Stroganina
Stoganina — is a dish of indigenous people of the nothern Arctic Siberia made from raw thin sliced frozen fish [1]. The word Stroganina is the transcription of the Russian word “строганина”. Choice of fish is very essential for this dish. Traditionally, stroganina is made with freshwater whitefish salmonids found in the Siberian Arctic waters: nelma, muksun, chir, omul [2][3]. Rarely, it can be made with Sturgeon. This dish is popular in yakutian cuisine [4], eskimo cuisine, komi cuisine, Yamal cuisine etc.
Usually, fish for stroganina is caught late fall under ice and fresh frozen in order to avoid formation of ice crystals in meat. Frozen fish can be glazed with near-freezing ice water in order to avoid dehydration and better fish meat preservation in frozen state. The fish sould be frozen straight without bending its body.
Before preparation of stroganina, strips of skin are cut from the back and abdomen from tail to head. Vertical incisions are made in the flesh. The fish is placed head down on a hard surface and skinned. Thin slices of fish fillet cut along the body using sharp knife. The geometry of the Yakutian knife is best suited to cut long slices that will form ribbon curls. In order to keep the slices frozen as long as possible, the stroganina is served immediately on a frozen plates (non-metallic) or in ice-cold bowls[5] with salt and black pepper powder. It should be eaten with hands while still frozen. Stroganina, like caviar, is meant to be consumed with good vodka. But unlike the salty pop of the fish eggs, the taste of stroganina isn’t sharp enough to interfere with the earthy flavor of a fine vodka.