(wasn’t sure what board to put this on, figured this one made the most sense)
I want to find out how to cook fish as simply and ingredient-lessly as possible. Preferably, just throw it on a hot pan and then eat it. but… I don’t know nuttin about it. so:
I’d guess different fish require different cooking times, but is there some kind of minimum that would apply to all?
can fish be underdone? is eating raw fish like eating raw meat?
does fish really need to be cooked at all?
can it be overdone?
I realise this is very general, and I’ve tried looking this up but all I could find are recipes. basically what I wanna know is, if I buy a salmon or haddock (or some other common fish), what’s the most effective and simplest way to make it edible?
My dad’s fish recipe is the best I’ve ever had. Works best with trout.
Put a couple of tablespoons of flour in a plastic bag. Add salt and pepper to it. Put in fish and shake bag to coat it thouroughly. Fry in a pan with a little butter or other oil.
You can tell when a fish is done by the texture of the meat. I wouldn’t eat fish raw unless it were very fresh. I wouldn’t trust meat that I bought from my local supermarket to make sashimi. Then again, I live in Vermont - in a coastal town it would be much different, I imagine.
I’m no expert on cooking fish, having only done so maybe 3 or 4 times ever, but I’ve always broiled it until the meat was firm and flaky. It doesn’t take too long, but keep an eye on it. Throw soem lemon juice on it for a little flavor.
I find broiling fish to be the quickest, simplest, and most effective way. Just put it skin-side down in a broiling pan, brush with olive oil or butter, squirt with some lemon, and season however you like. A thin fillet like flounder will be done in 6 minutes*; unless its overly-thick, salmon takes about 10 minutes.
(*I actually cook mine for less time, since I like my fish a bit rare–long enough to make the meat hot, but not so long that the fish gets too flaky and instead stays firm. My wife likes her fish “well done”–flaky and positively cooked–so what might come out of the oven at 4-5 minutes for me might stay for 8-10 minutes for her!)
I think it was the SAS survival handbook that says (generally) freshwater fish needs thorough cooking but marine fish doesn’t matter so much (because of parasites apparently, but I’m not sure how true that is).
You can cook fillets of fish by putting them into a shallow dish, pouring on boiling water, covering and leaving for ten minutes or so.
I tend to like my fish cooked just until it is a little flaky but still slightly translucent and moist in the middle.
One of my favourite recipes at the moment (not terribly simple, but not too difficult either):
Take a large shallow pan, add a tablespoon of olive oil and gently fry a sliced onion, when the onion starts to soften, add a few potatoes (sliced into sticks about the same thickness as a pencil) and a sliced red pepper, fry this until the potatoes are just starting to soften, then add some sliced mushrooms, half a teaspoon of dried sage, give it a little stir and add some pieces of raw fish on the top (just roughly broken up).
Fry for a few more minutes, then beat three eggs and pour them over everything, return the pan to the heat until everything is cooked, adding a little grated cheese before finishing under the grill for a minute or two.
Grill it! Reasonably high heat and 3-4 minutes per side. Make sure you brush the fish with oil before you throw it on the grill. If the grill’s not hot enough or you haven’t used oil then it’ll stick and that’s not good. Grilling works great for salmon, swordfish and tuna; thicker cuts of fish.
Otherwise broiling, again for 3-4 mins per side works well for flounder and thinner filets.
If you’ve got a big pan and a lot of oil, you can make great fish and chips in a wok. Make sure your batter is thick and clingy, not thin and runny. And use beer, not water.
Take a piece of fish (doesn’t matter what kind). Rub a little butter on a piece of parchment paper large enough to wrap around the fish. Place the fish on the buttered parchment Place whatever seasonings you’d like on the fish (salt and pepper, lemon, fresh herbs, garlic, julianned vegetables, some white wine all work well). Fold the parchment over the fish, and crimp the edges to make a tight seal so none of the steam escapes). Place in the oven directly on the rack, and cook for about 15 minutes or so. Remove from oven and let sit for a minute. To serve, place on a plate, and slice an “X” on the top layer of the parchment (watch out for the steam - it can burn). Serve.
Traditionally, the parchment is cut into a large heart shape. Why? I dunno. Just another of those silly French thingies.
If you want something a little more complex, I’ll post my mango-marinated tuna steak recipe.
mix up Good Season’s Italian salad dressing using directions on envelope (basically envelop contents, oil, vinegar and water).
place tuna steaks in non-ferrous bowl or dish. pierce several times with fork. pour mixed salad dressing over steaks. refrigerate/marinate for several hours/overnight.
either put steaks into oven-proof pan/onto broiler pan and broil until flaky but not dry (turning once), or place steaks in microwave-safe dish/container, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and cook about 10 minutes (depending on number of tuna steaks. we generally have over a pound’s worth at one time). (you may keep extra marinade with steaks while cooking during either scenario. helps keep them from getting too dried out.)
The best simple way to cook salmon filets:
Put a small amount of olive oil and butter in a non-stick pan. Saute the fish on both sides until brown and just done (only a few minutes, depending on thickness). To check if it is done, cut a piece in half. The fish should flake away in small slabs and not be deep red. A pink tinge is fine.
You can definitely overcook fish. It becomes tasteless and either mushy or like sawdust.
I like the flour coat method for cod, since cod is low in natural oils and needs to be protected from drying out.
For halibut…well…I love halibut tacos, but you said keep it simple, so I would just coat it with olive oil and grill it, or pan fry as above.
I did catfish last night - first time! I broiled it with commercial Cajun seasoning (don’t have the name with me) - easy as pie! 5 minutes per side, was nice and flaky, and perfect.
Catfish is a nice, firm, white-fleshed fish, maybe a smidge sweet (for a fish anyway). The closest I’ve had to it was tilapia maybe, or possibly sea bass. Just my opinion; I’m not a pro cook by any means. I do love catfish though and it is very versatile in the kitchen. Goes with almost anything.
By Gravity “Put a couple of tablespoons of flour in a plastic bag. Add salt and pepper to it. Put in fish and shake bag to coat it thouroughly. Fry in a pan with a little butter or other oil.”
Second the motion. You can purchase “Zatarain’s Cajun Meal” (I think that’s the name) and use it instead of making your own flour mix. Works great with any fish, but especially tasty with catfish.
Sashimi and sushi should only be prepared by qualified chefs who know EXACTLY what the hell they’re doing. Raw fish can provide you with a wonderland of gastrointestinal disorders ranging from botulism and salmonella (pun purely unintentional) to various actual parasites, nematodes, and critters who would be only too happy to take up permanent residence in your guts and cause you no end of trouble. Marine fish and freshwater fish are both NOT safe to eat uncooked.
Cook the fish. Several of the above recipes are quite good, and it’s quite easy to tell the difference between “raw fish” and “cooked fish,” once you’ve done it a time or two.
The basic rule of thumb for all fish is 10 minutes per inch thickness at the thickest spot using medium high heat, no matter how you cook it. If you use lower heat, cook longer. Higher heat, cook shorter. If you want to be sure it is fully cooked, it should feel firm when pressing it with a finger, sort of like the ball of your thumb. If you want to be really sure, put a two forks into the thickest part, and pull the meat apart. It should flake, not try and hold together, and as mentioned, will be opaque, not translucent.
Fish can easily be overcooked, which makes it tough and rubbery. Undercooked fish can be preferable depending on the type. I like my salmon rare, but I can’t eat trout or catfish if they aren’t fully cooked. And to me, all fish are best with just salt and pepper, cooked in or with butter. Lots of herbs and fancy sauces are good now and then, but pan fried in a little butter or on a grill brushed with butter can’t be beat. Except catfish. You gotta have cornmeal and cayenne for that:)
Not really a good idea to eat fish raw unless you buy it from a good grocer or monger and it is labelled as sashimi grade.
I saw a show once on the outdoor channel.
A southern fella caught a fish. Gutted it and wrapped it in wet grass.
Wrapped the grass in mud- I would imagine it was more like clay.
Layed the whole works IN his campfire and went back to fishing.
Dunno how long it cooked but he just fished the hard baked clay wadd out of the fire
broke it open and had a feast.
Hows that for simple?