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> Do you ever buy frozen vacuum-sealed fish? The kind where each piece is sealed in its own plastic pouch? It is convenient and delicious. To me it can taste fr

> Do you ever buy frozen vacuum-sealed fish? The kind where each piece is sealed in its own plastic pouch? It is convenient and delicious. To me it can taste fresher than some "fresh" fish. Eeew. No. Call me old-fashioned but I believe in this thing called seasonality. I only buy fish that is in season, not farmed, and that is genuinely fresh from reputable suppliers, not supermarket "fresh". Nice clear bright eyes, clean gills and all that jazz. There is no substitute for fresh fresh fish. Well, maybe one ... high-quality smoked fish.

the_af 5y ago
> I only buy fish that is in season, not farmed, and that is genuinely fresh from reputable suppliers, not supermarket "fresh". I think everyone wants this, but it's not always practical. Not everyone lives in a coastal area with access to fresh fish of the kind they would like to eat. If you do, more power to you! But if you don't... Freezing fish also has the benefit that it kills parasites.
BoxOfRain 5y ago
>There is no substitute for fresh fresh fish. Well, maybe one ... high-quality smoked fish. While I take a bit less of a strong stance on this, I definitely agree there's nothing like properly fresh fish. I used to think I didn't really like mackerel but the truth is that supermarket mackerel can be a bit nasty even off the fish counter, mackerel straight out of the sea and cooked right away is absolutely fantastic.
- traceroute66 5y ago
  > I used to think I didn't really like mackerel but the truth is that supermarket mackerel can be a bit nasty even off the fish counter Yes. Oily fish (e.g. mackerel) really doesn't keep well, as you say it has to be eaten as close to "straight out of the sea" as possible. Oily fish certainly is not well suited to supermarket supply chains.
  - nradov 5y ago
    For those in the Bay Area, the Hankook Korean supermarket in Sunnyvale always has good fresh mackerel. http://www.hankooksupermarket.com/products.htm http://www.hankooksupermarket.com/products.htm
Stratoscope 5y ago
Photographers have a saying: The best camera is the one you have with you. I have a really nice camera with some excellent lenses, but my recent photos that I'm most proud of and enjoy the most were taken with my Galaxy Note 8, a several-year-old smartphone. Of course the kind of fresh fish you're talking about is far superior to the Costco bag of sockeye salmon I have in the freezer. But sometimes, it's getting near dinner time, and I don't have time to go shopping and just want some fish. Under those circumstances, the frozen fish hits the spot, and it is much better than the "supermarket fresh". But what do I know? If I'm near a McDonald's and craving a fish sandwich and there isn't a better option nearby, I just might stop in and get a Filet-O-Fish. It's nothing spectacular, but it is line-caught wild Alaskan pollock. Just be sure to order it without cheese. Because number one, American cheese on fish is gross. And number two, it means they have to make you a fresh sandwich and not give you a premade one. (Disclosure: I work for McDonald's, at least until the end of this month.)
- urthor 5y ago
  Isn't practically everything you see in a fish market flash frozen anyway? Afaik there's very little fresh fish going around, period. It's all frozen on the boat.
  - Stratoscope 5y ago
    A friend told me that he never, ever eats frozen fish, but he does enjoy all varieties of sushi and sashimi, and he explained to me that those are never frozen. I tried to convince him otherwise, but never got anywhere. https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-prepare-raw-fish-at-home-sushi-sashimi-food-safety https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-prepare-raw-fish-at-home-...
    - mejutoco 5y ago
      In some places it is illegal _not_ to freeze the fish for sushi, to avoid anisakis (I don't know how it is enforced, though). source: https://elpais.com/sociedad/2006/12/20/actualidad/1166569202_850215.html https://elpais.com/sociedad/2006/12/20/actualidad/1166569202...
bjackman 5y ago
I don't eat fish, but I have heard that when modern flash freezing is done properly, you cannot tell the difference from actual fresh.
nkrisc 5y ago
Unless you’re buying your fish every morning in the fish market at the harbor, it’s probably been frozen. Even wild caught is typically frozen as soon as it’s hauled aboard. This will vary around the world, of course.
- ckastner 5y ago
  Supposedly, flash freezing (which is distinct from your average home freezer unit) preserves quality such that even trained sushi chefs can't tell the difference between fresh and previously flash-frozen fish. https://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/08/nyregion/sushi-fresh-from-the-deep-the-deep-freeze.html https://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/08/nyregion/sushi-fresh-from...
  - el_benhameen 5y ago
    Indeed, there are some types of fish that are safe for "raw" consumption only after being flash frozen, due to parasites that live in the fish.
koheripbal 5y ago
Many of those frozen like that were flash frozen on the boat and are fresher than even what you buy at the fish market direct from the boats that landed that night.
- MrDresden 5y ago
  It really does depend on your location. Here in Iceland I can get fresh fish that was caught the same day in my local fish store (mind you not all their fish is caught that day, but most if not all inside 2). Though with the globalized world we live in, I was even able to get fish from Iceland no older than 2 days in Edmonton Canada when I lived there some years ago. edit; I'll add that there is a massive texture difference in white fish depending on if it has ever been frozen. Flaky fresh never frozen cod becomes like chewing gum after having been frozen.
munificent 5y ago
The fish you buy even from reputable suppliers was very likely flash frozen on the boat before it ever reached land. Many fishing boats are out for several days or weeks at a time. So just because it's only been on land a short time, that doesn't mean it's recently caught. This is a good thing because many fish harbor parasites that are killed when flash frozen. Your home freezer doesn't reliably get cold enough to take them out. You can reliably kill them by cooking very thoroughly, but since fish is such a delicate meat, the line between "may still have wriggling worms" and "overcooked, dry, and unpalatable" can be quite fine.

the_af 5y ago

> I only buy fish that is in season, not farmed, and that is genuinely fresh from reputable suppliers, not supermarket "fresh". I think everyone wants this, but it's not always practical. Not everyone lives in a coastal area with access to fresh fish of the kind they would like to eat. If you do, more power to you! But if you don't... Freezing fish also has the benefit that it kills parasites.

BoxOfRain 5y ago

>There is no substitute for fresh fresh fish. Well, maybe one ... high-quality smoked fish. While I take a bit less of a strong stance on this, I definitely agree there's nothing like properly fresh fish. I used to think I didn't really like mackerel but the truth is that supermarket mackerel can be a bit nasty even off the fish counter, mackerel straight out of the sea and cooked right away is absolutely fantastic.

traceroute66 5y ago
> I used to think I didn't really like mackerel but the truth is that supermarket mackerel can be a bit nasty even off the fish counter Yes. Oily fish (e.g. mackerel) really doesn't keep well, as you say it has to be eaten as close to "straight out of the sea" as possible. Oily fish certainly is not well suited to supermarket supply chains.
- nradov 5y ago
  For those in the Bay Area, the Hankook Korean supermarket in Sunnyvale always has good fresh mackerel. http://www.hankooksupermarket.com/products.htm http://www.hankooksupermarket.com/products.htm

Stratoscope 5y ago

Photographers have a saying: The best camera is the one you have with you. I have a really nice camera with some excellent lenses, but my recent photos that I'm most proud of and enjoy the most were taken with my Galaxy Note 8, a several-year-old smartphone. Of course the kind of fresh fish you're talking about is far superior to the Costco bag of sockeye salmon I have in the freezer. But sometimes, it's getting near dinner time, and I don't have time to go shopping and just want some fish. Under those circumstances, the frozen fish hits the spot, and it is much better than the "supermarket fresh". But what do I know? If I'm near a McDonald's and craving a fish sandwich and there isn't a better option nearby, I just might stop in and get a Filet-O-Fish. It's nothing spectacular, but it is line-caught wild Alaskan pollock. Just be sure to order it without cheese. Because number one, American cheese on fish is gross. And number two, it means they have to make you a fresh sandwich and not give you a premade one. (Disclosure: I work for McDonald's, at least until the end of this month.)

urthor 5y ago
Isn't practically everything you see in a fish market flash frozen anyway? Afaik there's very little fresh fish going around, period. It's all frozen on the boat.
- Stratoscope 5y ago
  A friend told me that he never, ever eats frozen fish, but he does enjoy all varieties of sushi and sashimi, and he explained to me that those are never frozen. I tried to convince him otherwise, but never got anywhere. https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-prepare-raw-fish-at-home-sushi-sashimi-food-safety https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-prepare-raw-fish-at-home-...
  - mejutoco 5y ago
    In some places it is illegal _not_ to freeze the fish for sushi, to avoid anisakis (I don't know how it is enforced, though). source: https://elpais.com/sociedad/2006/12/20/actualidad/1166569202_850215.html https://elpais.com/sociedad/2006/12/20/actualidad/1166569202...

bjackman 5y ago

I don't eat fish, but I have heard that when modern flash freezing is done properly, you cannot tell the difference from actual fresh.

nkrisc 5y ago

Unless you’re buying your fish every morning in the fish market at the harbor, it’s probably been frozen. Even wild caught is typically frozen as soon as it’s hauled aboard. This will vary around the world, of course.

ckastner 5y ago
Supposedly, flash freezing (which is distinct from your average home freezer unit) preserves quality such that even trained sushi chefs can't tell the difference between fresh and previously flash-frozen fish. https://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/08/nyregion/sushi-fresh-from-the-deep-the-deep-freeze.html https://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/08/nyregion/sushi-fresh-from...
- el_benhameen 5y ago
  Indeed, there are some types of fish that are safe for "raw" consumption only after being flash frozen, due to parasites that live in the fish.

koheripbal 5y ago

Many of those frozen like that were flash frozen on the boat and are fresher than even what you buy at the fish market direct from the boats that landed that night.

MrDresden 5y ago
It really does depend on your location. Here in Iceland I can get fresh fish that was caught the same day in my local fish store (mind you not all their fish is caught that day, but most if not all inside 2). Though with the globalized world we live in, I was even able to get fish from Iceland no older than 2 days in Edmonton Canada when I lived there some years ago. edit; I'll add that there is a massive texture difference in white fish depending on if it has ever been frozen. Flaky fresh never frozen cod becomes like chewing gum after having been frozen.

munificent 5y ago

The fish you buy even from reputable suppliers was very likely flash frozen on the boat before it ever reached land. Many fishing boats are out for several days or weeks at a time. So just because it's only been on land a short time, that doesn't mean it's recently caught. This is a good thing because many fish harbor parasites that are killed when flash frozen. Your home freezer doesn't reliably get cold enough to take them out. You can reliably kill them by cooking very thoroughly, but since fish is such a delicate meat, the line between "may still have wriggling worms" and "overcooked, dry, and unpalatable" can be quite fine.