Cooking with fish
We asked local chef and PCC Cooks instructor Becky Selengut, author of the sustainable seafood cookbook "Good Fish," to share her top tips.
The top challenge people have with fish? Overcooking, Selengut says. "Some people say cook fish for 10 minutes per inch, measured at the thickest part of the fillet. Try 8 minutes per inch. Rest the fish covered, off the heat, for 5 minutes and check it again — often just that extra bit of carry-over cooking will finish the job. If not, you can always put it back on the grill or in the oven."
Making chowder? "Cut the fish into smallish cubes (1 inch by 1 inch), bring the chowder base to a boil, add the fish cubes, submerge them under the liquid and then turn off the heat and cover the pot. In 5 minutes you will have perfectly cooked fish, poached gently off the heat!
How to know if that fish is fresh? Selengut suggests to look for unbruised flesh, and if it's a piece of salmon, to look at the pin-bones that run down the fish. "If there are gaping areas around the bones, and if they are sticking up out of the fish, it's a sign that the fish is old."
Fatty fish (like king salmon, black cod and trout) can be grilled and pan fried, Selengut says. Leaner fish such as true or ling cod, chum and pink salmon do better with moist-heat cooking methods such as steaming, cooking in covered packages, and poaching.
Six tasty fish recipes to try:
- Crispy Fresh Fish with Red Curry and Coconut Milk
- Sesame-Wasabi Grilled Albacore Tuna Salad with Mango and Cilantro
- Roasted Garlic and Wild Halibut Chowder with Basil-Caper Coulis
- Pla Sam Rod (Pan-fried White Fish with Three-flavors Sauce)
- Rosemary Grilled Salmon
- One-pan Roasted Asparagus and Halibut with Tomato-Lime Butter