Fish

Lyaiera

I'm trying to reshape my diet and I'm doing quite well with it at the moment. I've eaten fish once or twice a week now for the past few weeks, but I haven't really explored past the fish I know about, mostly hake, salmon and mussels although a friend recommended calamari. The thing is as is somewhat typical for Ireland fish was cooked for me as a child, but it was mainly Donegal Catch and the stuff I've already mentioned. I go to the fishmongers in the English market, look at the vast array of fish they have and am left without a clue to do with 90% of the stuff there and buy the same old.

I'm not really looking for a recipe book, but more an explanation of fish and how to approach it. Because of the getting healthy thing I'm really going for stuff that can be baked as opposed to fried, but I don't even know which fish should be baked over being fried. And I'm totally clueless when it comes to what herbs or seasoning to but on fish beyond the standard, salt butter or lemon.

Is there a guide to fish out there?

huskerdu

Martins Mad about Fish was a grea RTE cookery program about fish a few years ago.

See if you can get some clips on youtube. Its probably too old for the RTE Player.

A lot of the recipes are on the RTE Website and the accompanying cookery book is supposed to be good.

Marting Shanahan is a very esthusiatic chef who specialises in fish and it great for encouraging people to experiment

mickgotsick

Watch Rick Stein, he'll tell you everything you need to know about fish.

Clams are nice as well.

Darkginger

Ask one of the fishmongers at the market - my experience has been that they love to talk about what they're selling, and will know how best to cook it. I buy frozen squid mantles and cut them into rings for calamari - just dip in fairly heavily seasoned flour (I use salt, pepper and paprika) then shallow fry in oil for only a minute on each side, otherwise they go tough. Eat immediately (they're nice on top of a paella). I also agree with the Rick Stein recommendation.

Herbs that go well with fish include tarragon, dill, sorrel and of course parsley. Other than baking or frying, you can also poach fish in a court bouillon (best for a firm fish like salmon) or other flavoured liquid. I'm dieting too, but low carbing, not low fatting (fat is good for you!) so I tend to pan fry most fish in butter, then serve with a sauce made from cream, Parmesan, black pepper and a tiny bit of garlic, often with mushrooms in it. If you can afford it, try fresh tuna steaks - I like them better than beef steaks - I marinate mine in lime juice, chillies, garlic and a dash of soy sauce before pan frying in butter until they're only *just* cooked through - they should look like a rare steak when cut open - kinda translucent in the middle. Overcooking destroys the texture. Not very often I get those, though!

CJhaughey

Its Tuna season right now. Plenty of Albacore being caught off the SW coast.

Curry Addict

im a fish lover and eat fish 4-5 times a week. i would also love to hear some recommendations and inspiration!

two things i have learnt about fish are it has to be fresh as opposed to frozen or it just wont have good flavor.
the second is, i was overcooking fish for far too long. if its cooked properly its taste and texture is so much better. im still learning about this!

here is some of my favorite stuff i do that might give you ideas.

pan fried black sole, lemon sole or plaice. wash well as it can be slimey, season heavily with salt and pepper and leave to rest for 10 mins.
heat the pan with 1/2 oil 1/2 butter until its roaring hot. for a medium sized fillet, skin side down in the pan for 2 mins to crisp that skin. reduce the heat a little and flip it over for 2 mins. scoop it out onto a plate skin side up and the crisped skin peels of in 1 piece nice and easy, then just flip it onto a serving plate. squeeze of lemon and sometimes a little salt and it tastes amazing.

a nice chowder with a good mix of seafood. many recipes out there!

tilapia is my favorite in a curry, an earthy peppery flavored fish with firm texture. i usually pan fry it and add at the end.

a spanish fish stew, yam yam. like a chowder and very healthy.

poached salmon. I usually do this in a kettle, bring water with stock veg, black pepper and fresh herbs to the boil. add a 1/2 or whole salmon and poach for 20-30 mins depending on size. the salmon melts in the mouth and its so tasty I always swear im going to make it more often. a whole salmon will feed at least 6 hungry adults.

king crab, i usually get frozen from the frozen fish shop in glasnevin, the price for the amount u get is good. defrost remove the meat and fry in butter for 2 mins. really quick and easy and still great flavor even tho it was frozen.


lobster 500g, freeze for 2 hours. boil for 6 mins remove meat and pan fry in butter for 2mins.

kippers always good to have in the fridge simply pan fry for 2 mins each side.

fresh prawn, i like to pan fry in butter, with 1 clove of garlic and and a split chilli 1min each side pour the juices over it!

jumbo prawn i love to do tandoori style.

scallops, season with salt and pepper and pan fry for 1min each side in a very hot pan.

tilapia in a north indian spiced batter and deep fried. not healthy but delicious.

tom yum soup. this is highly addictive. prawns in a thai hot and sour soup. I went through a phase where i ate this daily for weeks. i never tire of it and make this at leace once every two weeks.

recently i did a whole sea bream, caked it entierly in salt and baked for 10 mins. this was an eyeopener for sure. after scraping off the salt crust the flavor of the fish was off the scale! probably the best of all cooking methods ive done for flavor.

after eating fish in some renound restaurants sous vide is the way to go imho. I had a piece of salmon that was part sous vide and part pan fried(to crisp the skin) and this was the best ever :pac:

CJhaughey

I can't honestly fathom why people buy imported seafood when Ireland has such beautiful local fish?
We have Prawns that are the envy of Europe, Fresh Tuna, Scallops, the list is endless.
Eating imported farmed seafood is coals to Newcastle.
Why are fish species like Tilapia popular?