Oh man that looks good DD.
I copied this from the shanty. Over the years of pickling fish I've perfected my recipe.
Only pickle thoroughly frozen / thawed fish. Parasitic worms are a real possibility.
Wash fillets in cold water and cut into chunks
Brine; Thoroughly dissolve;
2 cups pickling salt
6 cups distilled water (very important to avoid a nasty mineral taste)
Soak fish in brine 4-6 hours or so in the refrigerator.
Remove fish and rinse thoroughly in cold water...discard brine
Heat;
3 cups white vinegar ( at least 5% acid)
1 cup cider vinegar ( at least 5% acid)
1 cup semi sweet white wine (something you'd drink)
2 cups sugar
4 tsp pickling spice
Bring to a slow boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes or so to infuse the spices into the pickling. Remove from heat cool to room temp.
Strain pickling spices through cheesecloth or fine sieve to remove spices (I don't always do this, but it's better if you don't like chomping into a chunk of clove or a pepper corn)
Layer fish / Vidalia onion, sliced about 1/8," in a clean glass jar. (I save my pickle jars) Pack fairly well.
Pour cooled pickling over fish/onions to completely cover contents.
With a long utensil (I use a chopstick) poke down into the packed jar to remove any air bubbles and refill with remaining pickling solution.
Cover tightly and refrigerate for a good week before eating (if you can stand to wait that long )
Keep refrigerated!
Should be consumed within 4 - 6 weeks......like it's gonna last that long
Looks like this
Works for any mild fish. Walleye gets much firmer than perch, bluegill or crappie. Bass through the ice come out pretty tasty too. I remove the lateral lines on bass and walleye.
Perch are still my favorite.
RG