What Cooking Method Is Suited to Fat Fish?

It pains me to say this, but the delicate nature of fat fish makes you want to take extra caution during cooking. Given this, many people (especially fish aficionados) ask: What cooking method is suited to fat fish?

If you’ve been asking that question, you’re in the right place. The truth is you can easily overcook fat fish. As a result, you will spoil their flavor and texture. 

But since you’re here, you don’t have to worry about overcooking fat fish anymore. After this post, you can cook fat fish just like a professional does. Your fish dish might even be the next hit in your restaurant or cafe. 

Cooking Fat Fish

Because of its fragile features, people often overdo fat fish. Some overcook them without even knowing it. 

To make sure that you don’t do your fat fish, you can look out for the following indicators:

• The fish merely flakes apart.
• The bone separates from the flesh. 
• The bone loses its pink color.
• The skin turns opaque (usually white). 

Unlike other types of fish, fat fish can withstand higher temperatures without drying out. Think about having your own source of oil inside the flesh. 

In general, fat fish is ideally cooked by baking, broiling, or poaching. Dry heat techniques can also get rid of too much oiliness.

Fat fish include tuna, salmon, and mackerel. As tasty as these fish are, you should watch out while cooking them to prevent overly greasy fish. 

What to Consider When Choosing a Cooking Method

The best cooking method for the fat fish you have on hand depends on many things. When choosing how to cook your fish, you must consider the following factors:

The thickness of the fish

The size of the fish cut is among the most important factors to take into account. As an illustration, broiling swordfish steaks is not a good idea.

The natural flavor of the fish

Seafood comes in a variety of flavors, from mild to fishy. Make sure you properly prepare your fish so its flavor still stands out. 

Whether the skin is on or off

The fish’s skin has an impact on how it cooks. For instance, keeping the skin on helps prevent fragile fish from disintegrating when cooking.

If you want to cook fillet or whole fish

The ideal cooking technique can also depend on the size and butchering of the fish. 

What Cooking Method Is Suited to Fat Fish? The Best Methods

Wondering what cooking method is suited to fat fish? Here are the best methods for cooking fat fish:

Baking

Thicker and more oily fish work well for baking. It’s because fat fish is less likely to dry out while baking. 

In addition, baking is one of the safest ways to prepare fish.

Best Fish for Baking

• Sablefish
• Arctic char
• Halibut

Grilling

If you’re going to grill a fish fillet or steak, you should select a type of fish that doesn’t become overly dry when cooked. 

In addition to these kinds of fish, you can also grill whole fat fish. You can do this by wrapping it in aluminum foil and grilling it. This will keep the fish from falling apart or drying out.

Best Fish for Grilling

• Tuna
• Salmon
• Halibut
• Swordfish

Poaching

An excellent cooking method, poaching works best with light fish because it keeps the fish from drying out. 

However, you can poach fat fish, too. As a bonus, poaching fat fish adds flavor by helping accentuate it. After all, who doesn’t want to make the fish more flavorful?

Best Fish for Poaching

• Cod
• Sole
• Tilapia
• Haddock

Steaming

As a common and time-honored method of preparing fish, you can steam fat fish as well. 

Moreover, this healthy method doesn’t add extra, bad fat to your fatty fish. Works well for those on a diet, doesn’t it?

Best Fish for Steaming

• Sea Bass
• Cod
• Tilapia
• Grouper

Broiling

Fatty fish can withstand high temperatures without becoming overcooked. For this reason, broiling gets on this list. 

In addition, using a tasty marinade or glaze on your fish before broiling adds flavor to it. 

Best Fish for Broiling

• Salmon
• Black Cod
• Trout
• Snapper

Sauteeing

Sauteeing works best for delicate and flaky fish. This method of cooking results in a crust that is crispier than the core of the fish, which comes out flakier and more tender as a result.

Best Fish for Sauteeing

• Sole
• Salmon 
• Flounder
• Arctic Char

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How to Scale Fat Fish

If you’re wondering what cooking method is suited to fat fish, you should also know how to scale fat fish. 

Here’s how to scale fat fish

1. Place your fish on the board in a horizontal position. As an alternative, you can keep it still in the water.
2. Use one hand to firmly press down on the fish. Keep the other hand near the fish’s head.
3. Start raking the scales from the tail toward the head. Then, work your way up. They ought to start falling off in large clusters now.
4. Next, carefully remove the scales from both sides of the fish. Then, remove any scales close to the fins, the collar, or the tail.
5. When you feel as though you have removed the majority of the scales, give the fish a final rinsing with water. This will help you detect any scales still attached to the fish. 

If you see scales that need to be removed, wash them away under running water. 

How to Fillet Fat Fish 

If you’re wondering what cooking method is suited to fat fish, you should also know how to fillet fat fish. 

Here’s how to fillet fat fish

1. Start by making a cut behind the head of the fish. As you do this, angle the knife toward the front of the fish. Cut through to the marrow. Then, continue down the line until you reach the area right behind the fins. 
2. Flip the fish over and while keeping the blade at a small downward angle, cut through the flesh immediately to the side of the fins. Then, continue to follow the bone until you reach the backbone.
3. Remove the back of the fillet and run the knife along the backbone. Next, remove the small lateral fish bones as you go. 
4. Then, position the knife so that it positions slightly downward. After this, make a second cut near the dorsal fin.
5. Next, turn the fillet knife around so that the blade is facing away from you. Then, feel your way along the bones and follow them with the fillet knife until you reach the backbone of the fish.
6. After this, remove the back skin from the fillet and cut along the backbone as well as through the little lateral bones. On the underside of the fish, fillet the fish by running the knife all the way through to the skin.
7. Remove any leftover sinew or skin that is linked to the meat. Take the first fillet off the fish.
8. After turning the fish back over onto its previous side, cut the bones that surround the abdominal cavity.
9. Remove the remaining fillet from its attachment to the backbone.

How to Skin Fat Fish

If you’re wondering what cooking method is suited to fat fish, you should also know how to skin fat fish. 

Here’s how to skin fat fish

1. Stop pulling on the fillet when you have about an inch or two (25 to 50 mm) of it loosened.
2. Shift your grip from the fillet to a firm hold on the tab of fish skin generated by your first cut. Then, continue to pull the fillet toward you.
3. Maintain a firm grip on the knife while keeping it at a predetermined angle.
4. Wiggle the fish skin in a side-to-side motion. As you do this, pull rearward on the fish skin. 
5. Continue working in this manner all the way through the fillet. Even if the skin in the left hand creases as a result of the stress, it does not have any influence on the location where the fillet knife separates the fish skin from the flesh. You can see this clearly.
6. The fillet and the skin have been separated. Moreover, you won’t find remaining skin or scales on the fillet. 

Additionally, no flesh has been wasted in the process. If you scroll up, you will see that the knife has not been moved in any of the previous four shots of the fish being skinned.

How to Debone Fat Fish

If you’re wondering what cooking method is suited to fat fish, you should also know how to debone fat fish. 

Here’s how to debone fat fish

1. Making light strokes with a knife oriented toward the abdominal cavity reveals the position of the tiny bones as well as their lie. To remove the top portion of the fillet, follow this line and make a cut that goes all the way through it.
2. Find a break in the line of fine bones around two-thirds of the way down the fillet. At this point, move the knife so that it positions on the opposite side of the line of bones. 
3. Then, work it up the fillet so that the point of the knife goes under the bones that surround the stomach cavity. Approximately two-thirds of the way down the fillet is where the line of fine bones comes to an end. 
4. Separate the two and reposition the knife so that it points at an angle that will allow you to cut the flesh off the underside of the belly bones.
5. Keep the blade of the knife close to the fish bones to save the most amount of flesh.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

In general, fish is delicate to cook. You can easily overcook them, even without knowing it. 

Thankfully, you can cook catfish in a way that doesn’t overcook them or compromise their flavor. 

So if you’ve been asking, what cooking method is suited to fat fish, come back to this guide. Better yet, print or bookmark this guide. Happy cooking!

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