It may not seem like much. Its humble fare indeed  but washed down with an ice-cold pilsner on a hot July evening . . . its about as fine a thing as you can find.

Pickled Pike
Ingredients:
–  roughly 1 lb.  northern pike fillets, cut into 1-inch chunks/strips
– 1 cup coarse salt
– 1 litre distilled white vinegar
– 3/4 cup sugar– 1 carrot, thinly sliced
– 1 red onion, thinly sliced
– 1-inch piece fresh horseradish, peeled and thinly sliced
– 4 slices of lemon peel, approx. 1 x 1 inch
– 4 slices fresh ginger, peeled and thinly
– 2 tsp. allspice berries
– 2 tsp. whole yellow mustard seeds
– 1/2 tsp. black peppercorns
– 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)
– 3 whole garlic cloves, peeled
– 5 cloves, whole
– 4 bay leaves

Directions:
1. Fillet pike (small to medium pike are best) removing as many large bones as possible, the vinegar solution will dissolve the remaining Y-bones. 

2. Make a brine by combining the salt with a quart of water in a large Mason-type glass jar. Put the pike in the brine and soak for 24 hours. Drain the pike, but do not rinse it. Add the litre of vinegar to the fish and soak it for an additional 24 hours. Drain the fish, reserving one cup of the vinegar for later, and refrigerate.

3. Mix the reserved cup of vinegar, a 1/2 cup of water, and sugar in a saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, once the sugar is dissolved remove from the heat and allow to cool completely.

4. In a 1-litre Mason jar, add roughly a quarter of the fish, then add some of the spices and sliced carrot and onion; repeat with the remainder of the fish, spices, and vegetables so that the ingredients are distributed evenly. Pour the vinegar mixture into the jar. Cover tightly and refrigerate for at least three days to let the flavours mingle.

5. Serve the pike and vegetables with fresh cheddar on top of an original ritz cracker, pair it with ice-cold cheap pilsner or lager. Or serve on top of toasted rye with butter, and pair with shots of akvavit.

Note:Be sure to freeze the pike fillets for at least 72 hours to make sure that any tapeworms present are eliminated.