Fish Solyanka
If you've purchased whole sterlet or sturgeon for the fish solyanka, rather than fillets, clean them, remove the guts, head, fins, and tail. Then, remove the fillet from the backbone, carefully removing the rib bones. Rinse the fillet and set aside.
- River fish
- Onions
- Carrot
- Parsley (root)
- Water
- Bay leaf
- Black peppercorns
- Salt
- Fresh sturgeon
- Onions
- Pickled cucumber
- Butter
- Lemon
- Tomato paste
- Olives
- Parsley
- Capers
- Dill
- Lemon
- Ground black pepper
- Salt
- Prepare the fish solyanka broth. Coarsely chop the onion, carrot, and parsley root and fry in a dry frying pan for 3 minutes. Clean, gut, and rinse the fish thoroughly.
- Place the fish in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Skim off any foam, add the sautéed vegetables, bay leaf, salt, and peppercorns. Simmer for 1 hour over low heat.
- Strain the resulting fish broth into a small, clean saucepan through cheesecloth folded in quarters. Be careful not to let even the smallest bones get into the broth.
- For the solyanka, cut the sterlet or sturgeon fillet into portions. Peel and finely chop the onion. Peel and cut the pickles into strips. If the cucumbers are large, remove the seeds.
- Melt the butter in a frying pan and brown the onion. Add the cucumbers, lemon juice, and tomato paste. Simmer uncovered over medium heat, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes. Transfer to a large saucepan for the solyanka.
- Pour in the broth and bring to a boil. Add the fish fillet, olives, and capers. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer, covered, for 10 minutes.
- Wash the parsley and dill, dry them, and chop finely. Let the fish solyanka sit on the hot stove, covered, for 15 minutes (turn off the heat), then ladle into bowls. Add the herbs and a slice of lemon to each.
Remember that fish solyanka is a very filling and thick soup (the kind that makes a spoon stand up straight), so a medium portion of it can easily replace both a first and second course.
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Classic solyanka soup is perfect for the second or third day of the holiday—when people crave something hot instead of the tired salads. Feeling up to the challenge? Then go ahead! Incidentally, making solyanka will help you use up leftover cold meats that aren't looking their best and are unlikely to be eaten plain. Ideally, broth requires slow, thoughtful preparation and proper bone-in preparation, but you'll agree, you're unlikely to want to do that on January 1st or 2nd. So, let's make a broth from whatever you have (or maybe you have some frozen) and prepare classic solyanka soup according to our tried-and-true recipe!
This incredible fish solyanka with salted trout is a restaurant-quality dish. Its recipe was developed by Vladimir Sidorov, head chef of the Cheretto More restaurant. What's so incredible about it? Firstly, it's a very rich solyanka made with three types of fish. Secondly, it's complemented by lightly salted trout, which remains raw. Thirdly, this trout solyanka is served royally, with pike caviar on a slice of baguette. In short, it's all very expensive and sumptuous, perfect for special occasions. The recipe calls for salmon fillet alongside catfish and perch. This doesn't obligate you to use expensive salmon; rather, it gives you a choice: you can use the same trout, only fresh, in addition to lightly salted, or any other fish from the salmon family.
Fish solyanka is a truly special dish: it's a traditional first course, but it's so rich it can easily replace a whole meal. That means you won't need a second course! Incidentally, this fish solyanka is a great early dinner, especially if you've been too busy working and haven't had lunch. After this dish, the chances of that notorious "night craving" are reduced to zero. And on a weekend, you can serve it in a traditional Russian style, serving this fish solyanka with rasstegai or kulebyaka. It won't be a lunch, it'll be a real celebration!
