How to cook fish?

I do not love fish. Most of the time I don't even like fish. The most I used to eat was the occassional can of tuna with a generous helping of mayo and lots of crackers.

I grew up in a family who loved to fish but we wouldn't eat the fish when we caught them, instead they would go into a warm cooler and take a two hour or more trek back home and then sit in the sink, waiting to be cleaned and then maybe that night or maybe the next day...or next week the trout would finally be cooked up. Ick.

I thought this meant I hated fish but I've learned over the years that it was improperly done, that the fish should have been cleaned on site and grilled up ASAP, especially trout which does not fair well with time.

I really want to start an aquaponics farm. I want to grow my own fish along with my own food and have them in that wonderful system that works so well together. My problem is I still have qualms about eating fish.

So I bought a flash frozen salmon fillet and a flash frozen tilapia fillet. I've heard that these particular two are the best I can buy at my local stores, especially the tilapia. Not to mention the health benefits of eating fish.

Given that I have drawbacks to fish to begin with, I want to get some killer recipes to give me the best possible chance at learning to like and even love fish. Anyone got some favorites? Cooking methods would be greatly appreciated as well as whether to thaw the fish first or cook them straight from the frozen state.

Thanks everyone. I really appreciate the recipes. I so desperately want to love fish and I think I've just had bad experiences for the most part. So do I thaw the fish first?

So many good sounding recipes to choose from. I think I'll try the tilapia first simply because it's the more neutral of the two.

Shakesbear said:

I usually just wrap the fish in foil - maybe a tad of light olive oil to stop sticking - then bake in the oven until I can smell it. Served with a fresh salad and potato salad.

A whole salmon cooked in a court bouillon (sp?) is to die for! Make the CB by putting carrots, onions, peppercorns and celery (if you like it) in a sauce bring to the boil and then simmer until the carrot and onion are squishy. Strain the liquid and then pour it over the whole fish. Add about half a pint of a good, dry white wine. Poach until fish is cooked. Time depends entirely on the size of the fish. Turn the fish out onto a large piece of foil. Remove the skin and the brown flesh. Slide a sharp knife down the crease in the back of the salmon to loosen the bones. Use a sharp scissor to snip the main bone at the base of the neck and just above the tail. Carefully remove the bone - if you have loosened it enough it should come away in one piece and take the majority of little bones with it. Then place the fish - using the foil as a sort of hammock - on a serving platter and really impress your friends!

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This is probably a stupid question, do you pour the juice you drained off over the fish or the veggies you drained over?

Okay I just cooked up the tilapia. I put the olive oil in the hot pan, sauted some fresh onions, garlic, basil and cracked peppercorns, as well as half a fresh lime. Let it season up, then I put the tilapia in the pan, sprinkled some cajun seasoning over the top and piled up the sauted items on top while it cooked, flipped it over and did the same. Oh my gosh! If I can make the fish this good every time, loving it won't be a problem.

I served it on a bed of rice with stir-fry on the side.

Kitty Pryde said:

If you're eating fish for its health benefits, tilapia isn't a great choice. It has a very low level of "good fats" (those with omega-3 fatty acids) and a relatively high level of "bad fats" (those with omega-6 fatty acids, that promote inflammation and heart disease). If you want a blander fish, go for cod or bass or something. And remember, fish shouldn't smell or taste "fishy". If it does, it's not fresh. The only fish that should be "fishy" is mackerel. THIS BIT MIGHT BE GROSS: And IMO farmed tilapia is pretty gross--it's farmed so much because it survives well in captivity at a very high density (ie a lot of fish in a small tank). That means they basically live in, and subsist on, Poop Soup. Other species of fish won't survive that treatment so they aren't farmed that densely.

Salmon is really awesome. My favorite (and incredibly easy) way to make it is slow-cooked: http://articles.latimes.com/2007/apr/18/food/fo-lowandslow18/4 (starts here and goes on to the next page of the article). It gives an unusual delicate texture and an amazing flavor. And impossible to overcook.

If you can find the Fish and Seafood cookbook from Hermes House Publishing (there are several versions), it has really amazing recipes that aren't too hard.

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Actually farmed fish do not live in "poop soup" especially not the aquaponics. The ammonia level alone would kill them within a few hours. 90% of the water is cycled out each day. In the aquaponics system it's pushed through a plant system where the plants filter, clean, and nutrient enrich the water and then it's fed back into the fish tank where the fish now have clean and nutrient rich, oxygenated water. The system also requires it to be 100% organic because the fish do not tolerate any outside chemicals, pesticides, or fertilizers. All the fertilization comes from the fish for the plant all the oxygen and clean water comes from the plant for the fish. It's a pretty cool system, most of them you could read the numbers on the bottom of the tank because they're so clean. Even in those super clean tanks if the pumps fail you'll start losing fish in just a few short hours due to lack of oxygen and high ammonia, so keeping a super clean tank is absolutely vital.