FoodReference.com (since 1999)

COOKING TIPS AND HINTS SECTION

 

Home   |   Articles   |   Food Trivia   |   Today in Food History   |   Food Timeline   |   Recipes   |   COOKING_TIPS   |   Videos   |   Food Quotes   |   Who’s Who   |   Culinary Schools & Tours   |   Food_Trivia_Quizzes   |   Food Poems   |   Free Magazines   |   Food Festivals and Events

Cooking and Kitchen Tips and Hints, Measurements, Shopping Advice, Serving Ideas, etc.

 You are here > Home

Cooking TipsSaffron to Swiss Chard >  Seafood: Is it fresh?

See also: Articles & Trivia

 

FREE MAGAZINES
and other Publications

An extensive selection of free magazines and other publications

 

philodendron250

See also: Seafood SafetySeafood ArticlesSeafood Recipes

How to tell if Seafood is Fresh

Tip 1:  Beware of Soggy Seafood
Fresh seafood looks firm and shiny, not soggy.  Sogginess indicates that the seafood has been processed, which typically means it was a lesser quality product to begin with and won’t be pleasing to the seafood lover’s palate.  Also, beware of anything in a pre-packed in buckets.  Pre-packed = processed!  If you suspect seafood to be processed, ask your retailer.

Tip 2:  Look Your Fish in the Eye
Remember, a fish’s eye are a clear indicator of freshness.  Cloudy eyes indicate that the fish has been on the shelf for a couple of days, whereas clear eyes indicate a recent catch. 
 

Tip 3: Look for Fresh Flesh
A more vibrantly colored flesh is an indication of freshness.  Color should not appear dull.  Fresh fish will be vibrant, glistening and firm to the touch.  Handle the fish, if possible.  Any indentation you make with your hands should spring back immediately.  Bright red gills are another indication of freshness.
 

Tip 4:  Beware of Fishy Fish
As my father “London” Lennie Barnes always told me: “Only bad fish smells fishy.”  Fresh seafood should smells like the sea.  If seafood has a sour “fish” smell, don’t buy it. 
 

Tip 5: Beware of Fake Fish
Fish is the most frequently mislabeled food.  Familiarize yourself with what each species of fish looks like and compare fish side by side. You’ll begin noticing small differences in color, markings, body shapes, fins, gils, etc that you did not notice at first glance.
 

Tip 6: Bargain = Bad
If seafood is being offered at bargain basement prices, it probably isn’t fresh.  Specialty seafood like Nantucket bay scallops, sea urchin and lobster are not supposed to be cheap.  Top notch Nantucket bay scallops fetch around $25/lb while popular Red Snapper fetches $15.0/lb on average.  Although some fish and seafood are less expensive than others, if seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Courtesy of Leslie Barnes, owner of London Lennie’s Seafood Restaurant in Rego Park, Queens, New York www.londonlennies.com
 

 

COOKING TIPS

  Saffron to Swiss Chard   |   Saffron   |   Sage   |   Salad Dressing, No Vinegar   |   Salad Greens   |   Salmon   |   Salsa or Relish   |   Salsify   |   Salt   |   Santa Claus Melon   |   Sauerkraut   |   Savory   |   Seafood: Is it fresh?   |   Seafood Safety   |   Sesame Seeds   |   Sesame Oil   |   Sharks   |   Sharlyn Melon   |   Sheep's Milk   |   Shiitake Mushrooms   |   Shrimp   |   Skim Milk   |   Smithfield Ham  |   Smoked Foods   |   Snap Beans   |   Soups   |   Sourdough   |   Soy Sauce   |   Spaghetti Squash   |   Spinach   |   Spring Mix   |   Squash   |   Star Fruit   |   Steaks   |   Strawberries   |   Substitutions   |   Sugar   |   Sunchoke   |   Sweet Dumpling   |   Sweet Pepper Colors   |   Sweet Potatoes   |   Sweet Potatoes, Stringy   |   Swiss Chard  
  Home   |   About Us & Contact Us   |   Recipes   |   Cooking Basics   |   World Cuisine   |   Other Links  

Please feel free to link to any pages of FoodReference.com from your website.
For permission to use any of this content please E-mail: [email protected]
All contents are copyright © 1990 - 2024 James T. Ehler and www.FoodReference.com unless otherwise noted.
All rights reserved.  You may copy and use portions of this website for non-commercial, personal use only.
Any other use of these materials without prior written authorization is not very nice and violates the copyright.
Please take the time to request permission.

 

FoodReference.com Logo

 

Popular Pages