Russian fish names in English: koryushka, skumbria, kambala, taranka, yukola
Koryushka is smelt, skumbria is mackerel, kambala is flounder. A glossary of the Russian fish names on American store shelves, and what we make under each one
Blog
Salmon belly: what the cut is, why it is the richest, and how to serve it
Salmon belly is the fattiest strip of the fish and the one that takes smoke deepest. What the cut is, how it compares to lox, and how we...
Dried flounder (kambala): how to take it apart, and what taranka has to do with it
Kambala is flounder; taranka is the habit of eating dried fish with beer. How to take a dried flounder apart by hand and what to put next to...
Koryushka: the smelt that smells like cucumber, and why we dry it for six days
Koryushka is smelt. Fresh, it smells like cucumber; dried whole for six days, it keeps for months. What it is, how we make it, how to eat it,...
Dried squid: salty, spicy or BBQ, and how to eat it
Three dried squids from one squid: salty, spicy and BBQ, the only one smoked over real wood. How to tear it, warm it and eat it, from a...
Skumbria: what Russian smoked mackerel is, and how ours differs from the Lithuanian kind
Skumbria is Russian for mackerel. What the Lithuanian whole-fish kind is, how our boneless fillet is smoked over wood, and what to put it on
Trout jerky: steelhead or rainbow, and how to choose
Steelhead and rainbow trout are one species, and the fatter one makes better jerky. What trout jerky is, why ours is dried and how long it keeps
Yukola and candied trout: what the word means and how we make it
Yukola is wind-dried fish from the Far East and, in US Russian stores, sweet honey-glazed trout. How candied trout is made and how it differs from jerky
Real Smoke vs Liquid Smoke: How to Tell What You Are Buying
Most smoked fish on American shelves never met a fire. Here is how the two methods differ, and the three things on a label that tell you which...