Fish and Safety: An Easy Guide
Selecting the best
- Fish should be arranged with the bellies down so that the melting ice drains away from the fish, thus reducing the chances of spoilage.
- Appearance is bright and shiny in quality fish, and most of the scales are intact and adhere tightly to the skin.
- Eyes are bright, clear, full and often protrude. As quality goes down, the eyes often turn pink and become cloudy and sunken(This does not always apply to small-eyed fish,e.g. salmon)
- Gills are red and free from slime.
- Odor is fresh and mild. A fish just out of the water has practically no “fish” odor. The fishy odor develops with time, but should not be strong or objectionable.
Fish fillets and steaks: The meat should be moist, firm and elastic. Pre-packaged steaks and fillets should be tightly packed in hermetically sealed packages without liquid or air.
Storage
Refrigeration: Store fresh fish in its original wrapper at 0°C-4°C or in freezer at -18°C or colder. Plan to use your fish purchases within one to two days. If not, freeze them. However, do not refreeze previously frozen products.
Most home-frozen fish should not be stored over six months, no more than three months for salmon(See the table).
Label each package with the date, kind and type of fish and the weight and number of servings or pieces. A crayon or grease pencil is ideal for this purpose. Do not overload your freezer, and do not pack the unfrozen fish too tightly. Either of these practices can greatly extend the freezing time and reduce the quality.
Preparation
Cleanliness: Always wash hands thoroughly with hot, soapy water before preparing foods and after handling raw fish. Don’t let raw fish or juices touch ready-to-go foods either in the refrigerator or during preparation. Don’t put cooked foods on the same plate that held raw fish. Always wash utensils that have touched raw fish with hot, soapy water before using them for cooked foods. Wash counters, cutting boards and other surfaces raw fish have touched.
Thawing:
While freezing fish quickly keeps more cell walls intact, the opposite is true for thawing. Defrost gradually so cells are disturbed less and fewer juices leak out. The best way to thaw is overnight in the refrigerator. Avoid thawing at room temperature. If you must thaw fish quickly, here are safe options: seal fish in a plastic bag and immerse in cold water for about an hour, or microwave on the “defrost” setting.
Cooking
Guidelines for Cooking Fish: Cooked to perfection, fish is at its flavorful best and will be moist, tender and have a delicate flavor. Like most foods, fish should be thoroughly cooked. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) suggests cooking fish until it reaches an internal temperature of 63°C.
