Black Tip Shark That Looked Great But Tasted Lousy

The other day I purchased what I thought were gorgeous looking shark filets for grilling. They were on sale at a ridiculously good price, which should have been my first clue something may not be right, but I have purchased a lot of fish on sale before with no problems.

I’ve been told by fishmongers I trust that supermarket chains sometimes buy too much of one item and then have to put it on sale to move it. Other times they put an item on sale so they can advertise it in the paper to get people in the store or so they can make one of those annoying announcements over the speakers while you are in the store.

This is why it is so important to find a fish store or supermarket you like and get to know the person running each department. Build a relationship with your fishmonger or butcher and they will typically steer you in the right direction, making sure you get quality product and the best sales. In this case I didn’t follow my own advice. I purchased the fish at a supermarket chain whose fish department doesn’t usually “wow” me, from a person behind the counter I did not know.

They told me the filets were black tip shark, great for grilling and tasted like swordfish that was selling at a significantly higher price. The filets looked great as you can see in the above photo and when I brought them home, they smelled fine.

Grilling and Tasting

I seasoned them with a little olive oil, salt & pepper and threw them on my gas grill being careful not to overcook them. We like our fish medium, especially if we are serving it to the kids.

When I made my first cut into the fish for that first bite, I knew something wasn’t right. The fish did not flake apart like I expected. When I took that first bite, the meat was very tough, tasted mealy and was almost inedible. When I say inedible, I don’t mean the fish was turned but chewy….not at all what I expected.

I thought maybe I didn’t cook it right or was I supposed to marinate it for a few hours so I emailed my friend Chef Alan Bickel with my own Ask A Chef Question.

I wrote, “Chef, what did I do wrong?  Is it my cooking technique or the fish? And if it was the fish, what was wrong with it? It looked great at the market.”

Here is what Chef Alan replied back to me:

“I have experienced what I think you’re referring to, although it has always been with swordfish in my case. It is almost a ‘grainy’ texture in the mouth, almost as if you were trying to chew finely ground up sandpaper?

In addition, I find the surface of the steaks have almost a sandy feel and not as firm as normal for a dense fish of that kind. As far as flavor profile goes, in a case like this there’s a very bland, depthless feel to it, instead of a full characteristic flavor.

If this is something akin to what you’re talking about, my research leads me to a term known as a ‘jellied’ condition in the meat.  The references have all been vague, so I’m not 100% certain on the name, but the apparent cause of this is a lack of protein in the fish, resulting from an inability to replace lost nutrients after spawning, especially in fish living in extremely cold water.

Again, I’m not entirely certain about the particular name of this condition, or if the condition describes is what we’re talking about, but I will continue to look into this, perhaps throw the question around to a few Chefs in my circle, and I’ll let you know if I come up with anything else.”

My Own Research

Once I knew there was a condition called “jellied” I was able to do some Internet research of my own and found out a little more about what Chef Alan was talking about.

I found a site called Fisheries and Oceans Canada that talked about the Witch Flounder. They said, “A biological assessment of this stock in 1978 indicated the presence of very large old fish up to 26 years of age in the landings. Many of these old fish had to be discarded because of their “jellied” condition and generally poor quality. During spawning season these fish do not feed much, if at all, and the energy required for survival has to be obtained from the body of the fish, leaving behind a soft “jellied” flesh useless for marketing. This condition does not occur in the younger fish.”

At the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science I read a response to the question:

“Some time ago I caught a broadbill swordfish off No Man’s Land, Massachusetts. It appeared normal in every respect and weighed about 350 pounds. However, at the market I was told that the fish was a “jellied” type. The meat presented a mealy, soft appearance. Could you tell me what is known about this disease or condition?”

There response was:

“Jellied condition in fishes has several causes. In a recent study of this condition in flounder it was attributed to lack of protein, due to the failure of fish living in very cold water to recover body protein loss after spawning and absorbing water to replace it. In swordfish, tuna and other large pelagic fishes it seems to be caused by parasites.”

Oh no, I hope my shark didn’t have parasites and was just an old codger!

So be careful when buying any kind of seafood. I’ll ask Chef Alan for a list of things to be observant of when buying fresh or thawed frozen fish at the market but again, I highly recommend you get to know the person who is selling you your fish. It just may save you some money and aggravation.

If any of you have your own personal fish stories, please post them in the reply area below. We can all learn from each other’s mistakes.

How to Make Perfect Sugar Cookies

I received an email from Kathy about preparing the “perfect” sugar cookie. She told me she made two batches of sugar cookie dough using the same recipe and one batch turned out perfect while the other “was puffy and lost shape.”

Kathy wanted to know why this happened so I contacted my friend Chef Jennifer Field, a graduate from the Orlando Culinary Academy, for some help since I’m not much of a baker. Jennifer had a bunch of questions that were answered in Kathy’s next email. Here is what she said,

“The batches were made and cooked on different days. The second batch was refrigerated for a couple days (at least). The recipe was the same, however, I may have beat my shortening, sugar and egg mixture longer the second time. Temp the same.”

Kathy’s Definition of the Perfect Sugar Cookie

“My definition of a perfect sugar cookie is one that is light and a little crisp with the buttery icing softening it just slightly. I’m not into a fluffy cakey sugar cookie. I definitely want one that will hold the shape and design of my cutter. I want to make snowflake shaped cookies at Christmas and my cutter has little cut outs you can add for more detail.

This is the recipe I used:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1 cup butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 4 cup flour

I’m not sure exactly if my mixing was different either time usually I mix in this order: sugar and fats together till creamy, add eggs till fluffy, add dry ingredients that have been combined beforehand, and end with vanilla.
Bake at 325 degrees in a convection oven.

I’m anxious to hear from you and what your suggestions will be for my success.
Thanks again – Kathy”

Chef Jennifer Field’s Recommendations

With these facts in hand, Chef Jennifer was able to point out why the second batch did not turn out “perfect” plus offer some changes to Kathy’s recipe for future cookies.  Here is what she said,

“What immediately jumps out at me is the refrigeration time for the second batch of cookies.  I see that your leavener was baking soda. Baking soda in a baked good only has one chemical reaction: it fizzes and bubbles when it gets wet. This, of course, happened when you first mixed your ingredients together. Since you baked your first batch immediately, the soda did its job correctly.

As your dough for the second batch chilled in the fridge, the chemical reaction ceased. Your rise was probably uneven because you beat more air into the dough (you said your mixing time was longer the second time) so, even though the soda had fizzled by the time you baked, you still had lots of little air bubbles that were probably not evenly distributed in your dough, causing a wonky rise.

I see that the recipe called for 1 teaspoon each of soda and cream of tartar. It sounds like an old recipe. Try substituting double acting baking powder next time. Double acting powder has two chemical reactions:  one when it gets wet and a second one when it gets hot. So, even if you let your dough hang out in the fridge and lose the first reaction over time, you’ll still get a fairly even second boost of leavening when you put your dough in the oven.

Since you’re also interested in your cookie holding a fairly detailed shape after baking, I’d also consider using shortening in place of the oil. Since oil is liquid at room temperature and when heated, cookies will tend to spread a bit. Shortening, being a solid at room temperature and a fairly slow melter, will yield a cookie with less spread.

I hope this helped!  Good luck with your baking.

Chef Jenni Field
Pastry Sous Chef
The Ravenous Pig

P.S.  Your idea of a perfect sugar cookie made me drool.  Just a little:-)”
Me too! - RG

How to Buy Seafood - Advice from a professional chef

Grouper
St. Petersburg Times photo

Recently I received an email from Diane who wanted to know why the grouper she bought in bulk didn’t look like grouper she purchased in the past. In fact, she questioned whether or not it was really grouper at all. Here’s what she said,

“I have been a grouper lover for years and up until recently I have enjoyed it frequently.  I purchased it through a food company that provides meat, poultry and fish in bulk.  In my last two orders I have received a fish that they are calling grouper, but it doesn’t look or taste like grouper.

I am used to a nice white very light fish.  This fish is off white with brown coloration through it and it is a very thick fish.  It doesn’t flake like grouper; it forks off in larger pieces.  The company is insisting that it is grouper, just a different kind.

They said that there was a problem with the grouper from Florida so they are getting it somewhere else.  I told them that all grouper is a translucent white thin fillet until cooked.  Is it possible that I am getting grouper?  I have no idea where to turn with this issue….” -  Diane

Buying Seafood

So here was a situation where Diane was buying fish site unseen, very similar to when a chef buys fish from his supplier without seeing it. He has to trust his fish purveyor will bring him what he wants and the fish people know he will return it if it does not meet his specifications. We have the advantage of going to the market, seeing the fish and if feeling bold, asking the fishmonger to let us smell it for freshness.

Most of us wouldn’t dream of smelling fish before purchasing but it is a good practice to get into. Nothing is more frustrating than buying some fresh fish at the market only to bring it home, give it a smell and realize it is not as fresh as you thought it was. By asking the fish person to smell it, they realize you know what you are doing and will give you a little more consideration next time you come in to buy fish.

What Does A Professional Think?

I asked my friend Chef Alan Bickel about Diane’s situation. Chef Alan had been working at a seafood restaurant called Cascade’s Seafood Restaurant, part of the Gaylord Opryland Resort in Nashville, TN but just recently moved on to a brand new restaurant at the Union Station Hotel in downtown Nashville called Prime 108 and will be working with Chef Tom Cook. I’m hoping we get some updates from Alan as he settles into the new position.

Here is what said about Diane’s grouper situation:

”At first glance, when receiving a cut of fish that is not what you expected, it is understandable to think your fish company is ripping you off, sending you whatever they’ve got kicking around their coolers.  This can be particularly upsetting when you’ve been getting the same kind of fish reliably for a period of time and then it suddenly changes.

The first question I have for Diane is “What specifications did she provide her fishmonger?  How specific was she? Did she ask for:

Red grouper filets
Skin on
Scored
10-12 oz.
PBO (Pin Bone Out) - PBO Boned is similar to Boned but the additional step has been taken to remove the pesky little pin bones. Note the term “PBO Boned” does not mean completely boneless.
Firm White Flesh
No tail cuts

Or did she call the 1-800 number and say, “Yes, please send me 10 lbs of grouper.”

(Who knew there were so many specifications when ordering fish? - RG)

If you’re dealing with a company who knows anything about fish, they’ll be knowledgeable of what they’re sending as well as being able to answer all of your questions.  On the flip side if you want to consistently receive good product, it really pays to know your stuff.

At this time, I know there are almost twenty species of grouper that are commercially fished, some of which are not true ‘grouper’ but are close enough to be considered the same. The same goes for sea bass, salmon, trout.

Even some species of shellfish have counterparts and look-alikes that aren’t identical.  The only way to be truly sure that you’re getting exactly what you want is to go to the market and put your eyes on the piece of fish that you want to buy.

”Subbing out” is a common industry practice that comes from the fact that the only way to get fish (unless you’re talking about farm raised) is to send out a boat and drop lines.  Sometimes fishermen don’t catch much.  Sometimes weather prohibits day-boats from going out.  Sometimes the fish just aren’t there…

So instead of not selling you anything, most companies will send you something they feel is a close substitute.  If you haven’t discussed in detail what you are looking for, the characteristics of the meat, and the flavor profile, your purveyor won’t know what’s acceptable and what isn’t.

Which leads back to actually seeing the fish you’re buying.  I don’t know what part of the county you’re living in but there are many large grocery chains that have great seafood departments including Publix, Wegmans, etc that you should feel pretty comfortable buying from.

Aside from that, most cities have farmer’s markets and depending on your distance from large bodies of water, you might be able to get some really fresh stuff at reasonable prices. Hope this helps. – Chef Alan

If you want to learn more about Epinephelinae, I mean grouper, I suggest you try the following resources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grouper

For a good article on fresh grouper from the St. Petersburg Times, go to http://www.sptimes.com/2003/08/06/Tampabay/Fresh_grouper_Maybe_n.shtml