How to salt dried roach at home: a complete guide – from preparation to drying

When choosing fresh fish for salting roach at home, pay attention to the following points:

• Smell: Fresh river fish smells slightly of mud and seaweed. Any strong ammonia or rancid notes indicate the beginning of decomposition.
• Eyes – in fresh fish, they are bulging and clear. Cloudy, sunken, or film-covered eyes indicate that the fish has been sitting on the counter for a long time.
• The gills should be bright red or pink. If they have darkened to brown or become covered in mucus, the fish is of poor quality.

Preparing fish for salting

Rinse fresh or pre-defrosted fish under cold running water to remove any slime from the scales. The scales themselves are usually left on—they protect the flesh from drying out.

Small fish weighing up to 300 grams are usually salted whole, removing only the gills. Larger fish weighing 500 grams or more must be gutted. Some chefs suggest making several shallow cuts along the back of the roach to speed up the salting process.

Methods for salting dried roach at home

There are two classic methods: dry and wet, or brine. Each has its own characteristics, so the decision on how to salt roach depends on the size of the fish and the desired result.

Dry method

This method is considered traditional and is the most preferable for large and medium-sized fish: it allows you to obtain a dense, elastic product with a concentrated flavor.

For every 1 kg of fish, you'll need 250–300 g of coarse rock salt. Place the fish tightly, back-side down, in a special food container, generously sprinkling each layer with salt. Place a 1 kg weight on top, and then store the fish in a cool place—a refrigerator, cellar, or balcony.

Wet method

Wet salting is ideal for small fish. First, prepare a very strong salt solution—brine. For 3 liters of water, you'll need about 1 kg of coarse non-iodized salt.

The concentration of the solution is traditionally tested using a raw egg or a peeled potato: they should float to the surface.

Place the washed and prepared fish tightly in a container, cover with cooled brine, place a weight on top, and refrigerate for 3-5 days.

It's believed that wet salting results in faster and more even salting throughout the entire thickness of the fish, but the meat may be more watery than with dry salting. Therefore, the choice of how to salt roach at home is up to the cook.

Mixed method

There's a third method of salting—a mixed method. First, the fish is rubbed with salt, sometimes with spices, and then placed in a container under pressure. After a couple of days, most of the liquid that has separated is removed, and cold brine is poured in its place. The fish is left in this state for several more days.

The dry process quickly draws out excess moisture and firms the muscle tissue, while the wet process helps the salt distribute more evenly throughout the entire thickness of the fish, including the densest areas near the spine. This combined method is often used for larger fish, such as bream and carp, which are difficult to properly salt using the dry method alone.

If you want to prepare a spicy salted roach, simply mix in some fish-friendly spices with regular rock salt: bay leaf, black and allspice peas, cloves, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, pieces of dried ginger root, nutmeg, etc.

How long should you salt fish for roach?

Dry-curing small fish weighing up to 100g takes on average 1–2 days. Medium-sized fish weighing 600–800g require 3–4 days, while larger fish can take up to 2 weeks.

How to salt dried roach and proceed to drying

The fish is considered salted when the carcass becomes firm and elastic, the eyes take on a reddish tint, and a characteristic crunching sound is heard when tugging on the head. The juices released should be clear and stop flowing.

Thoroughly salt the fish, first rinse it thoroughly under cold running water, inside and out, and then soak it. This is necessary, firstly, to remove excess salt. A classic rule of thumb is to soak the fish in clean water for as many hours as it took to salt, changing the water at least once an hour.

The second important point is that water washes away the remains of coagulated blood, excess mucus and fish oil concentrates from the surface of the scales.

Some chefs recommend soaking the fish in a weak vinegar solution for 30 minutes before drying. This will remove bacteria from the surface of the fish and also help repel insects, which is especially important for those planning to dry the roach outdoors.

Drying roach

First, pierce the soaked fish with an awl at the base of the tail, then thread it onto a hook or through the hole with a stiff thread. Larger fish can have their bellies pried open using toothpicks to improve air circulation.

Hang the prepared fish in a well-ventilated area, protected from direct sunlight and rain. This could be a glassed-in balcony, an attic, a drying box, or simply a permanently shaded spot in your dacha. Leave at least 5 cm between the fish.

It is better to dry the dried roach head down - this way the residual bitterness from the gall bladder will flow into the head, which can then be easily removed.

Air-drying is the most traditional method, producing delicious, fatty, and translucent roach with a characteristic amber hue. Please note: in the sun, fish oil quickly oxidizes (goes rancid), and the flesh becomes tough and tasteless.

The main problem with outdoor drying is the large number of small insects. To prevent them from getting on the product, use special drying boxes with mosquito nets (available on marketplaces) or double-layered cheesecloth.

Drying in a ventilated area is a great help for residents of apartment buildings. A storage room, a glazed balcony, a garage, or even a hallway are all suitable. It's important to provide forced-air ventilation: you can use a household fan pointed along the fish garland, or open the windows to create a gentle breeze.

Another important factor to consider when drying fish indoors is humidity. If it's too high, the fish may start to mold instead of drying.

How can you cook taranka at home if you don't have a balcony or garage? In this case, you can use the quick oven method, but it's important to understand that the meat will have a denser texture and a darker color.

Preheat the oven to 40–60°C, line the rack with parchment paper, and arrange the fish in a single layer, making sure they don't touch. Leave the oven door open 10–15 cm and dry the roach for 4–8 hours, turning it over several times. After this, professional chefs recommend hanging the fish in the open air for 1–2 days to allow the fish to fully mature and the flavor to develop.

It's important not only to know how to properly salt roach but also to recognize when it's dry enough. When ready, the fish has firm, translucent, reddish-amber flesh. The scales are tightly attached but easily removed. When the tail is bent, the flesh doesn't snap with a dry crack, but springs back slightly. The interior shouldn't feel damp or sticky.

Mistakes when salting dried roach and how to avoid them

The two main problems with homemade voranka are oversalting and overdrying. To avoid this, consider the following:

1. Use only coarse, non-iodized rock salt. Fine, "extra" salt quickly forms a thick crust on the surface of the fish, blocking moisture from escaping. Iodized salt can impart an unpleasant flavor to the dried roach.

2. Salt small fish separately from larger ones. Otherwise, some of the fish will be oversalted and others undersalted.

3. Be sure to gut large and medium-sized carcasses, especially in summer. Failure to do so will cause the entrails to begin to decompose within two days, rendering the finished roach simply inedible.

4. After salting, soak the fish for the same number of hours as the days it spent in the salt. Otherwise, the roach will be oversalted on the outside, but moist on the inside and may even spoil.

5. Dry the dried roach only in a well-ventilated area, away from direct sunlight and insects. This will help protect it from contamination, overdrying, and the development of an unpleasant bitterness.

How to store cooked taranka

The main enemies of any dried fish are oxygen, excess moisture and direct sunlight.

The optimal storage conditions are considered to be:

1. Temperature from +3 to +8 °C

2. Air humidity 75–80%

3. Complete absence of direct sunlight

Dry roach can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 months, wrapped in kraft paper first. Avoid using plastic bags, as condensation will quickly cause the fish to mold.

Dry roach can be stored in the freezer for up to 4–6 months. The fish should also be tightly wrapped in parchment and then vacuum-sealed. Once defrosted, it retains virtually no flavor, although it may become softer.

Some chefs suggest storing dried roach in large glass jars. First, pack the fish tightly, then burn off the oxygen with a candle and seal tightly with a plastic lid. Store in a dark place for no longer than 4 months.

Frequently asked questions

Why does dried roach taste bitter?

Bitterness in cooked roach is almost always the result of improper preparation. There may be several causes:

1. Gall bladder damaged during gutting

2. Dry head up or in the sun

3. Improper storage of the finished product

Can frozen fish be salted?

Yes, with proper, gentle defrosting, the protein fiber structure remains virtually identical to that of fresh fish. Moreover, frozen fish is considered safer.

How to speed up the drying process

Traditional salting and drying of dried roach takes from one to three weeks. Theoretically, you can save a couple of days by using brine injection during salting and an oven, dehydrator, or powerful fan for drying.

Recipe for taranka

This recipe will show you how to salt roach at home using Black Sea roach. This small fish of the carp family is a subspecies of the common roach, but is tastier and fattier. It primarily inhabits the desalinated areas of the Black and Azov Seas, but also enters rivers to spawn. Roach flesh is excellent for drying in natural conditions.

1 hour

Additional time: 10 days

To prepare 2 servings you will need:

• small roach - 1 kg
• coarse rock salt

1. Rinse the roach carcasses in cold water, removing any slime or dirt. Small fish, weighing up to 200 g, don't need to be gutted, but larger specimens should be gutted. There's no need to scale them, but be sure to remove the gills.

2. Boil approximately 1 liter of good drinking water, add 200 g of salt, stir, and wait until the sediment is completely dissolved. Test the brine concentration using a potato or a chicken egg. If necessary, add another 50–100 g of salt.

3. Cool the brine to room temperature or below. Pack the fish tightly into a food-safe plastic container (an enamel tray or saucepan will do). Try to arrange the fish so that there are as few empty spaces as possible.

4. Pour cold brine over the fish. The liquid should cover the roach by 2-3 cm. Place a wooden board or flat plate on top, apply weight, cover with cheesecloth, and place in a cool place for approximately 2-3 days.

5. When the fish is sufficiently salted, rinse it under running water, place it in a large saucepan or bowl, cover with cold water, and leave to soak for the same number of hours as the days it spent in the salt. Change the water every hour.

6. Pierce the soaked roach with an awl near the tail, attach them to a hook, and hang them on a glassed-in balcony, spaced a short distance apart. Keep the carcasses out of direct sunlight and away from insects.

7. Dry the dried roach for 3 to 7 days, depending on temperature, humidity, and the presence of a draft. The finished fish should become translucent and take on an amber hue, while remaining quite firm.

Helpful advice

For hanging fish, it is very convenient to use ordinary stainless steel paper clips.