CHAPTER 21 

 Miscellaneous Processes of Preserving Fish 



Variety of Products 



The principal processes of fish preservation are canning, salting, smoking, and 

 drying; in fact, in the United States few fish are preserved by other means. In 

 Maine some herring are lightly salted and then pickled in a brine containing 

 vinegar according to a process generally known as marinating. These fish are sold 

 chiefly to Europeans living in New York and other large cities. Recently, many 

 novel canned fishery products have appeared on the American market, but the 

 primary means of preservation is sealing in tin or glass and subsequent steriliza- 

 tion (canning). These products are considered in the section on canning of fish 

 (Chapter 20). 



But in Europe, where the inhabitants are more dependent upon food from the 

 sea, vinegar, spices, and other preservatives are commonly employed for the 

 preparation and preservation of various fishery products. To obtain finely flavored 

 products vinegar is often used in combination with salt, spices, etc. Fish are often 

 fried in oil before being preserved in spiced vinegar. Slightly salted fish are some- 

 times preserved in vinegar. Meatless sausage is made by substituting fish for meat. 



Since fish are one of the most common articles of diet in Japan and the Philippine 

 Islands, they are preserved in almost every conceivable manner. Various fer- 

 mented products, such as bagoong, are prepared. Fish are pickled in hot pure or 

 spiced vinegar, without salting. The flesh of sharks is utilized for the preparation 

 of an edible paste. Fish puddings are prepared, and are often flavored with 

 alcoholic liquors. 



Many of these unusual products might be successfully introduced in the United 

 States. Some of them are sold in small quantities in several cities where the foreign 

 population is very large. The difficulty of establishing a market among native 

 Americans lies in the cost of an advertising campaign of sufficient extent to 

 familiarize the public with the value of novel products. 



Fish Pickled in Vinegar or Marinated 



According to the common usage of the term, "marinated" fish are those which 

 are soaked in vinegar sauce. The fish are prepared for the vinegar pickle either 

 by baking and frying or by salting in either salt brine or brine containing some 

 vinegar. In southern Europe marinated fish are fried in hot oil and packed in 

 spiced vinegar. Although some marinated fish are packed in the United States and 

 Great Britain, the industry is centered chiefly in Continental Europe, especially in 

 Germany. 



The finest German marinades formerly came from Stralsund, Rugen, and 

 Danzig along the Pomeranian and Prussian coasts. Important marinade factories 



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