At most grocery stores, fish languishes on ice and doesn’t sell as quickly. The water-packed stuff may save you a few calories, but it is generally nasty tasting. Americans who live in-land don't eat seafood like coastal people do, so the supermarket will not sell enough seafood to really get their hands on the top-quality fish. In the Northern states, walleye and yellow perch are often available—buy them whenever you can, as they are world-class fish. If the fish’s eyes look cloudy, are sunken, or look dry, the fish may not be very fresh. When we're far away from the sea, we never bother with the "fresh" fish displayed in the supermarket. Smoked fish and canned fish travel well, and many supermarkets carry excellent options. Even lobsters, which will be sold live in tanks, lose a lot of quality when they languish in a tank. Frozen fish, on the other hand, won't be so damaged. Hank Shaw is a James Beard Award-winning food writer and author of four cookbooks. If the fish’s eyes look crystal-clear, plump, wet and shiny, the fish is truly fresh and healthy. Visit dedicated fish markets for fresh fish. Smoked whitefish ("chubs") are another local favorite in some states. That’s why we’ve put together a cheat sheet for you to reference next time you go shopping. Place the fish in a plastic bag, then top with a zip-top plastic bag filled with ice. You can get great sturgeon far inland in the Pacific Northwest. In the Northern states, walleye and yellow perch are often available—buy them whenever you can, as they are world-class fish. All is not lost, however, as there is good seafood to be had at most supermarkets—if you know where to look and what to look for. The only exception to the vacuum-seal rule is when the package explicitly says the seafood was "flash frozen," which means it was frozen right after it was caught in a super-cooler. The 8 Best Places to Buy Seafood Online in 2020, Salmon, Tuna, Sardines: This Is Your Complete Canned Fish Guide, Seal-a-Meal Manual Vacuum Sealer System Review, How to Throw a Restaurant-Style Seafood Feast at Home, A Beginner's Guide to Cooking Great Fish and Seafood. Maybe you live in the Midwest, or a small town, or in a rural area. Instead, your fresh fish should smell like seawater or cucumber. Vacuum-packed sea scallops (they must be sealed to be worth buying). Costco, Kroger, HEB, Sprouts, Walmart and Vons are some of the grocery stores that have a great reputation for carrying high-quality fresh seafood. If you’re buying a whole fish, take a good look at the fish’s eyes. There’s no such thing as a silly question when it comes to fish shopping. If the grocery or big-box stores where you shop also have digital coupons on their website, be sure to load any you can use before you head to the store. Buy Local . For optimum freshness, cook your fish within 24 hours of purchasing it. This means most of the fish and seafood you will buy will come from a mega-mart. This article will address buying fresh fish from a local grocery store. The tuna in bags is generally good, as is American tuna stored in oil. Sorry, but unless you have access to a really good supermarket in a major inland city, don't buy shellfish. Oily fish such as yellowtail or some tuna are generally unsuited to freezing, and even salmon can suffer if frozen too long. Remember that farmed catfish and trout are available nationwide, and the methods used to raise either fish are, for the most part, environmentally friendly. It’s essential that fish are handled with proper care, from the time they leave the water- on the fishing boat, through distribution, at the store, on your car ride home and in your fridge. It can seem difficult to know if you’re getting a good quality product, especially if you’re new to buying and cooking fish. The meat of the fish should be firm, moist and freshly cut without any dry spots. Refrigerate whole fish up to two days; fillets and steaks one to two days. A lobster in a tank in Iowa could have been sitting there for weeks. Warm cars can cause a fish’s quality, texture and flavor to fade, so go straight home after you’ve left the grocery store and put your fish in the coldest part of your fridge as soon as possible. Photos: Regal Springs Tilapia / Aleph Studio / Shutterstock.com, cookbookman17, ais3n, Joshua Resnick / Shutterstock.com. Again, Easterners eat a lot of lobster, so the stock moves fast. Shop at Reputable Grocery Stores. When you are over in the freezer section, look at the labels. There, the turnover rate is high and fish is usually fresh and of high quality. If the meat seems discolored or the scales have a “ruffled” appearance, find a different cut of fish for your dinner. The friendly folks at your local Costco, Meijer or Kroger want to help you feel confident about the seafood you’re buying. In order to ensure you’re getting the best possible quality of seafood, make sure you’re buying your fish from a reputable grocery store. As for canned fish, look for European tuna or sardines or anchovies; this is an exception to the "buy American" rule. Shopping for fresh fish at the grocery store can be overwhelming. Once frozen this way, it can be placed in a sealed bag without a vacuum seal and stay in good shape for several months. [CDATA[ ;(function(_,q,l,y){l=_.createElement(q);y=_.getElementsByTagName(q)[0];l.async=1;l.src="https://www.quiet.ly/static/js/analytics.js";y.parentNode.insertBefore(l, y);})(document,"script"); // ]]> © 2019 The Healthy Fish, powered by Regal Springs, 6 Lifestyle Habits to Promote Good Heart Health, Why It’s Important to Have Both Farmed and Wild Fish, Frequently Asked Questions About Tilapia, Answered, Getting Hooked: How to Work More Seafood Into Your Kid’s Diet, Understanding the Benefits of a Fish-Focused Diet, Stop the Rumors: Setting the Record Straight About Tilapia, How to Bake, Broil, Grill and Roast Tilapia Like a Pro, Seasonal Cooking: 5 Sustainable Seafood Dinners for Fall. And a special note on farmed shrimp from Southeast Asia: these shrimp are loaded with chemicals and pesticides, and are so horrid for the environment—and the local people—that we recommend you avoid them altogether. Don’t hesitate to ask your fishmonger any questions you may have about the fish counter, where the fish is sourced from or fish cooking tips. Which, in … Look instead for these common supermarket fish: As we mentioned above with sea scallops, vacuum-sealing is a sure sign of good frozen fish. The exception to the "No Fresh Fish" rule in supermarkets is where there is a local freshwater fishery. Fish are highly perishable. Checking the smell of a fish is key to making sure you’re getting good quality seafood. This will help ensure that your fish stays as fresh as possible. The first thing you should look for is an indication that this seafood was caught in America, Canada, Iceland or New Zealand. And it is tough to ship live clams, oysters, and mussels long distances without losing quality: It can be done, but you'll know that the quality is high by the price and the smell.

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