The word lakerda has passed from Spanish to Turkish and means "La kerrida", meaning "what happens when desired". It was discovered by a Spanish fisherman father, who loved this delicious appetizer very much and wanted to keep it for months, and now it is one of the most popular appetizer recipe on our tables.
Although there are many different methods for the lakerda recipe, the most well-known are the Istanbul method and the method of the fishermen from Saroz. You can easily prepare this delicious appetizer at home.
Ingredients for Lakerda Recipe:
1 large bonito (approximately 40-45 cm)
500 grams of rock salt
3-4 bay leaves
1 tablespoon of black pepper
Tip Point of Lakerda Recipe
You should definitely use fresh fish when making lakerda. If you use fish taken from the freezer, you may run the risk of spoilage. When cleaning the fish, you should thoroughly clean the marrow part of its spine using a branch or broom litter. Otherwise, the taste of your lakerda may be negatively affected. Don't forget to ask your fishmonger to prepare the fish for lakerda; The internal organs of the fish should be cleaned, the head part should be cut off at the level of the side fin, the tail part should be cut 4-5 cm inward from the end of the tail and the dorsal fin should be cut off and discarded. So, when preparing lakerda, we only use the body of the fish.
Lakerda can be made using bonito fish.
How to Make Lakerda Recipe?
Divide the body part of the fish into three equal parts and thoroughly clean the marrow part of its spine using a branch or broom handle. Then, remove the dark brown part on the inside of the fish by cutting it into a triangle shape with a pointed knife.
Soak the fish you have prepared in salty and icy water for 4 hours and change the water every hour. In this way, the fish will completely expel the blood inside.
Remove the fish from the water and lay it on a paper towel to dry. Leave them like this for 4-5 hours and let them dry completely.
Sprinkle half a centimeter of rock salt on the bottom of a glass or plastic jar.
Place the fish side by side and tightly in the jar so that the white parts touch the salt. Sprinkle bay leaves and black peppercorns on them, then cover them with salt again.
Place all the fish in the jars like this. Then put a weight (a stone or piece of marble) on top of the fish in the jar. Place a piece of wood on the weight and cover the mouth of the jar with a clean cloth.
Leave the jars like this in a cool place away from sunlight for about 20 days.
At the end of the waiting period, gently remove the fish from the salt, gently peel off the skin and slice them.
Place the sliced pieces in a bowl filled with cold water and leave them in the refrigerator overnight, changing the water every 2-3 hours. With this process, they will be purified from excess salt.
The next day, remove the fish from the water, place it in a bowl filled with olive oil, cover it and store it in the refrigerator.
Fish prepared in this way stays fresh in the refrigerator in olive oil for about 1 week. If you want to keep it for a longer time, prepare a brine by adding 750 grams of rock salt to 5 liters of water and keep the fish in this water. Before serving, you can soak it in water and remove excess salt before serving.
