So, on Monday I cooked some ocean perch in my apt, which I had never made before…came out pretty good, but it STILL smells quite strongly of fish in my apt!! I live in a studio apt, which is, though bigger than most studios, still quite small.
Does anybody know how to get rid of the smell once and for all? I’ve long since cleaned all the utensils I used, and gotten rid of the garbage I used (did all that the same day I cooked the fish). I’ve also febreezed everything fabric that I can find, and have been spraying lysol and burning incense and candles, and all my windows are open (poor gerbils had to be put in the bathroom so they wouldn’t be cold), but the smell is still there…fainter, but still most definetly there.
I’m afraid the smell is going to get into my clothes, which would not be fun. Plus, my mom is coming to visit on Saturday, and I have a date on Sunday, so I REALLY need the smell to be gone, fast!
Mods - I considered putting this in cafe society, b/c of the food subject, but I thought it was more factual than anything, so I guess it’s your call (obviously) where it should really go
I have no idea! I’ve cooked plenty of other kinds of seafood with no problem, even in my tiny living space. No smell as long as I cleaned everything right up. I’m actually skipping class now to try and figure this out, b/c I’m afraid that the longer I wait, the more the smell will “stick” (not sure if that’s logical or not, but whatever). It’s funny, though - the smell isn’t in the kitchen at all, just in the hallway and living/bedroom area. Obviously, I cooked it in the kitchen, shouldn’t the strongest smell be there? Hmmmm…
I’m afraid to have people in my apartment, I don’t want them to think I’m unclean :eek:
It’s not at all specific to fish, but larger amounts of coffee (real, non-instant and preferably fresh ground coffee) powder are good at covering all kinds of smells.
well, coffee is one thing I always have plenty of! while I don’t want to waste my beans on this, I DO have a giant can of Maxwell House that hasn’t been opened, so is still fresh…
What should I do with it, just put some cups w/ the grounds in it around my apt? Throw some on my throw rugs and vacuum it up, maybe?
Sorry, I don’t really know how well it works with instant coffee. At least hare a pound of the cheapest no-name bean coffee is not noticeably more expensive than an equal amount of instant coffee.
Plain white vinegar is good for getting rid of odors. Put some in a few bowls and place around your apartment. You can also mix some with water and boil it on the stove for a while.
I tried to coffee thing, and that seems to have worked pretty well. I’m hesitant to try the vinegar thing, simply b/c I don’t want to add too many smells on top of the fish, and vinegar and coffee scents might not mix well.
I’m sitting among cups of coffee grounds, it’s actually quite pleasant - maybe I’ll do this even when I don’t have a particular cooking smell I need to get rid of.
Rubbing your hands with used coffee grounds is an excellent way to get rid of smells like garlic, onion or fish.
As far as a whole apartment is concerned I just don’t cook fish with strong smells for that reason. If you fry sardines at home it will stink for a week. Just wait for good weather and do it in the yard. That’s what yards are for.
Forgive me if this is very stupid of me, but are you sure you’ve cleaned the oven out thoroughly?
We once had this problem in an apartment I was living in: horrific rotten-fish smell everywhere. Eventually we found out that a roommate had made fish sticks in the toaster and hadn’t cleaned out the toaster tray. We eventually had to throw the toaster out – by the time we discovered the source of the smell, it was permastink.
If some fish grease dripped into the bottom of the oven, that could be the source of the odor, maybe?
The coffee thing is likely to just cover it up temporarily; if the stink is from a permanent source, you don’t want to rely on that.
I’m not sure exactly what “ocean perch” is, but I’ve read that it’s not perch. It’s some sort of cheap fish that they try to give a classier name to. I personally find it rather unpleasant - quite fishy, and not very tasty. My recommendation? Don’t cook it again. Buy something nicer.
