Why pike is useful, properties and photos of fish

The benefits and harms of pike are a topic of interest to those who like to pamper themselves with river fish. To correctly determine when pike is useful and when it is harmful, you need to study its features.

What does the pike look like and where is it found?

Fish from the Shchukovye family are highly prized by avid anglers - and by ordinary consumers. Fish live in lakes and rivers, prefers calm, but fresh water - they do not like fast currents or stagnant ponds.

It is quite simple to recognize the fish - it is always large, can reach 1 m in length, and sometimes weighs 20 kg. Its scales are small, gray-green, with small light spots, and the tail and fins are red. The fish belongs to the category of carnivores, so its mouth is dotted with small but sharp teeth.

The chemical composition of pike

A striking distinctive feature of pike meat is that it contains no carbohydrates at all and contains only 1% of fat, but proteins occupy as much as 18.4%. Moreover, the product contains:

• the main vitamins for the human body - A, C, E, a large set of B-group vitamins;
• nicotinic acid PP;
• basic minerals - potassium, calcium, magnesium;
• sodium and phosphorus in large quantities;
• some iron;
• cobalt and chromium;
• copper and molybdenum.

Calorie content of pike

The nutritional properties of pike meat are directly related to how healthy fish is processed. You can get an idea of ​​calorie content from the following table:

Thus, fresh and boiled fish remain the least nutritious.

Health benefits of pike

Healthy pike meat has a number of valuable properties, namely:

• strengthens blood vessels and normalizes cardiac activity;
• helps fight viruses and infections, strengthening the immune system;
• promotes the healthy functioning of the stomach, intestines, liver and pancreas;
• serves to prevent diabetes;
• has a beneficial effect on the nervous system;
• reduces the level of bad cholesterol;
• saturates the body with useful minerals and vitamins.

Is pike possible for pregnant and lactating women

It is not forbidden to eat pike during the period of bearing a child - however, doctors advise to treat it with caution. The fact is that long-lived predatory river fish - and this category includes pike - deposits of heavy metals often accumulate. They are harmful to the mother's health and are especially dangerous for the developing fetus. Therefore, you need to eat fish only of very high quality, in small quantities - and after careful heat treatment.

A useful product is allowed for nursing mothers. River fish is easily absorbed by the baby's body. Therefore, in the absence of allergies during lactation, women can eat it - of course, also after high-quality processing in order to exclude possible harm.

At what age can pike be given to children

For the first time, pike meat can be offered to a child not earlier than 9-10 months of life.You should start with small portions - only 10 g per day.

If no allergies are detected, then gradually the amount of the product can be increased to 70 g per day. For a week, the child is recommended to give fish no more than a couple of times - then it will be beneficial.

The benefits of pike for weight loss

Pike is not very high in calories, and at the same time it contains a huge amount of vitamins of group B. Thanks to these properties, the product is useful for losing weight - eating pike during a diet is not only possible, but also necessary.

Of course, in this case, it is better not to eat fried, smoked or salted fish - it will only harm the figure from it. Preference should be given to boiled, baked or stewed healthy pike.

The use of pike in traditional medicine

The beneficial properties of pike meat have long been highly appreciated by traditional medicine. True, old recipes look rather strange for a modern person. Of course, now no one will bury the bile of a freshly caught fish in the eyes to get rid of a thorn, or tie a live fish to the stomach to cure jaundice.

However, there are less fantastic, really effective treatments for pike meat.

• For example, eating 100 g of boiled fish in the morning on an empty stomach helps with mild inflammation of the pancreas.
• Regular consumption of pike meat contributes to the rapid cure of colds - and serves as the prevention of seasonal flu and SARS.
• The vitamin properties of pike meat, rich in protein, help to get rid of vitamin deficiency and anemia, and have a beneficial effect on the thyroid gland.

It is recommended to eat pike in case of depression and chronic fatigue syndrome - the beneficial properties of fish help to quickly restore good health.

Is dried and smoked pike useful?

Not only fresh, but also ready-made dried or smoked fish is very popular. It has an unusual taste, is ideal as a snack for alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, has an average calorie content.

But the harm of dried and smoked products is greater than its benefits.

• Dried fish is processed with a large amount of salt - accordingly, its properties are not very useful for the stomach, kidneys, blood vessels and heart.
• Smoked or dried pike does not undergo thorough heat treatment - there is always a risk of the presence of helminths in it.
• Smoked fish is considered a potentially carcinogenic product.

You can eat dried and smoked pike with good health. But it is better to give preference to boiled or stewed fish - with regular use, the benefits from it will be greater, and its properties will not bring harm.

The benefits and harms of pike caviar

Not only pike meat is suitable for eating, but also caviar of this river fish. The benefits of pike caviar for the body are that the delicacy:

• raises the level of hemoglobin in the blood;
• protects the body from the development of atherosclerosis;
• has a beneficial effect on the brain.

Separately, it is worth noting the benefits of pike caviar for men - the product has a positive effect on potency and increases libido.

Currently, healthy pike caviar is not considered food for real gourmets, but in the old days it was a truly "royal" delicacy - it could only be found in the diet of noble and wealthy people.

Do pike liver eat

Another useful component of predatory river fish is the liver. The benefits of pike liver are that the product strengthens the immune system and saturates the body with vitamins, promotes weight loss and has a good effect on the heart, nervous and vascular systems.

Pike liver can be eaten, it is allowed to cook, stew and fry.No matter how the product is processed, it retains many vitamins and amino acids in its composition. An additional benefit of pike liver is that it is a mild aphrodisiac.

How delicious and easy to cook pike

Pike meat can be processed in all existing ways - fish is fried and boiled, stewed and baked in foil, stuffed and steamed, dried and smoked.

• Boiled, baked and steamed fish retains the maximum useful properties - it is low in calories, no harmful microorganisms remain in it, and vitamins and microelements are present in large quantities.
• Fried or stewed pike is less valuable - however, it will also be beneficial for the body. The main thing is to use quality frying oil.

Pike meat goes well with any cereals and vegetable side dishes, peas, herbs. Garlic and basil, rosemary and laurel, green onions and even honey are well suited as spices for it.

In order to cook pike really tasty and spend a minimum of effort, you need to know a few secrets.

• It is better to clean the fish carcass from the scales in advance, immediately after purchase, and to make the scales lag behind easier, the carcass can be doused with boiling water.
• Pike meat has a pleasant taste, but in itself is rather dry. Therefore, it is usually processed and served along with vegetables, which add juiciness to the fish.
• The smell of a pike carcass can give off mud - but this shortcoming is easy to get rid of. It is enough to spray the fish with lemon juice or put lemon wedges directly inside a fresh gutted carcass.

There are many bones in pike meat, however, after proper processing, they are easily extracted from the fish and do not cause harm.

Pike harm and contraindications

The beneficial properties of pike are so great that fish have almost no contraindications - they can only cause harm if there is an individual allergy.

However, one must take into account the characteristic feature of pike - this predatory fish can survive even in reservoirs with poor ecology. But all the toxic substances still accumulate in the fish's body - and can harm humans after the pike hits the table.

How to choose and store pike correctly

It is very important to cook your pike correctly, but even more important to choose the right one. Only fresh fish has truly beneficial properties and does not harm the body.

• In a fresh pike, the tail should be moist, the eyes should be clean, and the gills should be pink, not tarnished.
• Quality fish can only smell like river mud.
• It is better to buy a pike caught for spinning, and not with nets - sick and weak fish often come across the net.
• If possible, you should be interested in the place where the fish is caught - and before buying, pre-check the information on its environmental friendliness.

As for frozen pike, you need to make sure that there is no frozen ice on the fish, which indicates repeated freezing.

Fresh fish is stored for a short time - no more than 3 - 5 days. The frozen product is suitable for consumption for up to six months. However, after 2 - 3 months of storage, frozen pike begins to lose its taste - so it is better to cook it quickly.

Conclusion

The benefits and harms of pike are determined mainly by the quality of the fish itself. If the pike is caught in a clean reservoir and properly cooked, then the benefits from it are maximum - and there are practically no contraindications to use.