56
votes
Accepted
Can I thaw salmon directly in water?
The salmon will get water logged and mushy (and consequently release a lot of water during the cooking process) if you omit the bag. It's not unsafe, but it will decrease the quality of the salmon.
39
votes
Food is still undercooked on cast iron
Your pan was too hot. Cast iron pans can get ripping hot (which is good) and retain heat very well (which is also good). But, on the other hand, if you have a thicker piece of meat and want medium ...
20
votes
Can I thaw salmon directly in water?
Osmotic Pressure
If you boil vegetables in water, some of the compounds from within the cells will leach out of the vegetables into the water. The reason is because vegetables are bags of water with ...
15
votes
Food is still undercooked on cast iron
The very short answer: You had bad temperature control.
You have to leave meat on the skillet until the proper internal temperature is reached. If the outside burns before that, then you used too high ...
14
votes
Accepted
What temperature should pre cooked salmon be heated to?
If any food-- salmon or not-- has been prepared such that it is safe to eat, and it has been stored in a way that it is still safe to eat, the temperature it should be reheated to is simply 'as ...
13
votes
Accepted
How much time does it take to boil salmon?
It just has to get to 145F for safety, and in boiling water that happens really fast. 5-10 minutes is totally believable. On top of that, fish is really unpleasant when overcooked, so you really want ...
11
votes
Can I thaw salmon directly in water?
Yes, if you use brine!
(And keep an eye on it to make sure you don't leave it in too long after thawing.)
It's interesting that Lawnmower Man brings up osmotic pressure. Though he makes some very ...
11
votes
What can I use for a binding agent in salmon patties other than eggs?
I use a combination of mustard and bread crumb. However, first I take about 1/4 of the salmon and make a paste of it in the food processor. Then add mustard, breadcrumb, and seasonings, toss in the ...
9
votes
What is the difference between Atlantic and Steelhead farmed salmon in taste and how to cook?
Technically, steelhead is an ocean-going subspecies of rainbow trout (a term more commonly applied to fish who live only in fresh water). They're definitely related, though; salmon, trout, and char (...
8
votes
Why are my sous vide salmon fillets coming out raw in the center?
You said you purchased the fillets at Trader Joe's. TJs sells the fillets frozen. My guess is that the salmon wasn't fully defrosted before you put it in the water bath. Given that the salmon ...
8
votes
How much time does it take to boil salmon?
Normally salmon soup is made with salmon cut into 1cm to 2cm cubes or similar pieces. At that size immersed in simmering stock, it does indeed only take salmon about 5 minutes to cook fully (see ...
8
votes
Accepted
Salmon turned green - is it safe to eat?
I would strongly recommend against consuming this fish.
In general you should cook fresh fish on the same day you bought it and not store cooked fish in the fridge for longer than a maximum of two ...
8
votes
Accepted
What makes it possible to store this uncooked fish product in the fridge for up to a month?
I feel I must offer a contradicting opinion to @rumtscho's answer. The product you seem to have is indeed shown in the catalogue at the page of "smoked salmon" products, but note that it is ...
6
votes
Why does Chinese market take scales off the fish, & American does not?
Maybe you have a bad fishmonger ? they do a bad job by not removing the scales?
Maybe the expect the regular clients not eating the skin?
Can't talk about California, but here in Montréal, fish ...
6
votes
How are "salmon mesh" made?
I believe the image you are showing is of fresh-caught salmon which is on racks being air dryed or smoked. The pattern you see are cuts made in the flesh to aid in the process. The Alaska Department ...
6
votes
Accepted
Why does Anova sous vide tell me to cook salmon to unsafe temperatures
A fair amount of cooks and recipes disagree with the official guidelines when it comes to salmon's desired cooking temperature. The 145F guideline applies to all fish and shellfish, and is meant as a ...
6
votes
Accepted
Gravlax still red on skin side after 24h of curing
So, first, I don't think that gravlax looks that bad. Gravlax is never going to be the uniform peach/orange color that cold smoked salmon is (lox). It just looks a little bit under-cured.
There are ...
6
votes
Accepted
What use is salting salmon skin?
Salt is a curing agent, it draws moisture out of the fish. If the recipe calls for salting the fish and then leaving it for some amount of time then the purpose is to firm up the fish before cooking ...
5
votes
Accepted
Process fresh salmon into Sushi / Sashimi salmon?
Sushi fishes are usually flash frozen for a few days before being used for safety (to kill off bugs)
It might change the texture of the fish as it is unfrozen; the better the restaurant the better the ...
5
votes
Is synthetic astaxanthin (salmon "dye") safe?
Yes, the FDA has determined that astaxanthin is "generally recognized as safe" (GRAS), at 0.15 mg/serving. This doesn't indicate whether there are any health considerations associated with ...
4
votes
Steelhead Salmon's Mercury content
Sorry, I know that this is old, but I wanted to follow up with some related data.
Caveat: I'm not a scientist, but my dad was a biochemist who worked in the aquatic biology field for more than 50 ...
4
votes
What is the difference between Atlantic and Steelhead farmed salmon in taste and how to cook?
I find the two very close in flavor and would say it is probably a matter of taste. If offered one and told it was the other I would probably believe it. That is not the case with most wild caught ...
4
votes
What is the difference between Atlantic and Steelhead farmed salmon in taste and how to cook?
Steelhead is not salmon. Salmon Trout and Steelhead are types of trout, an entirely different fish from the same family of fish as salmon. A salmon is always a salmon, but a Steelhead starts its life ...
4
votes
How is sockeye salmon available year round?
The smoked salmon is stored frozen and released periodically for retail sale or
The fish is stored frozen and then thawed before smoking.
I frequently buy thinly sliced smoked salmon frozen in vacuum ...
4
votes
Optimizing for efficiency: boiling frozen salmon without defrosting
The problem will be one of temperature difference. The outermost mm of your salmon will thaw immediately but the innermost one will still be raw.
Some meat thermometers will work in water but i ...
4
votes
Accepted
Can gravlax be hung to dry?
I'd strongly advice against that. A cure only works as long as the salt and sugar concentrations are high enough. And although Gravlax does a decent job of infusing the salmon with both the content in ...
4
votes
Can I thaw salmon directly in water?
My opinion is to go ahead and do it, without the bag. The points of the other answers, about a bit of stuff leaching into the water, are generally true, but I think the effect will be quite small. ...
4
votes
Accepted
Making a gelatin-based and non-sticky "salmon"
I can't read French fluently (or quickly), so I missed any specifics there.
It looks like you probably already cooked your fruit puree? If not, you should. Various fruits contain enzymes that will ...
4
votes
Food is still undercooked on cast iron
There is an extremely easy solution to this problem if you want to invest a little bit of money: sous vide. Cook to just under the desired temp (or just follow the guide for the cut on serious eats ...
4
votes
Food is still undercooked on cast iron
Heat moves slowly, and takes a while to travel into the middle your food. If your pan is very hot, the surface of your food gets heated so quickly that it burns before enough heat has got into the ...
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