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HOW
TO...?
HOW
TO BUY SEAFOOD
The most important advice is to buy your seafood from a reputable
retailer...
Choose someone that you trust and that has the turnover
to ensure fresh product,
staff and systems in-place to handle and care-take
the seafood - so
it is kept in premium condition for sale.
Customers are unable to handle the seafood prior to purchasing for health
reasons,
so I've tried to list a few tips that may help you when choosing
your product in a retail environment.
Smell - Seafood, in general should have a
fragrant clean smell of the
sea,
with a soft seafood aroma
(this varies in depth from species to species).
The fragrance of spoiled seafood varies as some species the
'out of
date odour' is a sweet almost fruity aroma and some an ammonia - chlorine
odour .
The underlying similarity is a pungent unnatural
odour.
Appearance - Seafood, in general should be
visually in good condition
(without any physical damage or bruising) and have that 'just caught
look'. It should look fresh,
with moist flesh and
firm texture.
It should have a
natural colour, clean clear shiny
shell
(if applicable).
No signs of discolouration or dryness.
Not have any unnatural residue / slime on the surface.
Some
seafood have a natural protective slime.
This protective slime should be
clear not opaque or white.
Bring
an esky - One of the biggest mistakes people make is
purchasing
fresh seafood and not handling it correctly for the journey home.
If you
are not going to use / eat the seafood immediately
then you must make sure
the product is kept at the correct
temperature for the journey home.
Bring
an esky or chiller bag and our staff will give you a little ice
to chill the product for
the trip. Or let the staff know
and they will double bag the product and
put a little ice in the bag.
Don't leave your seafood in the car whilst
you do the rest of your shopping!
The
'EYES' are the window to the soul...
For
health reasons you are unable to handle the product
before you purchase it
so the best way to check for freshness
when buying whole fish
is the
EYES & GILLS.
The
eyes should be
clear & plump (not sunken or discoloured).
They
should look elastic & firm. The
gills should be red
in colour,
the
scales intact, firm and shiny.
Fish fillets and cutlets should
have a moist flesh, firm texture
with a 'just out of the water' fresh appearance
to them.
Avoid those with sunken,
discoloured eyes and grey gills.
Sometimes however, when fresh fish have
been buried in crushed ice
their eyes can look a little cloudy. Some when line caught fish are
brought to the surface too quickly it causes them to pop their eyes,
this is a natural occurrence and
does not effect the quality of the fish.
This is
normal and is not an indication of age.
The grey gills shows the blood has
turned in colour
and is a good tell tale sign of 'out of the water age'.
Fish fillets
should have no signs of discolouration or dryness.
About
Prawns
Prawns are sold either uncooked
(green) or ready-to-it (cooked).
The cooked (ready-to-eat) prawns’ species will vary in colour from
light pinkish – to dark orange-red (wild-caught and farmed also vary
in
colour as farmed prawns are generally & naturally lighter in
colour).
Green prawns come both fresh and
frozen (but most commonly
frozen and thawed for your convenience) ask your retailer if these
are fresh or
frozen as it is not recommended to re-freeze thawed prawns.
Well managed frozen prawns can be
every bit as delightful as fresh prawns
and in some cases they can even be fresher - as larger vessels
catch-cook-and freeze onboard.
To keep that locked-in delicious sea
taste when thawing your
frozen prawns (both cooked & green) it is recommended to
swim the product in a light brine (salty iced water).
Add sea salt to a tub of icy water, taste it, and when you think it
tastes
like the sea toss in your frozen prawns to thaw.
How to buy prawns & what to look for!
The
prawns should have a soft seafood smell with a mild smell
of the sea, they should be in visually good condition
(without any physical damage or bruising) their shells should be
firm
and have that clear - shiny ‘just caught look’.
Avoid product that has discolouration or dryness and any unnatural
residue or slime on the surface. Some prawn species have a naturally
dark head such
as Endeavour Prawns or may have been on a feeding frenzy just
before being caught and will have a lot of coloured substance in
their head.
But generally prawns that have a very dark black head are to be
avoided as they may have been treated with metabisulphite
(A group of compounds used as food and drug preservatives that is
known
to evoke a severe allergic response in sensitive individuals.
Reputable retailers avoid using such enhancers / chemicals.
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