Today I watched one episode of an online course on cooking. Today’s lesson discussed fish and other seafood.
Fish
I’ve been watching Chef Bill Briwa’s “Rediscovering the Lost Art of Cooking,” a fantastic course offered by The Great Courses. You can see my notes on other parts of the course in the Daily Learning category.
In today’s lesson, “Seafood: From Market to Plate,” Chef Briwa discusses how to judge quality, how to scale and bone, and how to make a few recipes with fish and mussels. Tips for judging a whole fish include,
- Gills intact. They should be pink and red, but not reddish-brown or brown.
- It should feel firm. If you gently press on it, it should retain shape, not dent.
- Scales intact, shouldn’t fall off if you rub against the grain.
- The scent should be fresh and briny, not overly fishy.
- The eyes should be clear, not cloudy.
- Fins should be moist, not dry.
- Slimy is okay, slimy and overly smelly is not okay.
If you’re buying it as a fillet instead of whole,
- The fillet should be firm
- It should smell fresh and briny, not overly fishy.
Fish is meant to keep in a cold environment. As a rule of thumb, Chef Briwa says, “Every hour a fish is kept at room temperature decreases its shelf life by a day.”
