The world's oceans and rivers are filled with fish and shellfish in a huge variety of shapes, sizes and colors, ranging from the small silver herring that roam in vast shoals in cold Atlantic waters to the rainbow-colored parrot fish of tropical seas. With improved methods of transport, there is an increasingly wide range of fish and shellfish available. They may be eaten raw or cooked in any number of ways to delicious result, and have the added bonus of being incredibly nutritious offering a a good supply of protein, vitamins and minerals.
BRILL
These fish live on the bottom of the Atlantic, Baltic Sea and Mediterranean. Similar to turbot in appearance and taste, brill has a fine, softish white flesh with a delicate flavor. Brill can grow to about 75 cm/30 in and can weigh up to 3 kg / 6 1/2 lb, but are often smaller. The fish have slender bodies and there are small, smooth scales on the dark gray skin on the top. The underside is creamy or pinkish-white.
HALIBUT
These fish live in the very cold, deep waters off the coasts of Scotland, Norway, Iceland and Newfoundland, migrating to shallower waters to spawn. They are voracious predators, eating almost any type of fish or crustacean, and will even devour birds' eggs that roll off cliffs. Halibut are the largest of the flatfish, normally weighing between 3 kg/ 6 1/2lb and 15 kg/ 33lb, but can weigh as much as 27 kg/ 60lb. They have elegant, elongated greenish-brown bodies, with a rather pointed head and pearly white underside. The flesh is delicious with a fine, meaty texture.
Buying
Whole young halibut, called chicken halibut, weigh about 1.6-2 kg/3 1/2-4 1/2lb and will amply serve four. Large fish are almost always cut into steaks or fillets. Go for steaks taken from the middle rather than from the thin tail, where the proportion of bone to flesh is very high. As bone is a good heat conductor, steaks from the tail end are liable to dry out more rapidly during cooking than middle-cut steaks. Allow 175-200 g/ 6-7 Oz per serving. Fresh raw halibut can be used for ceviche, sashimi and sushi. Beware of Greenland halibut, which is a different species and a vastly inferior fish.
PLAICE
These are found in the Atlantic and other northerly waters, and also in the Mediterranean. They have a distinctive-looking grayish-brown skin with orange spots on their backs. These spots are very bright when the fish is fresh. The underside is pearly white. They can grow up to 90 cm/3 ft long and weigh up to 7 kg/15 1/2 lb, but the average weight is 400 g- 1 kg/14 Oz-2 1/4lb. They have soft, rather bland white flesh, which can sometimes lack flavor and texture.
Buying
Plaice must be very fresh or the flesh tends to take on the texture of cotton wool. These fish are available all year round, whole or as fillets, but are best avoided in the summer months, when the flesh is flaccid and tasteless. When fresh, the orange spots on the dark skin will be bright and distinctive. Fillets with dark skins are cheaper than white-skinned ones, but there is no difference in flavor. There is a lot of wastage on plaice, so you should allow a whole 350-450 g/ 12-16 Oz fish per serving or a 175 g/ 6 Oz Fillet.
LEMON SOLE
Known as the yellow tail flounder in the United States, lemon sole is related to dab, plaice and flounder rather than to Dover sole. It is also known as lemon dabs and lemon fish. They are found in the North Sea and Atlantic ocean and around the coast of New Zealand. They lead largely stationary lives on the stony or rocky seabed and vary enormously in size depending on local conditions. Generally, weights range between 350 g/ 12 Oz and 1.75 kg/4lb. Lemon sole has a soft white flesh, similar to that of plaice but slightly superior and sweeter in flavor. It is a good alternative to the more expensive Dover sole. Because of the similarity of their names, lemon sole suffers in comparison with Dover sole, although it is a fine fish in its own right.
COD
There are actually several fish that belong to the cod family, including haddock, hake, ling, whiting and many other related species of white-fleshed fish. Most of them come from the Atlantic and other cold northerly waters. Although hake is found in the warmer waters of the Mediterranean and is particularly popular in Spain and Portugal. Cod itself can grow to a length of 6 m/19 1/2 ft, weighing up to 50 kg/110lb, but most commercially fished cod weighs between 3 kg 6 1/2lb and 8 kg/ 18lb. They prefer to live in cold water with a high salt content. For years, cod were so plentiful that they were regarded as an inferior fish, fit only to be fried, then served with chips, or masked with an unpleasant floury white sauce. All too often, the succulent, flaky white flesh has been overcooked, making it watery or dry. Today, over fishing has depleted stocks and cod has become relatively scarce and most highly acclaimed.
WHITING
Previously known as merling and similar in appearance to haddock, whiting are small fish with greenish-gray skin and a silvery belly. They grow to 30-40 cm/ 12-16 in length and can weigh as much as 2 kg/4 1/2lb, although 350-500 g/12 Oz-1 1/4lb is more usual. They are found all over the Atlantic, from Iceland to northern Spain. They have tender flesh and an unassuming flavor and are a popular alternative to haddock, although they are a good buy in their own right for certain recipes.
Buying
Whiting is available all year round. It is thought of as being rather dull and is thus relatively cheap. Although not a spectacular fish, whiting does not deserve this reputation; for certain dishes it is well worth buying. It should be bought as fresh as possible, as the flesh breaks down very rapidly and it quickly becomes impossible to fillet or skin. The fillets should be pearly white and feel soft, but definitely not flabby. Whiting are small, so allow two fillets per serving.
Red Mullet
Known as goat fish in the United States, red mullet is among the finest of all sea fish. They are found in the Atlantic and Mediterranean waters, on sandy or rocky areas of the seabed, and are small (up to 40 cm/16 in long) with pinkish-red skins streaked with gold. Their Roman-nosed heads have two long barbels on the chin. They have a lean, firm flesh with a robust, distinctive flavor. There are a number of different varieties, including Mullus surmeletus and Mullus barbatus. The mullet is known by different names including woodcock of the sea, Rouget in France, triglia in Italy, and salmonete de roca or salmonete de fango in Spain.
WRASSE
This large family of fish is notable for its varied and dazzling colors. Wrasse range from steely blue to green, orange and golden; in some species the sexes have different colors, All wrasse has thick lips and an array of sharp teeth. They are small fish, seldom growing to more than 40 cm/16 in in length. The wrasse is found in both Atlantic and Mediterranean waters, living near rocky coasts and feeding on barnacles and small crustaceans. The most common variety of wrasse is the ballan wrasse, which has a greenish-brown skin, with large scales tipped with gold. Male and female cuckoo wrasse have strikingly different coloration; the males are steely blue with almost black stripes, while the females are orangey-pink with three black spots under the dorsal fin. The name of the five-spotted wrasse is self-explanatory, while the brown spotted wrasse is completely covered in spots. Rainbow wrasse has spiny dorsal fins and a red or orange band along their body. Some of the mottled blue-green wrasse has a slight resemblance to the parrot fish, to which they are distantly related.
Buying
The wrasse is available in spring and summer. Look for scintillating skin and bright eyes. Ask the fishmonger to scale and clean the fish for you. Allow at least 400 g/14 Oz per serving.
TUNA
Also called tunny, tuna has been a popular food for centuries. The fish were highly prized by the Ancient Greeks, who mapped their migratory patterns in order to fish for them. They are a member of the mackerel family and are found in warmer seas throughout the world, as far north as the Bay of Biscay. A shoal of immense tuna fish travelling through the high seas is a magnificent sight. These beautiful, torpedo-shaped fish can grow to an enormous size up to 700 kg/1,540lb Although they may be as small as 1-1.5 kg/2 1/4-3lb. They have immensely powerful muscles and firm, dark, meaty flesh. There are many varieties of tuna, although as a result of centuries of over fishing, only about half-a-dozen varieties are sold commercially.
Buying
Tuna is usually sold as steaks or larger pieces, often already skinned. This makes it an extremely economical purchase, as there is no waste. It is a very substantial and filling fish, so allow about 175 g/6 Oz per person. Depending on the individual variety, the flesh may range from pale beige-pink to deep dark red. Do not buy steaks with heavy discoloration around the bone, or which are dull-looking and brownish all over. The flesh should be very firm, dense and compact.
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