Stuffed fish, gefilte fish, is a traditional dish of national Jewish cuisine. Culinary historians claim that Ashkenazi Jews stuffed fish as early as the Middle Ages. Cooked large pike, carp, pike perch. They removed the skin from the fish and filled the “stocking” with chopped fillet minced meat with vegetable additives. Today, “stuffed fish” is called not only the well-known or carp (we will cook it), but also minced fish cutlets boiled in fish broth.
By the way, about the broth. It turns out to be a thick fish jelly, which can be served as a bay of fish - then you get an exceptionally tasty jelly fish without any gelatin, or as a separate dish.
Carp is often stuffed - it is a very tasty, fatty fish with thick skin. It should, however, be borne in mind that the “stocking” made of fish skin cannot be stuffed tightly with minced meat - it will burst. Therefore, if minced meat remains, it is better to mold cutlets from it and put it in a cauldron to cook along with the fish.
To get the right gefilte fish, you do not need to add biscuits, crackers, straws and other unsuitable ingredients that can be found in modern recipes for Jewish stuffed fish. Previously, there was no cracker, but there was always a stale, old, good bun or loaf, in extreme cases, semolina. The roll should be soaked in water or milk, and adding semolina, let the minced meat stand for a while so that the grits swell and absorb excess moisture from the minced meat.
And the last thing I would like to say: if you do not have a meat grinder, use the blender very carefully. The blender interrupts the fish fillet into a dense homogeneous mass, as a result, the stuffed fish will not turn out juicy and airy. This will be a homogeneous piece of minced fish. The meat grinder leaves small pieces of fish fillet in the minced meat (even if you twist the minced meat several times), and in the cut, the fish will turn out to be porous, airy, juicy and very tasty.
Ingredients
- carp 1 pc. (1.5-2 kg)
- onion 3-4 pcs.
- carrot 1 pc.
- stale bun (or loaf) 300 g (if semolina - 4 tablespoons)
- chicken egg 1-2 pcs.
- salt to taste
- pepper h. m. to taste
- vegetable oil 1 tbsp. l.
How to cook Jewish stuffed fish
To begin with, the fish must be cleaned of scales, rinsed under running water, and dried with a paper towel. To quickly remove the mucus, you can sprinkle the fish with coarse salt, rub into the scales, and then rinse.
The most time-consuming part of cooking is removing the skin. They do it in different ways. Here are the most common:
1. Cut off the head and tighten the skin with a "stocking". The “stocking” skin is stuffed with minced meat, sewn up at the place where the head is cut off, but the head is not sewn on, but is also filled with minced meat. Then everything is boiled together and laid out on a dish, joining the pieces.
2. A method when the head is not cut off, but the fish is cut along the belly. Stuff, then sew up the incision.
3. Cut the fish along the back, remove the dorsal fin, which runs along the entire length of the fish and tightly “holds” the skin, and then remove the skin. Stuffed. The back is sewn up.
The method used by Tatyana is the “improved” first, does not involve the use of a needle and thread and consists in cutting off the head incompletely, “breaking” the spine, leaving the skin intact, and then pulling off the skin, helping yourself with a knife and scissors at the attachment points fins.
It's hard to say which way is better. Probably for every hostess.
First, I cut the abdomen under the fins to the ridge, cut the ridge, but left the skin intact in this place so as not to separate the head. I removed the insides, washed the fish under running water and dried it again with a paper towel. If your hand is thin, it fits well into the abdomen, and the insides can be removed, so to speak, in one motion.
In the next step, I cut the skin with a knife from the carcass of the fish, pry it with my index finger and separated it from the fish carcass with light movements from side to side. I repeated this until I lifted all the skin. To separate the skin around the fins, I cut the muscles around the cartilage holding the skin with kitchen shears or a small knife, leaving the cartilage on the skin. The tail, like the head, was left on the skin.
The correct "stocking" of fish skin looks something like this picture. As you can see, the head, tail and fins remained in place along with the skin.
Now that the “stocking” is ready, you can start preparing the minced meat. With a sharp knife, I cut the carp fillet from the bones. If you can’t do it very carefully, you should take an ordinary spoon with a sharp nose and scrape off the remains of the fish fillet from the bones with it.
Then I proceeded to prepare the stuffing. I finely chopped the onion, which should be quite a lot, since it is he who gives the fish juiciness and sweetness. I fried the onion over low heat, until transparent, but not golden, because golden onions will give bitterness.
Fish fillet, onion and pre-soaked in water (can be in milk) roll passed through a meat grinder with a fine sieve. In order not to come across small bones, the minced meat should be twisted twice. Salted and peppered the minced meat, added the egg and kneaded well.
At the bottom of the form in which the fish will be cooked (I have a goose), I laid out fish bones, chopped onions and carrots in large pieces.
Loosely, about 2/3, filled the fish "stocking" with minced meat. If "stuffed", the skin may burst during cooking. To make it easier, I moistened a spoon with water, collected minced meat and thus “packed”, distributing the minced meat “inside” and shaping the fish. You don't need to sew anything.
Fish cooking
Lay the fish out on top of the vegetables. She poured water so that it covered the fish not completely, but by 2/3, and put it on fire. When the water boiled, turned on the quietest fire, salted and peppered the broth, added bay leaf. I cooked the fish for 1.5 hours, closing the lid. After the stuffed fish is ready, you should not rush either: it should cool in the broth.
What happens during cooking? The skin is gelled (after all, it contains collagen), and if small bones remain in the minced meat, then they finally boil soft.
Then I took the fish out of the broth, put it on a convenient dish and put it in the refrigerator for several hours (preferably overnight) to solidify, so the natural gelatin will hold the minced meat together, and it will be easier to cut the fish into portions. How long does stuffed fish keep in the refrigerator? 3-4 days.
The broth is strained, it can also be used. It turns out gelled, and it can be served with fish in a small broth bowl. And you can boil potatoes and carrots in it.
I cut the chilled fish into portions, put it on a serving dish, garnished it only with greens: carp is quite fatty fish, you should not pour mayonnaise on it.
As you can see, in the cut, Jewish stuffed fish turns out to be porous and very juicy. For color, you can crumble a pinch of paprika.
In fact, we will start carp and stew. And not a whole fish, but in pieces. It will be delicious! Jewish-style stuffed fish takes about two and a half hours to cook. Therefore, time will have to be planned.
So, a simple recipe for Jewish stuffed fish with a photo is in front of you. Go!
The ingredients needed to make Jewish stuffed fish are as follows:
- carp - 1 pc. (about 2 kg)
- bulb - 2 pcs.
- carrots - 1 pc. (large)
- bay leaf - 2 pcs.
- black peppercorns - 1/2 teaspoon
- long loaf or white bread - 3 slices
- salt and black pepper - to taste
- egg - 1 pc.
How to cook Jewish stuffed fish at home?
Wash and clean the carp. Cut off the fins. Cut into 2 cm pieces.
Cut the meat out of each piece of fish, just between the skin and the large bone. Don't hurt your skin! We will fill these voids with minced meat, like a big hole. Clean your head too. 
Let's get stuffing. Remove the crust from a loaf or roll. Soak the bun in milk. 
Peel one onion and cut into cubes. Heat the butter in a frying pan and fry the chopped onion in it, stirring, until translucent. 
Pass fish meat, fried onions and rolls through a meat grinder. Add salt, pepper and egg to them. Stir well. If you wish, you can skip the filling through the meat grinder again. 
Stuff the “voids” of the fish with minced meat. Simply put, stuff the pieces of fish.
Place peeled and sliced carrots in a wide bottomed pot. Cut the onion with the husk into rings. Send peppercorns and bay leaves there. 
Put stuffed carp on vegetables in a saucepan. Fill with boiling water. The water should just cover the fish. 
Simmer the stuffed Jewish fish over low heat under a covered lid for two hours. Do not forget to remove the foam with a slotted spoon. 
Put the finished fish on a plate, forming a carp. Sprinkle with the sauce in which the carp was cooked. Serve Jewish-style stuffed carp with vegetables and boiled rice or potatoes. 
Jewish stuffed fish is ready! Enjoy your meal!
Calories: Not specified
Time for preparing: Not specified
To cook boneless fish, I offer you a wonderful step-by-step recipe with a photo “Jewish Stuffed Fish”. I myself have cooked it many times, so I know how it is done and I can tell you, since many do not dare to cook such a dish due to ignorance. I will tell you in an accessible way how to stuff a fish and at the same time remove all the bones from it. Look at the photos, where you can see a lot of interesting things. It is very convenient to eat fish if all the bones in it are removed in advance, and many of your guests will be grateful to you for this. Moreover, the fish cooked in this way turns out to taste very tender, soft and tasty. I think you'll like this one too.
Required products:
- 1 carcass of fresh fish weighing 700-800 grams;
- 1 medium carrot;
- 1 large onion;
- 1 chicken egg;
- 50 grams of salted crackers;
- A little salt to taste;
- 1 coffee spoon of baking soda;
- 70 grams of vegetable oil;
- 50 grams of water.
Recipe with photo step by step:
First of all, I prepare the onion for the stuffing, as it needs to cool before I add it to the minced fish. I cut the onion into medium pieces, since then I will still twist the onion in a meat grinder. I send it immediately to a hot frying pan, pour in oil and water. 
Saute the onion over medium heat to get a caramel hue. I add soda to the onion, stir it for another 10 minutes and turn off the heat. 
Now that the onion is cooling down, I'm going to fish. I had a pelengas. I wash the fish, clean it carefully from the husk so as not to damage the skin. I cut the fish near the head, but not completely. Through this incision I take out the gills. I also remove my eyes. 
I begin to pull the skin of the fish, carefully holding my head. If necessary, I trim slightly with a knife, but the skin should be pulled together like a stocking. The meat and bones should remain on one side, and the skin and head on the other. 
I remove the meat from the ridge, throw out the bones. 
I grind fish meat, fried onions in a meat grinder, break a chicken egg into minced meat, and immediately crumble crackers. 
I stuff the fish. 
I make a vegetable pillow out of carrots and onions, put a fish on it, if desired, lightly water with mayonnaise. 
I bake the fish for 40 minutes until it becomes golden. 
I serve both hot and cold. It will be delicious, I promise you! 
I can easily cut such stuffed fish into portioned pieces, so that everyone will get it.
1. As in the case of cooking any fish dish, first you need to prepare the fish itself. This time I had grass carp, but any river fish that is well skinned is suitable for preparing this dish. We cut off the fins, clean the inside thoroughly and wash the carcass under running water.
2. Now we need to separate the skin from the carcass. To do this, a small incision is made near the head (the gills also need to be removed). In order not to use gelatin, I usually tie the fins and scales into a knot and boil them in the same broth. Now we need to separate the pulp from the bones, and then skip it in a meat grinder along with onions. Add an egg and a loaf soaked in milk or water to the minced meat. Add spices and salt to taste. Now your task is to “knock out” (knead) the minced meat well. Then the fish skin is filled with minced meat and the carcass is sewn along to the head. Keep in mind that the stuffing will expand during cooking, so don't stuff the fish too tightly (you can use the leftover stuffing to make fish cakes).
3. We clean our vegetables, cut them into large pieces and put them on the bottom. For a beautiful color, you can put a clean onion peel. We lower the fish and a gauze bag with giblets. Fill everything with hot water and put on fire. Cook for 2 hours so that the water does not boil much. For a beautiful ruby color, 20 minutes before cooking, I add beetroot juice (50g). Turn off our fish and let it cool completely. During cooking, do not stir the broth so as not to damage the fish and vegetables.
Israeli cuisine offers a large number of delicious recipes, and Jewish fish fish is another good example of the fact that even the simplest and most familiar products can be made into a delicious delicacy. The uniqueness of this option lies in the fact that there are a great many of its interpretations. In the East, the fish is often stuffed in pieces or whole. However, it turns out to be especially tender, juicy, refined and simply unique when peculiar cutlets are created from it, which are then stewed in fish broth with vegetables. It's just fantastic! Such a dish will be appreciated even by those who love meat more.
Cooking time - 3.5 hours.
The number of servings is 6.
Ingredients
To make fish fish according to a Jewish recipe, you will need to prepare the most familiar set of ingredients. See for yourself! There is not a single overseas, outlandish product in this set that you could not purchase at your nearest store:
- carp - 1 carcass;
- carrots - 1 pc.;
- loaf - 1 pc.;
- beets - 1 pc.;
- onion - 3 heads;
- gelatin - 7 g;
- bay leaf - 1 pc.;
- granulated sugar - ½ tsp;
- raw egg yolk - 1 pc.;
- refined vegetable oil - 1 tbsp. l.;
- salt - to taste.
How to cook fish fish according to a Jewish recipe
If you can only dream of a trip to Israel, do not be discouraged. Thanks to the proposed step-by-step recipe with a photo, you will be able to cook simply delicious Jewish fish fish as if you have lived in the East for many years. In fact, you don't have to be a super chef to do it. After all, this recipe for cooking fish fish according to a recipe from Israel is not fraught with any phenomenal difficulties.
- The fish must be descaled. The abdomen will need to be opened with a knife. All the insides are removed from it. Be sure to thoroughly clean the black film from the inside so that the finished dish is guaranteed to be rid of bitterness.
On a note! Scales should not be thrown away. We still need it. By the way, the head and skin, which we will remove later, should also be left.
- Next, you need to make a longitudinal incision along the back up to the spine itself. Touching the ribs with a knife, remove the meat. This procedure is carried out on each side of the carcass.
- Then you need to carefully pry off the skin with a knife. Carefully insert your finger into the hole. This will allow us to remove the skin without unnecessary difficulties.
- Peeled carrots will need to be finely grated. The husks are carefully removed from the bulbs. They need to be finely chopped. Take a large and deep frying pan. An odorless vegetable oil is poured into it. When it warms up well, you will need to put a mixture of onions and carrots in the pan. Vegetables need to be fried a little, after which they should be cooled at room temperature.
- The fish pulp must be sent to the blender bowl and smashed into a paste. You can do this with a food processor. If you are more used to it, use an ordinary meat grinder, but then you will need to scroll the carp meat at least 2-3 times. This should be done (regardless of the method chosen) along with the bread crumb, which must first be soaked in water.
- In minced fish, you need to put the frying of carrots and onions. An egg is broken into the mixture (only the yolk). Everything must be salted and sprinkled with ground pepper, guided by your own taste preferences. You still need to interrupt or scroll again.
- Onions, beets and carrots should be washed and cut into large rings. Vegetable cutting is laid out in a dense layer on the bottom of the container in which you plan to stew fish fish according to a Jewish recipe.
- The blank must be filled with water, lavrushka is sent there. From minced fish, you will need to mold small cutlets and put them directly into boiling water. Another steep var is added from above so that the meatballs are completely drowned in water.
- In gauze folded in half, you need to put the head, scales, bones, skin. Everything is tied tightly and sent to a container with fish. The mass should be salted. It is necessary to stew fish fish in Jewish style from 2 to 2.5 hours.
On a note! If after the specified amount of time the broth poured onto the plate does not turn into jelly, then gelatin should be added to the composition, following all the recommendations on the package. The gauze with waste must be removed.
Here is our amazing fish! Just try!
Video recipes
If you don’t know how to cook Jewish fish fish, then video recipes will help you:
