is great for those small to medium sized northern pike, it's great to have on hand for the holidays, game days, snacks, appetizers, etc. alot of people that eat pickled herring this time of year will love this, a jar of pickled pike makes a great gift.

Although the recipe calls for northern pike, it works with any type of fish, with varying results, more delicate fish; perch, walleye, crappie, will not be as firm as the pike. I am wanting to try this with some tullibee sometime. Double or triple the brine and solution recipes to completely cover the amount of fish you have.

Pickled Pike:

Prepare fish by filleting and cutting into bite sized pieces, it is OK to leave in the Y-bones as they will soften in the vinegar. Prepare a brine of 4 cups water to 1 cup pickling salt, cover fish with brine and let stand for 24 hours.

After standing, rinse fish with cold water, cover fish with white vinegar and let stand for 24 hours.

Drain fish, and place in containers with course chopped onion, (wide mouth canning jars work good). Prepare pickling solution, 2 cups white vinegar, 4 bay leaves, 1 teaspoon pickling spice, ½ teaspoon black pepper, 1 ¾ cup white sugar, 5 whole cloves, 2 teaspoons whole mustard seed. Bring solution to a boil, allow to cool somewhat, pour over fish. Keep refrigerated.