How do YOU cook your fish?

[rainbowmum]

I am currently veggie but considering adding fish to my diet for nutrition and health reasons... but how on earth do you cook it?? I went veggie at 14 and cooked for myself and have NEVER cooked fish! I am paranoid about food poisoning so don't want to under-cook it. Should I buy ready cooked?
Care to share your recipes?
TIA xxx

[mamadelbosque]

I tend to bake most fish, or DH grills it. Just look up recipes online and you should be fine. I do occasionally pan fry it though too (mostly walleye), which is nice and yummy.

[Alyantavid]

Depends on the fish.

Salmon and tilapia I bake, always. Trout, is either baked or grilled. But I think you can bake or grill most fish.

[griffin2004]

we usually only eat salmon, steamed or baked

[tessie]

Curried or stir-fried are also good.

[PaytonPlace]

I always broil or grill. I like fish to have a crisp on the outside. I use a grill pan on the stovetop for faster grilling when I don't want to get the outdoor grill going.

[katiesk]

it's very easy to know if fish is undercooked. it gets quite flaky when done.

we eat mostly salmon and halibut - but in a variety of ways. baked in a pan, baked in foil, grilled, in soup, fish tacos, curry, etc.

fish is easy to cook!

[nicolelynn]

I recently re-discovered that poaching keeps fish moist and surprisingly less fish-y tasting than baking it. I also love making salmon patties. Just blend fresh salmon, chopped red pepper, green onions salt and pepper in a food processor then form patties and saute in coconut oil.

[LeahBoo]

It depends on whether I want dried out fish, or moist. Sounds crazy, but I often prefer my meat a little on the dry side. If I want drier, I fry it oil. Moister, I wrap it in tinfoil with some lemon pepper (or a slice of lemon, and pepper separately) and bake. I mostly just eat salmon.

[Sailor]

I would not buy already baked fish. Most of it is pretty nasty when re-heated, IMO. But, maybe I'm a fish snob. Seafood is best when it's FRESH. So, get your seafood - whatever it may be - as fresh as possible.

In terms of how to cook it, well it depends on the fish as others have said. I like my salmon baked, but dp likes it grilled. I like trout grilled. I like tilapia baked. I like flounder on the frying pan.

Fish is super easy to cook. I wouldn't worry about undercooking if you're a novice. Most novices overcook fish. I remember the first time my mom made fish, she baked it in the oven for an HOUR - it tasted like cardboard with water.

I recommend starting with salmon. Sprinkle a little lemon on it, rub the top with some olive oil, a little pepper, a little salt, put it on a baking sheet, and pop it into the oven at 350 degrees for 8 to 15 minutes (it's going to depend on your oven). You want to take the salmon out when it flakes with a fork. So check to see if you can flake off a piece after 8 minutes. If not, keep going. Just don't overcook!

Also, I'm a former raw food vegan ... so, I know how daunting it can be. However (and this is just my experience), I think it's pretty rare to get sick from undercooked fish assuming it's 1. fresh, 2. you know the source. After all, I've made sushi at home with raw fish and I've been OK. You just have to make sure to get fresh, to know how it was handled before it got to you, and to know the source.

[neptunemama]

An easy recipe for halibut:
preheat oven to 400F
chop up 2-5 shallots or 1/4 to 1/2 an onion (for 1/2 lb or 1 lb of fish)
saute in oil until softened, about 5 min. remove to a bowl, add some more oil, add 1/2 to 1 cup of bread crumbs and cook until crisp. add to shallots, then add some dried thyme to taste, 1-2 tsp of lime juice and some pepper. mix well.

put your halibut fillets on a buttered baking sheet and thickly spread the shallot/bread crumb mix over the top of each fillet.

roast for 18-20 min or until fish is opaque throughout.
(we like to substitute croutons for the bread crumbs. we grind them up and add straight to the cooked shallots, no toasting req'd)

for salmon and swordfish, you can marinate them in a mix of olive oil, lemon juice and herbs for 20-30 min (or more) before baking at 400F or pan searing for 5 min on each side. check after flipping to see if done, and continue cooking if it's not.

salmon is also nice marinated in a teriyaki sauce, and baked or grilled in foil.

[greenmansions]

I agree with the others - it depends on the fish. I have favorite ways to make several kinds, including these:

Salmon - grilled - I spray it with some oil on both sides and sprinkle it with seasoned salt. We do 2-3" wide cuts of a filet, with skin, in this way. If I have a whole side of salmon, I oil it, place it on some foil, season it the same way and add some thin lemon slices in a row down the fish and then grill it.

Salmon - baked - oil the pan, put in the filet skin side down, spread with mayonnaise and and sprinkle with seasoned pepper or lemon pepper. Bake at350 for 10-15 minutes. Garnish with chopped dill and lemon slices.

Mahi mahi - sauteed in olive oil, sprinkled with seasoned salt. At the end squirt the juice from half a lemon on it. Use the resulting sauce on rice.

Halibut - marinate filets (or steaks, I just prefer filets) in a mix of soy sauce, a splash of sesame oil and a bit of sambal sauce for 10-15 minutes. Then grill it.

My DH does the actual grilling so I can't speak to the grill time, but it seems to take about 10 minutes or so, depending on the fish. I do know you don't flip it over when you grill it, just keep the skin side down.

I had some anxiety when I first started making fish - it is not as forgiving as meat is. But I started with one kind at a time til we got the hang of it, then added to the repertoire. I also consulted several cookbooks to see what they recommended for similar preparations, as far as cooking time and temp.

[rainbowmum]

Originally Posted by Sailor

Also, I'm a former raw food vegan ... so, I know how daunting it can be. However (and this is just my experience), I think it's pretty rare to get sick from undercooked fish assuming it's 1. fresh, 2. you know the source. After all, I've made sushi at home with raw fish and I've been OK. You just have to make sure to get fresh, to know how it was handled before it got to you, and to know the source.

Oh Wow!!! So why and how did you start re-introducing animal products... I worry about being sick as my system has not eaten fish/meat (though no desire to ever eat meat) for 22 years! I wonder about having a teeny bit at a time to give myself time. Would love to know your experience on it all.

[rainbowmum]

Thanks for your replies so far. I haven't cooked fish ever lol. Does your house then stink of fish when you cook it? How do you get rid of the smell? What about bones? I used to eat fish from the market as a kid and hated getting fish bones in my mouth as thought I would choke and die!!!

[velochic]

My dh grew up on the Bosphorus and his sister and mother taught me to cook fresh fish. The fish we buy from the fish monger (there and here) is actually still alive when we choose it. They simply clean it, gut it and scale the whole fish (head intact because dd (7) prefers to see the whole fish and there is some good meat in the cheeks usually). I rub it with olive oil, salt and pepper it... maybe fill the cavity with some lemons, but that's about it. Grill it over an open flame and serve it with lemon wedges on a bed of peppery arugula (rocket) or some other green. Fresh, simple fish is so delicious!

ETA: If your fish smells or tastes fishy... it isn't fresh and should not be eaten. Fish should smell like the water it came from.

[Sailor]

Originally Posted by rainbowmum

Oh Wow!!! So why and how did you start re-introducing animal products... I worry about being sick as my system has not eaten fish/meat (though no desire to ever eat meat) for 22 years! I wonder about having a teeny bit at a time to give myself time. Would love to know your experience on it all.

I don't have 22 years under my belt, but I did have 5 years as a raw food vegan. I started introducing meat/fish only in the last 3 months, and haven't had any problems at all. I still eat a lot of my meals raw, but do eat cooked fish/meat several times per week.

I introduced it because, the truth is, when I went vegan, I had INTENSE cravings for meat. For years, I ignored them and thought they would go away over time. Most of my vegan friends said they had no cravings, and the few who did had theirs go away over time. I really, really, really wanted to be like them! 5 years later, I was still drooling at the meat/fish counter. I mean, the self control I practiced in those 5 years still astonishes me, lol.

Finally, even though my blood results and everything else was healthy/good, I decided that maybe my body was telling me something. So, I re-introduced some fish/meat. Health-wise, energy-wise, etc., I feel the same. It's just that now I feel fully satisfied, and am not bothered by any cravings. Which is a huge relief after all these years of strictly enforced self control.

So, that's pretty much how it happened with me.

I went slowly in the first few weeks as well. In other words, you might not want to grill up a whole 3 lb tuna steak and eat it all at once. You could even just start with a few pieces of grilled tuna or smoked salmon in your salad.