How to cook fish, as to remove the "fishy taste"?

[sikwhiskey]

I love fish, raw, smoked or cooked. However, the wife won't eat it as it tastes "fishy"…..except for canned Tuna, which somehow she finds, doesn't taste "fishy" at all……… but won't go near fresh tuna...
Anyway, without delving too deeply into the confused, Alien mind of the fairer sex, is there a way to cook fish so as to lose some of the "fishy" taste?
I went out and bought some Tilapia ( which i find has as much flavour as cardboard) as SHE was told that it is one of the most mild flavour fish and she would like to try it. I have some fresh lemon and Garlic to pan fry the Tilapia with. Any other herbs, tips or tricks or other fish I can try? Would really like to find her the "Gateway" fish, to get her eating it regularly

[1899b]

Originally Posted by sikwhiskey

I love fish, raw, smoked or cooked. However, the wife won't eat it as it tastes "fishy"…..except for canned Tuna, which somehow she finds, doesn't taste "fishy" at all……… but won't go near fresh tuna...
Anyway, without delving too deeply into the confused, Alien mind of the fairer sex, is there a way to cook fish so as to lose some of the "fishy" taste?
I went out and bought some Tilapia ( which i find has as much flavour as cardboard) as SHE was told that it is one of the most mild flavour fish and she would like to try it. I have some fresh lemon and Garlic to pan fry the Tilapia with. Any other herbs, tips or tricks or other fish I can try? Would really like to find her the "Gateway" fish, to get her eating it regularly

cook moose, deer or elk instead. No fishy taste....

[twofifty]

Fish sticks?

[kidd]

I find that a squirt or two of lemon juice in the frying pan or inside the foil helps with eliminating any fishy taste.
Something that I find that helps with wild caught fish is to leave the smallest patch of skin on the fillet that is legal. I think its the skin that causes the problem more than anything else.
kidd

[Dewey Cox]

Fresher fish is less fishy.
(say that one fast a few times!)

I find that lemon gets rid of fishiness to some degree.

[twofifty]

Try marinating freshly caught skinless filets for a half-hour, in a 50/50 mix of fresh water and lemon juice. Then braise quickly in hot cast iron pan. Turn over when seized, add fresh chives or green onions - finish with lid on.

Make sure there are no bones to pick out.

[expmler]

Start her out on walleye, pike, perch or whitefish.

[sikwhiskey]

Originally Posted by twofifty

Try marinating freshly caught skinless filets for a half-hour, in a 50/50 mix of fresh water and lemon juice. Then braise quickly in hot cast iron pan. Turn over when seized, add fresh chives or green onions - finish with lid on.

Make sure there are no bones to pick out.

Going to try this, along with this recipe I found on the web.

1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon paprika
3/4 teaspoon onion powder
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon basil
3/4 teaspoon italian seasoning
4 (4 ounce) tilapia fillets
1/2 cup breadcrumbs,
1 table spoons of Parmesan cheese.
3 tablespoons sliced green onions
1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
1 tablespoon olive oil
Directions:

1
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
2
In a small bowl combine the spices from the salt through the Italian seasoning and set it aside.
3
In a shallow container mix the bread crumbs, dried parsley, and green onions.
4
Measure 4 tsp of the spice mix and sprinkle that all over the 4 fish fillets.
I'm going to dip it into a whipped egg first
5
Add the remaining spice mix to the bread crumbs, mixing well. Add the olive oil to the bread crumb mix, blending it in with your hands.
6
Dredge the fish in the breadcrumbs, coating well.
7
Shake off any excess breadcrumbs.
8
Place the fish on a baking pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray.
9
Bake for 6 minutes.
10
Turn over and bake for 4 minutes.
11
Turn over again and bake until flaky, about 4 more minutes.
12
Serve immediately.


Thinking this should mask the fish taste. I'll let you folks know how it turns out. Thanks for all the input so-far.

[Chewbacca]

I find that when you cook fish with skin the gray stuff between the meat and the skin is what gives it the fishy taste. Sometimes I will scrape it off and the fishy taste is gone. It comes off easily. I have since found out the gray stuff as I called it the fat and that is where all the good omega oils are.

[twofifty]

The spices will do a much better job if they are freshly harvested, or bought whole and ground at home before use. The dried bulk and bottled spices have less flavour and therefore less 'fish' masking power.

Be careful with having too many flavours, as you might end up with something that tastes like "???? what is this"? Think of what happens when a child mixes a bunch of primary paint colours: mud brown. Suggest you be decisive about the flavour accent you want and you won't confuse your wife's palate.

[tbiddy]

Soak the fish in milk before cooking. I did that with some shark meat we had and it removed all the fishy taste.

[igorot]

If frozen make sure to defrost it properly(in room temperature water) not in the microwave. The fish blood is what makes it "fishy"remove anything visible. To the extreme rinse it with vinegar.

[BeeGuy]

Originally Posted by Dewey Cox

Fresher fish is less fishy.
(say that one fast a few times!)

I find that lemon gets rid of fishiness to some degree.

x2

Consider how you store and transport your catch.

If it isn't on ice once it's dead, the quality quickly declines.

Once it is home, process it quickly and keep it dry.


Treat your catch in this manner and you should not have a fishy taste or need for lemon.

I only keep fish from colder water and the wife will throw elbows for the bigger share.

[twofifty]

Has your wife tried fresh sushi from a really good Japanese place?
There is nil 'fishy' taste or smell to good suchi.

[Sushi]

I find Tilapia isn't great and sometimes tastes off. Personally, I find that Costco has the most fresh fish in this province. Their fresh Cod, Salmon, Steelhead (Rainbow), and Snapper are excellent. They also have fresh Halibut, Ahi Tuna, and Pickeral but I haven't tried those. Good fish never tastes fishy unless she simply doesn't care for fish.

[albertabighorn]

The fresher the fish the less fishy the taste

[walking buffalo]

Besides the obvious to use very fresh fish,

1) remove the "slow" muscles, red/dark colour.

2) Douse with fresh LIME juice before cooking.

All the Tropical Island Nations know to do this.

[Sundancefisher]

Marinade in Kraft golden Italian salad dressing. Works well on stocked trout.

Also dark muscle is usually fishy tasting. Fat in freshwater fish is also bad. Removing the skin also helps.

[sikwhiskey]

Originally Posted by twofifty

Has your wife tried fresh sushi from a really good Japanese place?
There is nil 'fishy' taste or smell to good suchi.

Ive tried to get her to try it, to no avail. She definitely has a fish phobia. Wouldn't even eat the seaweed wrapping on the Veggy rolls until a few months ago, taking baby steps for now. She is going in a fitness contest and a lot of the recipe's use fish, so she's wants to try it, as chicken is getting boring.

Originally Posted by Sushi

I find Tilapia isn't great and sometimes tastes off. Personally, I find that Costco has the most fresh fish in this province. Their fresh Cod, Salmon, Steelhead (Rainbow), and Snapper are excellent. They also have fresh Halibut, Ahi Tuna, and Pickeral but I haven't tried those. Good fish never tastes fishy unless she simply doesn't care for fish.

x2 on Costco, I get all my Salt water fish there, not too bad on price either.
I have a bit of Trout and pike in the freezer, going to experiment a bit with smoking/cooking it differently to see what she likes.

[drhu22]

The biggest thing as stated is to eat fish fresh. There was a post(thread?) about a week ago telling how to care for fish ie: gut it and put on ice immediately. Also, freeze it in water... old milk cartons work well.

[silverdoctor]

Fresh fish has no smell. Give it a good rub with salt, rinse and repeat til you don't smell fishy anymore. When you cook it, the smell should go away.

[spinN'flyfish]

If you go fishing for food i recommend to bleed it before it dies and dump in ice to keep it fresh

[omega50]

Crispy Coconut Crusted Tilapia with a side of Mango Salsa

[mooseknuckle]

Just eat halibut.

[waterninja]

i have always found that if you leave the skin on when you cook and or eat fish it tastes much more fishy. try fish fillets fried or baked in a light batter. you can season the batter to taste, or even try different fillet recipes.

[Luxor]

I have the same problem with my other half.
Plenty of lemon and garlic butter usually is good but a light batter then oil fried works best for her.

What is it with women who don't like fish taste. Men luv the taste of chkn and fish.

[sinawalli]

Halibut steak+ hot BBQ= awesome tasting fish, end of story!

[omega50]

This post actually gave me a craving for Fishy Fish
So I started a mini-batch of Lox to have with Bagels and Cream Cheese.


Curing it with Black Truffle Sea Salt and some crushed Juniper

Cryovac-ed and will be ready to slice on Thursday for breakfast

[great white whaler]

over cooking ,,gives it a fishy taste,,,

[WZHunter]

My wife has the same issue with Salmon. Season a fresh skinless salmon filet from Costco with Montreal Steak spice and put directly on bbq grill (meat grain opposite the grill direction to make flipping easy). Start with dark, fishy tasting meat down (skin side), and cook that side for 5-7 minutes on medium. Once you flip, you can easily remove all the cooked dark, fishy tasting meat with a spatula or knife. Remove as much as possible. After another 5, flip back to grill the side you just cleaned for one minute to sear, and finish both sides with sweet chili sauce. Other than fresh walleye, this is my favorite fish. Just don't overcook or will dry out.