How to Choose and Handle Fresh and Frozen Seafood

 

Seafood is my absolute favorite type of food. Not only is it delicious, but it’s also nutritious and very versatile. It can be grilled, baked, poached, fried, pan seared, or added to soups. It lends itself to all kinds of cuisines, also, including Japanese, Mexican, French, Cajun, Creole, Chinese, Spanish, Cuban, and good ol’ American.

Unfortunately, the flesh of many ocean dwellers tends to deteriorate rather quickly. It doesn’t store as well in the fridge as poultry, beef, and pork. Also, sometimes it’s difficult to know exactly when the fish or shellfish were caught or harvested. Seafood can “go bad” quickly, negatively affecting not only the flavor, but also the safety of eating the food in question.

Follow the suggestions below when you’re shopping for seafood at the grocery store or the fish market to make sure you’re getting a quality product:

 

Fresh Seafood

Fish is pretty hard to judge when it’s in the form of fillets. Why? Because you can’t judge the whole fish, which you need to do in order to tell whether it’s fresh or not. You can always have it filleted after you’ve made your selections.  A freshly caught fish that has been properly handles will have glossy eyes, shiny skin, and bright red gills. Press the fish’s body. The flesh should be firm and should spring back quickly. Blemishes on the fish could be signs of disease, so you need to avoid these. Smell the fish, too.  Fresh fish, ironically, doesn’t smell “fishy.” If it has a strong ammonia smell, it’s not fresh.

 

Live crabs, crawfish, and lobsters should be active and vigorous. If they’re obviously alive but lethargic, they probably haven’t had a meal in a while. That means less meat for you. How do you judge whether or not the critters are lively? Poke ‘em – not with your hand, but with some type of instrument. Maybe there’s a small dip net near the tank.  Once the animals have been prodded, their legs should be intact and capable of movement. If the claws have been taped closed, pick the critter up. It should feel heavy for its size, indicating it’s healthy and meaty.

 

 Refrigerated picked crabmeat can be purchased in cans. This meat is usually pasteurized and will keep a long time in the fridge. Check the expiration date, anyway.

 

Mussels, oysters, and clams are best purchased alive. They should have shells that are tightly closed. If the shell is open a little, however, don’t discard the shellfish yet. Do the “tap test.”  Tap the shell or put slight pressure on it. It should close up right away. If it doesn’t, don’t buy it. If you miss a few dead ones, don’t panic. If the shell remains closed after cooking, the bivalve was dead before you started, so don’t eat those.

 

Fresh shrimp, just like fresh fish, should not have a strong odor. When you’re choosing shrimp, don’t be bashful. You should ask to feel them. The flesh should be firm and should spring back immediately when pressed. Fresh shrimp won’t feel soft or slimy. Like crab and lobster, the shrimp should feel heavy for their size. Also, unless the raw shrimp is of the pink shrimp species, they shouldn’t be pink. This is very important because the other shrimp species, including white shrimp, brown shrimp, and tiger shrimp, will turn pink when they’re old or after they’ve been exposed to heat. If you can buy fresh raw shrimp with the heads still on, buy them. They’ll usually have more moisture and more flavor, and the heads are easily removed by pinching them between your thumb and forefinger or by using a knife.

 

Rather Buy Frozen Seafood?

If you prefer to buy frozen seafood, look for products that have been flash frozen. These fish went quickly from the sea to the freezer. Just be sure to check the expiration date – the taste and quality will slowly diminish, even in the freezer.

Previously cooked and deveined frozen shrimp can be a real time saver, and you can often find them on sale at bargain prices. Be careful not to overcook them, however, should you prefer to serve them hot or added to stir-fries or other cooked dishes. These shrimp really work best for dishes that don’t have to heated, like shrimp salads and shrimp cocktails.

If you like scallops, your best bet is to purchase them frozen in vacuum-sealed packs. You can’t buy them live because you don’t eat the entire animal like you do with clams and oysters. You eat only the muscle that holds the shells together.

When you buy frozen fish or other seafood, thaw it in the refrigerator and not at room temperature. Frozen shrimp can be dropped into a pot of seasoned boiling water while still frozen. Fish, however, should be thawed first. You can speed up the process by holding the fish fillets or whole fish under cool running water to thaw, but use only cool water. Warm water will invite bacteria and could also affect the taste and texture of the flesh.