Cooking fish? Help!

[ShinyGreenApple]

Alrighty, though some might find it hard to believe, I'll just come out and say . . . my Mom was never much of a 'fresh fish' person, and therefore it has never, ever been cooked in our household, save for greasy breaded fishsticks and Gorton's fillets. I've been making an effort to really try to eat better, and have added a lot of vegetables and fruit to my diet and I'm ready to start with fish.

The thing is, we picked up a pack of frozen salmon steaks on our last trip the the grocery store, and now I'm afraid to cook it :o It says to thaw in a bowl of lukewarm water, but it didn't say for how long. Can it be cooked right from frozen, and how do I know it's done? Gah!

- Lady Barbossa, tired of nasty processed seafood

[edible_hat]

Thawing in a bowl of lukewarm water is actually a great way to increase the size of any food poisoning bacteria that might be there. My preferred method of thawing is to leave it in the fridge (not freezer) for 24 hours.

As for cooking them, try a hot plate or frying pan, low heat, with a little bit of chilli and lemongrass seasoning.

[Evil Queen]

Thawing frozen goods in water was a method my ex-landlord Awesome John used often. And as long as you cook the fish all the way through, there's no chance of food poisoning.

If you're going to use this method; thaw the fish for 20 minutes in lukewarm to cool water. Any warmer and the water will slightly cook the fish.

I personally like my salmon grilled (Jester will disagree, but I know how to cook fish) for 4 minutes on both sides with a squeeze of lemon juice and salt.

[tropicsgoddess]

I pan sear fish with some jerk seasoning (I love spicy food), garlic and lemon pepper.

[ArcticChicken]

I like mine fried with a whole bunch of onions, some lemon juice, and some season-all.

[worddork]

Take a sheet of foil, lay the fish in the middle, next layer some lemon slices on the fish along with a tab of butter, or olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and peper. Fold up the foil like your wraping a present. Place pokect of goodness on the barbque for 20 minutes if frozen, 10 if thawed. Steam some white rice and place the cooked fish over it, add some soy sauce and your diner is severed . Bon appetite (sp?) :D

[Jester]

Thawing fish: the fastest way is to run COLD water over it in the sink. But if you are at all worried about safety or food poisoning, or aren't going to be around, the SAFEST way is to put it in the fridge 24 hours before you plan on using it. That is what I would do if you have never thawed it out another way. (Me, I just buy fish fresh, but I realize that that is not possible everywhere.)

As for cooking it, there are many ways you can do it.

You can sautee it in olive oil with various herbs.
You can grill it (though I am not a fan of that method.)
You can fry it (though why you would want fried salmon I haven't the foggiest idea).
You can broil it, poach it, or even smoke it if you want.

But the best taste I get from fish is when it is pan-seared or blackened. The method is the same for both....blackening is just pan-searing with certain spices. The reason I like this method is that it seals the natural juices of the fish inside and just makes it tasty as all hell.

If you want instructions on how to pan sear, let me know.....I found some great ones online the first time I did it. Of course, the first time I pan seared fish was for a four course sit down dinner for 20 people!

I don't have any particular recipes for salmon itself, as I am not a fan of cooked salmon, preferring it raw or smoked. To me, salmon loses so much flavor when you cook it.

I personally like my salmon grilled (Jester will disagree, but I know how to cook fish)...

Bite me. :D

[Evil Queen]

Bite me. :D

Come to Houston and I will. I'll bet you make a tasty dessert. :devil:

[Jester]

I'll bet you make a tasty dessert.

Nope. I cook. I don't bake. :lol:

Come to Houston...

I'll be there August of 2009, on my way back to Phoenix. I'll be stopping off to see my friend Abbey and her daughter, my niece Dragon. And, of course, Abbey's father/Dragon's and Princess's grandfather, who is an all around great guy.

One more year in Key West......if anyone wants to visit and meet me, your clock is ticking......

[Evil Queen]

GAH! :runaway: I'll be in New Mexico by then! Trixsy-trixsy Jesters.... :p say hi to them for me!

[Jester]

Well, NM is kind of between TX and AZ, so maybe I'll stop in to see you on my way home! :wave:

[Evil Queen]

Groovy. :D I'll leave a light on for ya.

[Teysa]

When I worked the butcherblock/seafood counter, I learned that a good rule of thumb for cooking fish is 10 minutes per inch. Adjust your cooking times based on the thickness of the filet. With salmon it's done when it turns opaque and flakes easily with a fork. I don't know if you got skin on or off, but at least with salmon, it's easier to take the skin off after you cook the fish.

[Jester]

I don't know if you got skin on or off, but at least with salmon, it's easier to take the skin off after you cook the fish.

Whenever I get salmon from my local fishmonger, I make a point of asking them to take the skin off. They weigh it with the skin on, so you are technically paying for the skin, but that is fine by me. I know what skills I have and what I don't have, and frankly, I am not that adept at skinning salmon.

On the other hand, I always get mackerel with the skin on, but you can eat the skin of a mackerel, and it adds so much to the flavor.

[Kiarna]

Ok I regularly eat fresh fish......
I always leave the fish to thaw through the day when I'm at work in a plastic bowl in the fridge. So I take it out in the morning put it in the fridge and who ever is the first home takes it out to sit on the bench for a little bit before we cook it.

One of the best and easiest ways to cook is grab some foil, throw the fish, a bit of dill (fresh or dried), half a clove of garlic and a qtr wedge of lemon. Wrap foil up like a little package and place on tray in an oven at like 180 degrees celsius (sorry don't know what the is farenheit).

It should be cooked in like 20 -30mins, depending on the size of the fish.
I usually serve that with some couscous and steamed vegetables.

I also like pan frying salmon, to make it crusty and eat it with a greek salad. Though I usually eat white fish not salmon or tuna.
Another good idea is lightly flour the fish and pan fry it, gives it a bit more crunch and different texture.

[Jester]

...at like 180 degrees celsius (sorry don't know what the is farenheit).

180 C = 356 F. So basically 350.

[ShinyGreenApple]

Thanks for all the tips! I ended up finding a simple searing recipe online, and it was wonderful! And neither me or Dad was doubled over puking afterwards, so I must have done it right ;)

They were in individual vacuum packs, so I just took them out Sunday afternoon and let them thaw in the fridge and rinsed them with cold water just before cooking.