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Ear from the head of a carp

Ukha from a carp head

Wholesome and tasty, light and simple, for lunch or dinner! Carp ukha always comes out wonderfully fragrant. You can adjust how thick it is and add other vegetables. It's a budget soup — especially since you'll make a separate dish out of the carp itself. It's rich, light, and filling!

Maria

Recipe author

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Composition / ingredients

Servings:

Water

2.5

Millet

Carp (large head)

Potatoes

Celery stalk

Carrots

Onion

Bay leaf

Allspice (berries)

Salt

Translation table of volumetric measures

Nutrients and energy value of the composition of the recipe

By weight of the composition:

Proteins 67 % 10 g

Fats 20 % 3 g

Carbohydrates 13 % 2 g

72 kcal

GI: 50 / 0 / 50

Cooking method

Step 1:

How do you cook ukha from a carp head? First, gather the ingredients. If you have a couple of body steaks or the tail along with the head, use those too — the ukha will only come out richer and tastier. Rinse the carp head thoroughly and remove the gills. Rinse the fish well again. No blood clots should remain, or they'll turn the broth an unappealing brown.
Step 2:

Cut the celery stalks into fairly short pieces so they fit in the pot. You don't need to strip the leaves off the stalks.
Step 3:

Put the carp head, celery, a whole onion, bay leaves, allspice berries, and salt in a pot. Cover the fish with cold water and set it over low heat. Bring it to a boil. Simmer for 20–30 minutes, skimming off the foam. The head should cook down well and give all its flavor to the broth.
Step 4:

While the broth cooks, rinse the millet until the water runs clear and drain it.
Step 5:

Peel the potatoes and cut them into medium cubes.
Step 6:

Peel and grate the carrot on the coarse side of a grater.
Step 7:

Lift the cooked-down onion, celery, peppercorns, and bay leaves out of the finished broth — you won't need them anymore. Take out the carp head too, but don't throw it away. Strain the broth through a sieve or cheesecloth into a clean pot. Return the pot of broth to medium heat and bring it back to a boil.
Step 8:

Add the carrot, millet, and potatoes to the boiling broth. Cook, stirring, at a gentle simmer for about 20 minutes, until the potatoes and millet are done.
Step 9:

While the potatoes cook, pick all the meat out of the carp head. If you also cooked the tail and pieces of fish, separate that meat from the bones as well.
Step 10:

Once the vegetables and millet are done, add the fish meat to them. Add more salt to the ukha if needed. Cover the pot and let the ukha rest for 10–15 minutes.
Step 11:

The carp ukha is ready! Ladle it into bowls and sprinkle with chopped fresh herbs if you like. Enjoy!

You can use less or more water than the recipe calls for, depending on whether you want a thicker or thinner soup.
Since everyone's tolerance for salt, sweetness, bitterness, heat, acidity, and spice is different, always add spices and seasonings to your own taste! If you're using a seasoning for the first time, keep in mind that some are especially easy to overdo (chili pepper, for instance).
If you like, you can add a special ukha spice blend on top of the seasonings listed here.