Buying and Cooking Fish and Shellfish

This section is devoted to fish and all things fishy! We hope to share tips and techniques, facts and know how, what’s in season, when and where to buy it.

We hope that it is easy to use and will provide you with a good reference point for the future.

White Fish

Oily Fish

Crustaceans

Most fish is trawled and caught, gutted, filleted and frozen. Most of the fish we buy is bought in this way. Alternatively, fresh fish is also cleaned, left whole, chilled and transported to fishmongers on a daily basis.

1. Round fish fillet – usually comes from a large round fish, such as cod. It is quite thick and long. The flesh is cut from the length of the fish.  Try out our Salmon with Tomatillo Sauce Recipe
2.  
3. Flat fish fillet – usually comes from a large flat fish, such as Dover Sole or Plaice. This tends to be less thick and the fish is leaner than a round fish.
4.  
5. Fish Steak – these cuts come from the width of a round fish only. They are usually cut from the middle of the fish body.
6.  
7. Fish Cutlet – these are slightly thinner than the steaks and come from between the head and the mid body of the round fish.
8.  

Lobsters

Crawfish

Prawns

Examples of molluscs are:

Mussels

Scallops

Oysters

Whelks

NAME	TYPE	CUTS AVAILABLE	SEASON	COOKING METHOD	DETAILS
Seabass	Round Fish	Whole Fish Fillet	May - August	Bake Poach	A large popular fish which is readily available in fishmongers.
Seabream	Round Fish	Whole Fish Fillet	June – Dec	Grill Bake	Seabream is quite a bony fish and needs attention to boning. It has a delicate taste but is a bit of a faff to prepare!
Cod	Round Fish	Whole Fish Fillet Steak	Oct – April	Bake Poach Grill Fry	A very large white fish. Over fished in the UK but remains very popular. Some fish are enormous, weighing up to 90lbs!
Haddock	Round Fish	Steaks Fillets Smoked	Nov- Feb	Grill Bake Poach Fry	Part of the cod family and is very popular in the UK. It’s a little more expensive than cod. Can be bought smoked.
Smoked Haddock	Round Fish	Fillets	Nov – Feb	Grill Bake Poach Fry	Avoid very yellow smoked haddock, as this contains artificial additives. Go for pale yellow smoked haddock – it’s more natural!
Hake	Round Fish	Whole Fish Cutlets Fillets	July – March	Bake	This fish is excellent as it’s practically boneless. Although it’s part of the cod family, it hasn’t got the same following, as it’s flavour is quite subtle.
Halibut	Flat Fish	Fillet	Aug – April	Bake Grill Fry	This is quite an expensive fish with dry, firm flesh. A rather delicate taste which lends itself to being very simply cooked.
Plaice	Flat Fish	Whole Fish Fillets	Jan – April	Grill Poach Bake Fry	Another very popular British fish. It has a delicate texture and is best cooked simply to appreciate the flavours.
Dover Sole	Flat Fish	Whole Fish Fillets	May – Feb	Poach Grill Fry	This delicate fleshed fish has a subtle taste and is best cooked simply with a little butter and lemon. It needs care when cooking as it is easy to overcook it and lose it’s flavour. It has many pin bones in it – so needs care when eaten.
Lemon Sole	Flat Fish	Whole Fish Fillets	Dec- March	Poach Grill Fry	This fish is the lesser cousin of the Dover Sole in terms of taste and texture. It’s a little more stringy.
Turbot	Flat Fish	Whole Fish Steaks Fillets	April – July	Poach Bake Grill	Quite similar to Halibut in texture and taste.
Herring	Saltwater Oily Fish	Whole	June – March	Fry Grill	Can be pickled or smoked.
Kipper	Herring	Whole	June – March	Eaten cold	These are smoked herrings that have been split and put into brine before smoking.
Bloater	Herring	Whole	June – March	Grilled Fry	These are dried smoked and salted herrings. They don’t keep very well and should be cooked and eaten on the day of purchase.
Mackerel	Saltwater Oily Fish	Whole	Dec-May	Grill Fry Bake	Very popular oily fish.
Mullet	Estuary Oily Fish	Whole	July – Feb	Poach Grill Bake	Redish grey in colour with quite a strong taste.
Perch	Freshwater Oily Fish	Whole	June – March	Poach Grill Bake	This fish is quite hard to scale. Tip! Try soaking it in hot water for 3 minutes or so – the scales should soften and come off easier. Try a fish scaler
Salmon	Saltwater Oily Fish	Whole Fillets Steaks Cutlets Smoked	May – July	Bake Grill Poach Fry	Ah, the king of fish! Very often farmed these days, however, salmon is very versatile and easy to prepare.
Trout	Farmed Oily Fish	Whole Fillets Smoked	March – Sept	Grill Bake Fry	Another popular oily fish which has a slightly less rich taste than salmon.
Crab	Crustacean	Whole – live or dressed Claws ‘Crab sticks’	April – Sept	Ready to eat	Look for crabs that are heavier than they look. Shake it lightly – there should be no sound of water. They need a lot of preparation, but you can buy ready to eat dressed crab.
Crawfish	Crustacean	Live Cooked	April – Sept	Prepared: Ready to Eat Unprepared: Bake Fry	Usually heavier and coarser than lobster, and because it has no claws, the meat is in the tail.
Lobster	Crustacean	Live Cooked	April – Aug	Prepared: Ready to Eat Unprepared: Boiled Baked	These are usually sold live or can be bought already prepared and ‘dressed’. The male is usually smaller but has larger claws than the female, but the females flesh is more tender.
Mussels	Mollusc	Live	Sept – March	Boiled and can be baked	There are various recipes for mussels and they are usually sold by the pint.
Oysters	Mollusc	Live	Sept – April	Raw in shells	Eaten raw but can be cooked. The shells should shut when tapped gently. They should only be opened just before serving.
Prawns	Crustacean	Raw Cooked Semi Peeled Peeled	Year Round	Bake Fry Boil Grill Poach	Grey shelled crustaceans that turn pink when cooked. Raw unpeeled prawns are much tastier than ready prepared prawns. They don’t need too much cooking as they can go very rubbery if overdone!
Dublin Bay Prawns	Crustacean	Raw Cooked	May – Nov	Bake Boil Grill Poach	Buy them by the pint when raw and by weight when cooked.
Scallops	Mollusc	Raw	Sept - March	Poach Bake Grill	White flesh with an orange roe. They have a very delicate flavour. Overcooking reduces their size and texture dramatically, so they are best treated gently. Often presented on their own shells.
Whelks and Winkles	Molluscs	Cooked	Sept – Feb	Eaten with vinegar and brown bread.	A staple favourite of the great British food menu! They are just eaten as sold.

Fresh fish should be firm to the touch.

The eyes should be clear, full and shiny – almost glistening.

The gills should be red.

It should not, under any circumstances, smell ‘fishy’, but should have a clean, fresh smell.

When buying crab, tap it gently to make sure it doesn’t contain water.

1. Lay the fish on it’s back and open it’s gills. The flaps should come out gently. These need to be removed with a pair of scissors.
2. Remove the fins from the fish, again, with a pair of scissors.
3. Slice into the body of the fish at the bottom of its belly. Scoop out the middle – rather messy, but necessary!
4. Finally, run under cold water until the water runs clear and the body cavity and outer is clean.
5.  

1. Cut down the length of the fish at the backbone from the head to the tail, keeping the knife as close to the backbone as possible.
2. Cut down the width of the fish, starting from just behind the gills. Slice underneath the flesh lengthwise towards the tail, keeping as close to the bones as possible.
3. Remove the fillet just before the tail.
4. Turn the fish over and repeat on the other side.
5.  

1. Make a cut just behind the gills, but don’t cut its’ head off completely.
2. Drop its’ head down, away from the body and scoop out its’ guts.
3. Wash the fish to clean out the body cavity.
4. Cut along the back bone keeping the knife as tight to the bone as possible.
5. Spread the fish open like opening a book, flesh side down so that you can see the supporting bone structure.
6. Remove the backbone. Most of the adjoining bones will come away at the same time if it is done carefully, however a pair of tweezers and small knife will help to pull away any small ‘pin’ bones.
7.  

1. Grilling – White fish should be brushed lightly with a little oil before grilling, but oily fish needs nothing added. Make sure the grill is hot before the fish is inserted. A squeeze of lemon and seasoning is all that’s needed! Very simple and fresh way to cook fish. Turn the fish over once only.
2.  

2. Shallow Frying – Shallow frying is the best way to fry fish. The fish should be dried with kitchen paper, coated with beaten egg and dusted with flour. A little oil in the frying pan should be hot enough to sizzle the fish immediately it is added. This will seal the fish. If the oil isn’t hot enough, the fish will taste oily and the coating will be mushy – yuck!
3.  

1. Steaming – a very healthy option which uses a steamer [link to 80051] that sits on top of a saucepan of boiling water. The resultant taste is fresh and clean. Spices and herbs can be used in the steamer to infuse into the fish.
2.  
3. Poaching – a great way to gently cook tender and delicate fish. Many liquid flavours are used, the most popular one being white wine. Herbs and spices are often added, but care needs to be taken not to mask the taste of the fish with overpowering flavours.
4.  
5. Baking – a good way to cook fish as much of the flavour is retained. When cooked in parcels with herbs and a little wine, the flavours develop and enhance the taste of the fish. This type of baking fish is perfect for barbecuing.
6.  
7. Microwaving – Easy and very quick, this method is usually done when the fish is poached in liquid. Milk works very well with salmon, as does white wine, cider or lemon juice. Be careful not to overdo the cooking time though, as the fish can quite easily become dry and overcooked.
8.  

1. A fish scaler is very useful for removing scales from the body of the fish.
2. A fish slice is perfect for transferring whole fish from the pan to the plate.
3. An oven tray is good for baking fish, particularly when surrounded by fresh vegetables or wine.
4. A seafood set is just the job for dealing with crustaceous shellfish. The lobster crackers are perfect for opening up the claw shells and the picks are used to help get the flesh out of the difficult to get at parts of the lobster.
5. A Zester will help remove the rind from lemons and a reamer will help remove the juice. Both are used frequently in the preparation and cooking of fish.
6. A fish kettle is useful for cooking large whole fish, such as Salmon.
7. The right presentation plates bring food alive.

 

Prawn Creole

Prawns with a Remoulade Sauce

Crab Corn Chowder

Trout Braised with Onion and Tomatoes

Salmon with Green Peppercorns and Orange

Moules Marinere

Baked Seabass with Tahini and Herbs

Fish Plaki

En Papillote Fish Parcels

Cod in Spicy Tomato Sauce