Royal fish: what kind of fish is called royal, 4 recipes for fish dishes in a royal way

What kind of fish is called “royal”

More than 20,000 species of fish live in the underwater world. But of all this diversity, the most popular are river and lake species, which are also called royal.

So, in Rus', sturgeon was considered a real king fish. On the royal table, baked sturgeon was the most delicious and rich treat.

Sturgeon are one of the oldest and longest-living fish species, but today they are on the verge of complete extinction. And even the fact that sturgeon is listed in the Red Book cannot affect the current situation. The “royal” fish is exterminated for its meat and caviar, which are distinguished by their excellent taste and nutritional qualities. Today, sturgeon is bred in established farms, and the production of black caviar has come under an official ban.

Sturgeon is indeed a very valuable and healthy fish. It contains a lot of vitamins, microelements, and most importantly, it has a high content of glutamic acid, which is used in medicine to treat various diseases of the nervous system, and in cooking as a flavor enhancer. That is why sturgeon is so tasty and is called the king fish.

Popular types of “royal” fish

In addition to sturgeon, there are other types of “royal” fish, but more often they are called noble. All of them live in rivers with a sandy bottom and feed on protein foods, so their meat is endowed with high nutritional properties. At the same time, the delicate structure of the meat and the absence of small bones make it possible to easily obtain excellent fillet for creating truly original dishes.

So, one of the noble river fish species is the inhabitant of the Irtysh and the rivers of Siberia - the sterlet. And also beluga, which can be found in the Volga, Kama, Dnieper and Danube rivers. The Volga is also home to another “royal” species – sturgeon, which is caught both in the Don and Terek. Another resident of the Volga is the whitefish. Well, what would a holiday table be without trout?

Which fish is considered king?

In the Middle Ages, it was customary to call those fish that were especially valued by the nobility royal. In Rus', during the time of Ivan the Terrible, sterlet was considered royal. This breed of sturgeon fish was caught only for supplies to the royal table. During the time of Peter I, on the initiative of the progressive ruler, they even tried to breed sterlet in the pond farms of Peterhof.

Dishes for a huge royal feast were often prepared by baking a large sturgeon or beluga. Smaller varieties (trout or sterlet) were added to the decoction of small fish.

Sterlet and sturgeon are still found in the clean rivers of the European part of Russia (the basins of the Black and Azov Seas, the Caspian and Volga, Lakes Ladoga and Onega), and are artificially populated in the Neman, Oka, and Pechora. Sterlet also lives in large rivers of Siberia.

Nowadays, all valuable commercial species are more often referred to as king fish. These include:

sturgeon species (sterlet, sturgeon, beluga, stellate sturgeon, etc.);
certain varieties of salmon (trout, salmon);
local rare varieties (red mullet, tench, whitefish, grayling, omul, etc.).

Sometimes the whitefish is surprising - only specialists know that it is a representative of salmon. The habitat and diet help determine whether a fish is a royal fish. The king fish lives in the clear water of rivers or ponds with a clean sandy bottom. Most often, its main food is small aquatic inhabitants, insect larvae

Regardless of which fish is considered king, it has tender meat with a special taste.

Royal stuffed fish in the oven

If you are planning a real royal feast, then be sure to prepare stuffed noble fish. Your guests will be truly delighted with this treat!

For the recipe, take any of the described types of fish weighing up to 2 kg.

Ingredients:

420 g mushrooms;
two medium onions and two carrots;
135 ml cream;
medium lemon fruit;
oil, spices.

Cooking method:

Season the fish carcass with spices, sprinkle with citrus juice and set aside for now - let it marinate.
At this time, chop the vegetables. Fry them in oil until soft, then add mushrooms to them, add a little salt and pepper. Pour in the cream and simmer until all the ingredients are fully cooked. For the recipe, you can use porcini mushrooms or regular champignons.
We stuff the belly of the fish with the filling, and to prevent it from falling out during baking, we sew up the edges with thread or simply chop them off with toothpicks.
Place the stuffed fish on foil, place citrus slices on top, wrap and place in the oven for an hour (temperature – 160 °C).
Then unfold the foil, grease the fish with oil, increase the heat to 200 degrees and continue baking the dish for another hour.

If you have time and desire, you can completely clean the fish from meat, that is, pull off the skin from it like a stocking. The meat will then need to be cleaned of bones and, together with fried vegetables and mushrooms, chopped to the consistency of minced meat. All that remains is to fill the skin with the filling, the edges of which should then be sewn up. The dish is baked in the same way for two hours.

Be sure to decorate the baked stuffed fish before serving. For decoration, you can take fresh herbs, lemon slices and red caviar.

With rice

Royal fish, baked in the oven along with rice cereal, will become a complete dish for dinner. The product turns out to be quite filling and very juicy. The outside of the delicacy is covered with a ruddy and delicious cheese crust. The fish can be baked whole or cut into pieces. In the first case, the product turns out more tender. However, the calorie content of the treat will be quite high, so you need to consume the dish in moderation so as not to gain extra pounds.

What ingredients will you need?

You can make a fish delicacy with rice yourself, having the following products available:

large carrots with tomato and onion – 75 g each;
mayonnaise – 75 g;
spices, salt - to taste;
rice – 250 g;
fish – 700 g;
fresh dill - at your discretion;
grated hard cheese – 200 g.

To make the sauce, you can use not only mayonnaise, but also sour cream. The fat content of the latter should be at least 20%.

Step-by-step cooking process

You can make royal fish with rice at home by following these steps:

The fish must be washed by removing the skin and bones and sprinkling with salt and spices.
You will need to transfer the semi-finished fish product onto an oiled baking sheet.
Rice must be boiled in lightly salted liquid and drained in a colander. After excess liquid has drained, place the cereal in an even layer on top of the fish.
Mayonnaise should be placed in a bowl, adding chopped onions and carrots and stirring everything thoroughly. The sauce needs to be evenly distributed over the rice.
At the end, you need to add chopped cheese and add a tomato cut into thin rings.
The workpiece will need to be placed in an oven preheated to 180 °C for approximately 40 minutes. After the specified time, sprinkle with chopped herbs and bake for another 15 minutes.

When the required time is up, you can taste the fish royally with rice.

Serving rules, decoration

When serving, the baked delicacy must be supplemented with fresh vegetables in the form of tomatoes and cucumbers. If necessary, the product can be additionally seasoned with mayonnaise.

With cheese and bell pepper

We offer another recipe for a fish dish that will be a good choice for a family or holiday dinner. For the recipe you will need a fillet of any “royal” fish, weighing one kilogram.

Ingredients:

two onions;
one bell pepper;
one large tomato;
180 ml mayonnaise;
any seasonings for fish dishes.

Cooking method:

Chop the onion into rings and mix with mayonnaise and spices.
Cut the fish fillet into portions and add to the onion. Mix and set aside for 20 minutes.
At this time, chop the tomato into slices, and the sweet pepper into strips.
Spray the foil with oil. We put the marinated fillet with onions on it, put tomato slices and sweet pepper on top, pour mayonnaise over everything and sprinkle with grated cheese.
Wrap and bake for half an hour (temperature – 200 °C).
Serve the dish with herbs, vegetables and boiled potatoes.

The simplest recipe

Royal fish in the oven, the recipe of which can be supplemented with cheese and vegetables, comes out quite tender and juicy in taste.

The calorie content of the product will reach approximately 132 kcal per 100 g of treat.

What ingredients will you need?

The ingredients required to make royal fish are listed below:

bell pepper – as needed;
onions – 150 g;
mayonnaise – 200 g;
tomato – 100 g;
fish fillet – 900 g;
spices for fish, salt - to your taste;
hard cheese – 100 g.

The main ingredient is tilapia or trout fillet.

Step-by-step cooking process

The step-by-step process of preparing a fish delicacy in the oven is shown in the following paragraphs:

The fish fillet must be washed and chopped into portions.
You will need to peel the onion and then cut it into half rings.
Then you need to combine the fillet with onions, adding salt, spices, pepper and mixing everything well. The workpiece should be placed in the refrigerator compartment for approximately 20 minutes.
You need to lay parchment on a baking sheet, coat it with vegetable oil, and place fish pieces on top.
You will need to pour the mayonnaise mixture onto the semi-finished fish products and place the tomato and pepper cut into half rings.
Next, you should make a mayonnaise mesh, sprinkle cheese on top and send the semi-finished products into the oven.
The dish needs to be cooked for 30 minutes. at a temperature of 200 °C.

After the required time has passed, you can taste the royal fish.

Serving rules, decoration

When serving, it is recommended to complement the fish delicacy with sprigs of dill and fresh cucumbers. If desired, the treat can be topped with any sauce.

Cooking in walnuts

If you want to make your daily menu more varied, we recommend frying fish in walnuts. For the recipe you will also need a fillet of any noble fish weighing half a kilogram.

Ingredients:

280 g walnuts;
one chicken egg;
spoon of milk;
two spoons of flour.

How to cook fish in nuts:

Sprinkle the fish fillet with salt and pepper and leave to marinate for half an hour.
In one bowl, beat the egg with milk, pour the chopped walnuts into another. Fill the third bowl with flour.
Now let's take the fillet. First, sprinkle it with flour, then dip it in the egg mixture, and then bread it in nuts. Fry in hot oil on both sides for three minutes.
As soon as all the fish pieces are fried, put them in a mold, cover with foil and put in the oven for seven minutes (temperature - 180 ° C).

Fish baked royally with dill and rice

Another dish for a real royal table is baked fish with herbs and rice. For the recipe, we also take fillets of any “royal” fish weighing one kilogram.

Ingredients:

two onions;
110 g dill;
half a glass of rice grains;
110 g mushrooms;
130 ml mayonnaise.

Cooking method:

We cut the fish fillet into portions and season each piece with spices.
Boil the rice grains until half cooked.
Simmer the chopped onions and mushrooms until the liquid has completely evaporated. Then add finely chopped dill and mayonnaise to them. Mix the mixture and turn off the heat after a couple of minutes.
Place fish on a sheet of foil, cereal on top and cover the grains with vegetables. Wrap the workpiece and put it in the oven for half an hour (temperature – 180 °C).

With red caviar

Royal fish in the oven, the recipe of which is recommended to be supplemented with red caviar, will have a pleasant delicate taste and aroma thanks to the creamy sauce.

What ingredients will you need?

Food products that are necessary to decorate a product with red caviar are listed in the following list:

dry white wine – 50 ml;
dill greens – 1 sprig;
red caviar – 50 g;
olive oil – 30 ml;
freshly ground pepper - as needed;
cream – 300 ml;
lemon juice – 25 ml;
salt - to your taste;
salmon fillet – 400 g.

Instead of salmon fillet, you can use trout. The fat content of cream should be at least 30%. When making a creamy sauce, it is permissible to exclude wine from the composition. You just need to simmer the liquid cream until it thickens, and then add red caviar. To check the readiness of the fish in the thickest part of the fillet, you need to push the fibers apart. The procedure can be performed using a fork. Fully baked fish should have a matte pink flesh. The above ingredients are enough for 2 servings.

Step-by-step cooking process

The step-by-step process of making a treat with red caviar is described in the following paragraphs:

Fish fillets need to be washed and dried.
Next, the product should be poured with citrus juice, coated with oil, salt and pepper.
Then the semi-finished fish product must be placed in a baking dish and cooked in the oven for 20 minutes. at a temperature of 180 °C.
To create the sauce, pour wine into a saucepan and heat it until it has evaporated by half.
Then you will need to add whipped cream to the wine, stir everything thoroughly and simmer until it thickens.
Next, you need to add red caviar and salt and pepper to the ingredients, mixing everything thoroughly and, if desired, adding a few chopped sprigs of dill.

At the end, you can taste the finished fish delicacy.

Serving rules, decoration

The baked fish needs to be distributed among plates, pouring creamy sauce on top. If desired, the delicacy can be decorated with fresh herbs.

Important cooking tips

If you bake the whole fish, make shallow cuts on it. This way it will be completely baked, and the small bones will dissolve in it without a trace.

Fish should be seasoned not only on its surface, but also inside, so that the finished dish is even more appetizing and aromatic.
The fish must be saturated with spices, so after applying the seasonings, give it time to absorb all their taste and smell.
Only from a fresh catch can you prepare a truly delicious fish dish.
If you want to add sourness to the dish, you can use lemon juice. In other cases, it is not necessary to add citrus.

There is nothing complicated in preparing “royal” fish. On the contrary, its meat is so tasty and self-sufficient that it does not require any special preparation or the use of unnecessary spices. Therefore, preparing such a product is a real pleasure!

Description of preparation:

Remember the episode with the royal “banquet” from the film “Ivan Vasilyevich Changes His Profession”?
Once upon a time, the whole country laughed at Savely Kramarov’s character, sighing over “overseas” caviar. But as soon as huge dishes with whole baked fish appeared in the frame, the audience began to sigh. This is not a silver hake - the best friend of a Soviet citizen... This is a royal fish! Times are changing and today, probably, each of us can at least occasionally afford a whole pike, pike perch, salmon or even sturgeon (well, it doesn’t hurt to dream, at least!). Baking such a fish whole is a difficult task only at first glance. In fact, the oven will do the bulk of the work, and all you have to do is graciously accept the grateful feedback from your guests. Of course, there is more than one recipe for royal fish, but I offer you this one - with mushrooms. I think you will be pleased with the result. Purpose: For lunch / For dinner / For a holiday table / Christmas / Holiday lunch Main ingredient: Fish and seafood / Sturgeon Dish: Hot dishes Geography of cuisine: Russian cuisine