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To those who have cooked fish whole...

M

monk3y

Lifer
I'm planning on baking the fish in foil. Should I worry about the scales before I start or should they come off pretty easily with the skin later? Any tips would be greatly appreciated.
 
remove the scales... they should have done that at the shop.

Regardless, you should go over it with a sharp knife b/c they always, always miss stuff. And getting scales in your mouth is annoying.

Get a *sharp* knife (preferably a butcher knife kind of deal). Hold the fish vertically, and hold the knife perpendicular to it. Grind the knife up and down the fish. B/c you're holding the fish free, the knife will nto penetrate the skin. But it will rip the scales right off; takes 10 mintues of your time if you're anal like me.

Check over the guts; make sure they did a good job (unless you did it). Also, unless this guy is fresh, don't eat the head.

edit: gsellis makes a good point. It'll cook faster if you put some cuts into it (not a ton though. Like a foot-long fish needs 2 or 3 at the most). Cut perpendicular to it, down to the spine, on both sides.

edit2: good for you though; whole fish is the best way to go 😀
 
Originally posted by: eLiu
remove the scales... they should have done that at the shop.

Regardless, you should go over it with a sharp knife b/c they always, always miss stuff. And getting scales in your mouth is annoying.

Get a *sharp* knife (preferably a butcher knife kind of deal). Hold the fish vertically, and hold the knife perpendicular to it. Grind the knife up and down the fish. B/c you're holding the fish free, the knife will nto penetrate the skin. But it will rip the scales right off; takes 10 mintues of your time if you're anal like me.

Check over the guts; make sure they did a good job (unless you did it). Also, unless this guy is fresh, don't eat the head.
Click to expand...
Actually, a serrated steak knife works as well or better.

 
I got the fish at an oriental market... I'm not really sure what it is. It's about an inch thick and I'd say about a foot long.

Thanks for all the help though guys... I'm pretty sure I'll be able to cook this guy up within the next hour.
 
Originally posted by: Skiddex
never tried this but looks like it should work, and no mess
Click to expand...

I've tried that before, but I perfer the knife method. Though the OP should test it out as they certainly do make it look elegant.

edit:
you didn't let the orientals give you a crappy fish did you? 😛 (not trying to be racist, but I've seen them do it to people who don't know any better.) 3 easy ways to tell: 1) smell--does it smell fishy? if so, not fresh; 2) are the eyes cloudy or clear? cloudy = not fresh; 3) if you press on the body, does it "bounce back" or does the indentation stay? no bounce = not fresh.
 
Some fish you just can't get the scales off, so you take the whole skin off with a really sharp knife, or you cook it in skin & the skin just comes away afterwards...
 
Scales are PITA to remove on cooked fish. Definitely do it before it's cooked. If it's hard to do, try a potato peeler thing - it works fairly well.
 
Originally posted by: monk3y
Originally posted by: troytime
use salt instead of foil
Click to expand...

I've seen that done on the Food Network... I don't think I even own that much salt.
Click to expand...

a box of kosher salt it only 2 bucks or so

you should always have kosher salt in your kitchen, if not your dining table as well
 
Some types of fish really don't need to be scaled (small trout)

Why on earth would you purchase a fish and not know what type it is?? Some fish are horrible if baked with the skin on. How about a pic and we could recommend the best way to cook it?
 
Originally posted by: DrPizza
Some types of fish really don't need to be scaled (small trout)

Why on earth would you purchase a fish and not know what type it is?? Some fish are horrible if baked with the skin on. How about a pic and we could recommend the best way to cook it?
Click to expand...

I agree, I grew up on a fishing boat, spent half my life cooking fish. Got to know what kind it is.
 
Originally posted by: gsellis
Originally posted by: eLiu
remove the scales... they should have done that at the shop.

Regardless, you should go over it with a sharp knife b/c they always, always miss stuff. And getting scales in your mouth is annoying.

Get a *sharp* knife (preferably a butcher knife kind of deal). Hold the fish vertically, and hold the knife perpendicular to it. Grind the knife up and down the fish. B/c you're holding the fish free, the knife will nto penetrate the skin. But it will rip the scales right off; takes 10 mintues of your time if you're anal like me.

Check over the guts; make sure they did a good job (unless you did it). Also, unless this guy is fresh, don't eat the head.
Click to expand...
Actually, a serrated steak knife works as well or better.
Click to expand...

If I had a serrated knife, I'd try that :/ My mom taught me to use a straight-edged blade. I'll see if I can borrow one and test it out... thanks for the tip 🙂
 
Done, done, and done... It came out great. Made some small slits and stuffed it with tomatoes, onions and garlic. Seasoned with salt, pepper, and soy sauce. Whatever fish it was... it was damn good 😀

Thanks everyone!
 
Originally posted by: eLiu

edit:
you didn't let the orientals give you a crappy fish did you? 😛 (not trying to be racist, but I've seen them do it to people who don't know any better.) 3 easy ways to tell: 1) smell--does it smell fishy? if so, not fresh; 2) are the eyes cloudy or clear? cloudy = not fresh; 3) if you press on the body, does it "bounce back" or does the indentation stay? no bounce = not fresh.
Click to expand...

Idiot.

 
Originally posted by: DrPizza
Some types of fish really don't need to be scaled (small trout)

Why on earth would you purchase a fish and not know what type it is?? Some fish are horrible if baked with the skin on. How about a pic and we could recommend the best way to cook it?
Click to expand...
Or American catfish... "scaled" using vise grips, a knife, and another set of pliers. 😉
 
Originally posted by: gsellis
Originally posted by: DrPizza
Some types of fish really don't need to be scaled (small trout)

Why on earth would you purchase a fish and not know what type it is?? Some fish are horrible if baked with the skin on. How about a pic and we could recommend the best way to cook it?
Click to expand...
Or American catfish... "scaled" using vise grips, a knife, and another set of pliers. 😉
Click to expand...

And bullhead. I've gone to the needle nosed pliers method for skinning Northern Pike. Tastes much better without the skin.
 
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