Teach me how to cook fish?

[outdoorchick]

My hubby is all set to go out fishing this weekend, and is determined to catch something. Problem...I have no idea how to cook fish! What do I need to pick up at the grocery store to make yummy fish when he gets home?

[gregkthompson]

Depend on what you are cooking. Some fish are awesome baked with potato's, others are good when they are fried.

[briansnat]

Well a lot depends on the kind and size of fish he will be catching. Fresh or saltwater? How will the fish be cut, will it be in steaks, fillets or whole fish?

There are nearly as many ways to cook fish as there are species and cuts of fish.

Your best bet is to find out what kind of fish and cut you have to work with and google a recipe for it. It's amazing how many recipes are out there on the Internet.

There are a few general rules.

1. Simple is better. Don't mask the flavor of the fish with heavy sauces.

2. Do not overcook. Overcooking fish is the Cardinal sin of fish cookery. Dried out fish is not very appealing. It's better to undercook than overcook. Also remember that the fish will continue to cook for a short while after you take it off the stove or grill or out of the oven, so remove it just before it's done.

3. Serve immediately. Fish can get mushy if it sits around and reheating can dry it out.

If you can find it, get "James Beard's New Fish Cookery", it's a great cook book for fish.

Here are some links you can also check out that teach you a bit about cooking fish:

How to Cook Fish - Fish Cooking Techniques - Science of Fish Fillets Cooking Recipes Fish Steaks

http://www.cookeryonline.com/RECIPES...20Cookery.html

http://www.cookeryonline.com/Fish/index.html

Hope this helps.

[outwest]

Thanks for the notes. This is something I am actually bad at cooking too and I have ruined at least 2 dinners this year from fish related accidents. Tried it fried might be a good idea though.

[dinosaur]

The easiest way I know is deep fried. Dip the clean washed filets in egg, drop them in seasoned flour or bread crumbs and put them in to deep fry. When they float to the top, give them about 5 to 10 seconds and remove them. Good stuff and really hard to screw up.

[3ofusnow]

Great thread as I have absolutely no idea how to cook fish either. I can probably figure out how to fry them pretty well though. Maybe we'll get a fish cooker!

[Cappy]

Peggy and I cook and eat lots of fish, lots of different ways. We live down in South Louisiana, and fish catching and eating are some of our favorite things. Any one with questions, we would be happy to answer. Any thing from simple fried to complex cajun dishes like courtbillion, or sauce piquant. Just try to make your questions specific like type and size of fish, that way we can better tailor our answere to your specific fishy question.

[hank roberts]

Hi Guys, I'm brand new on this forum. I love fishing and I am particularly into catfishing so if you've got some good recipes for these particular beauties, please let me know. I've caught quite a few flatheads, channel and blue catfish and wonder if anyone could share some recipes for these in particular.

[Cappy]

Greetings Hank, I am new here too. I live in south Louisiana which is cat fish heaven. What I recomend ya start out with is deep fried catfish. I promice if ya do it right ya will love it. Here is a few pointers, hope this helps: Use either a black iron pot or a store bought frier. ya need 3 or 4 inches of oil never filling ya pot more than half way. The more oil the better cause volume gives heat stability. The biggest mistake folks make is putting too much fish in and the temp goes down causing the fish to get greasy. Set the temp to 375. keep your fellets at around 1/2inch thick. If the fish is too thick its lots harder to cook. The more surface area ya fish has the better ya can season and bread it. If ya don't have a deep frier with a thermostat here is a common trick. Slice an onion into rings. Heat the oil when ya think its ready drop in a onion ring. When it looks like its frying good the oil is ready. Very important not to fry too much at once. When it floats to the top of the oil the fish is ready
As far as a recipee, well that kinda depends on ya taste buds. we season our fish with cajun seasoning, and make a seasoned mustard egg wash. a few beaten eggs a splash of milk a squirt of ya favorite mustard some hot sause and cajun seasoning goes in the egg wash. We use corn flour. There are several fish fry mixes out there. I recomend ya mix ya egg wash and season ya flour, dredge a few pieces of the fish in the egg wash, roll in the flour patting good then shake off the excess drop them gently into the hot oil. When they float take them out and sample 1 if ya not happy ya can adjust for the next batch. I hope this helps. I will be home for another week so feel free to ask any other questions and when ya master the art of fryin fish if ya like Peg and I will post some of our other catfish favorites.

[Cappy]

Now that this forum realizes we aint terrorist It should let me post a lil video we have on youtube of a typical afternoon fishing trip. The little bayou is 5 minutes from home and we often put the boat in and go fishing. We never bring home more than we can eat, and we always have a wonderful time.
cappyandpegody's Channel - YouTube