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Every so often I get the good fortune to fly up to Canada in search of lake trout, rainbow trout and northern pike. And while I admire the beauty and grace of the trout and its cousins as much as anyone, pike get my blood racing.
Trout are a symphony, or perhaps John Coltrane. Northern pike are more like GWAR or Megadeath. Aggressive, arrogant, utterly indifferent to your catching and releasing them, slough sharks are insanely fun to catch.
Last year, using Elk Island Lodge as our base, my friend Shel from Travel Manitoba and I proceeded to catch pike after pike after pike after pike. I lost count at 60 fish, and Shel outfished me by a lot; she loves catching “jacks,” as she calls them, so much she has one tattooed on her in some unknown place. And she only halfway jokes about legally renaming herself “Jack Slayer,” a great name for a Canadian angler-turned-spy if you ask me.
Where we were fishing, Gods Lake in Manitoba, the action is mostly catch-and-release. We kept a few pike here and there for shore lunch, but virtually all our fish went back into the icy waters of Gods Lake.
I did manage to catch one gigantic pike: This 39-incher, nabbed with the largest Daredevle lure I’ve ever thrown. I was perfectly happy to let this riot grrrl go (most large pike are female). That said, I did bring home some pike from that trip.
Pickled pike was the first way I ever ate this awesome fish, back in Minnesota more than a decade ago. Pike are under-appreciated as table fare in most parts of the world, something I find wildly unfair.
Yes, they have an extra set of bones, but once you learn how to fillet a pike, it’s pretty easy.
Pickled pike is perfect for smaller fish — you just fillet them like any other fish, skin them and cut the meat into bite-sized pieces, right through the bones.
The beauty of pickled pike is that the vinegar softens the bones so much you don’t even notice them. (This won’t work on a pike much larger than about 6 pounds, which is about 28 inches.)
If you’ve never eaten pickled pike, it’s basically a Scandinavian/Eastern European version of ceviche. Really, really good on crackers as a snack or as an appetizer. I like it with beer — kolsch, pilsner or a pale ale are my favorites here — but I hear the Swedes wash their pickled pike down with akavit. Skål!
Pickled Pike
Ingredients
- 1 cup kosher salt
- 5 cups water, divided
- 1 pound pike, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 cups cider or white wine vinegar
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon mustard seed
- 2 teaspoons whole allspice
- 2 teaspoons black peppercorns
- 2 leaves bay
- Peel of 1 lemon, sliced and white pith removed
- 1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Heat 4 cups of water enough to dissolve salt. Let this brine cool to at least room temperature, preferably colder. When it is cold enough, submerge the pike pieces in the brine and refrigerate overnight. Meanwhile, bring the sugar, vinegar, the remaining cup of water and all the spices to a boil. Simmer 5 minutes, then turn off the heat and let this steep until cool.
- When the pike has brined, layer it in a glass jar with the sliced lemon peel, bay leaves and red onion. Pour over the cooled pickling liquid with all the spice and seal the jars. Wait at least a day before eating, and I find it best after about a week to 10 days. Store in the fridge for up to 1 month.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Just got back from Canada going to try your picked pike recipe will get back on how it worked out for me
Hank,
My friend loves pickled Northern, we are going to Canada and only be there 9 days, he is flying and cannot bring pickled fish back on the plane. Is it possible to have the pickled fish ready by day 6 or 7 so he can eat some. He will devour whatever we get because he likes it so much. Any ideas will help me.
Denny
Can I use this recipe work for pressure canning? I would like to preserve some canned fish I can take on hunting trips.
Jon
Jon: I don’t think so.
when you say “seal the jars” do you mean to just put the lid on or to boil the jars to seal them.
Jerrett: Just put the lid on the jars.
I, also wonder about the salt removal.
Living in northern Saskatchewan, pike are abundant, much like the leaves dropping or the snow falling this time of year!
My freezer is full and will try this one . The reason I question the salt , this is similar to what I put in the Smoker and it tastes salty.
After taking out of the salt brine do you rinse it off before adding the pickling solution?
Kermit: No.
Would it be safe to re-use the pickle solution? I made this recipe and its really good! I have more pike ready to go… Can I brine them and then stick them back into the same jar of vinegar, spices, lemon peel, etc? Thanks!!
John: I never do. I’d just make more.
Hi, I made this recipe and have waited 10 days to try it as suggested. I find the fish isn’t very tender. Is this normal? when you say seal the jar, do you mean in a canner or just put a lid on? Thanks. It is tasty, just not the consistency I expected.
Carla
Carla: Tender? It’s fish. How tough could it possibly be? You want it to be firm, not mushy. And I just put the lid on and keep it in the fridge.
If you want to catch a lot of giant pike just come up to Devils Lake North Dakota. Reel them in till your arms fall off. It’s one place where they like to get rid of a lot of Pike. The limit is 5 a day. I dead bait fish and have caught fish over the lake length record (49″ Record). I go there just to catch a lot of great big fish I don’t care about my name in any record book. email me for info if you want to go.
You mentioned a tutorial for removing the Y bone. Do you have any advice?
Hank – any tips on how to prep the lemon peel in this recipe?
Mark: Yep. Slice off large pieces with a knife, and then carefully shave off the white pith underneath the peel.
Do you have times for boiling water bath processing? Or do you not recommended canning?
You cannot water-bath can pickled fish, according to every food safety source I’ve ever found. And I wouldn’t pressure can it.
Specifics on freezing fish in order to remove parasites. Fish should be frozen to at least -4 degrees C for 7 days to kill parasites. Check your freezer to make sure it can go this low.
https://seafoodhealthfacts.org/seafood_safety/patients/parasites.php
Good comment on freezing time. However that temperature should be -4 degrees F ( or -20 C).
I leave mine in salt water 48hr then into vingar 48hr then make the brine and put brine over fish and onions no bones left at all I also use white wine in mine and i might add is yummy and the fish is firm also
I could get past color as long as I had the flavor loo. I think a light-colored honey would be a milder sweet as well as preserving the flavor so I think I’ll try that first! Thanks and I will let you know how it turns out with that substitute! (I apologize for typos my phone will only let me view half of what I write!)
Love your recipes Hank! My boyfriend and I are also subsistence hunters over in Maine, can’t remember the last time we bought meat… We don’t have pike but plenty of pickerel bagged up and I’m sure that would work just fine for this recipe. My one question is, we don’t eat processed sugar, do you see any reason why honey or maple syrup wouldn’t work as a substitute in this recipe?
I think maple syrup would be pretty cool, although it would darken the pickle. Maybe a light-colored honey?
Can this method be used with more oily fish like something from the mackerel family?
Yes, but I prefer to use my pickled herring recipe instead:
https://honest-food.net/2011/03/08/swedish-pickled-herring/
It’s similar, but just a little different for oily fish.
Hi Hank,
Like you suggested I always freeze my fish when having raw. However does the brine and pickle not kill any worms or other nasties?
Thanks
Hamish
Nope. They will survive it. You need to freeze.
Hello from south of Sydney in Australia! Am so glad Vicki Challancin [Flavors of the Sun] gave me a link to your blog! And more so for this first post I have read real-time: I was born in Estonia in the Baltics and this dish or my family variation thereof [methinks very similar to you recipe] was mother’s milk in my tiny tot days! Love the story too!!
I’m glad you are a friend of pike. Once you get over the Y-bones you are home free for one of the whitest, firm fleshed, delicious fish I have ever encountered.