How to thaw fish is good knowledge to have, especially after returning home from a successful fishing trip to Nushagak River Adventures Lodge. Be it king salmon or silvers, thawing your fish properly will increase its quality on the table.
The proper way to thaw fish is by leaving it in the refrigerator until it is thawed. For salmon fillets, this will mean overnight and perhaps even longer for a thick Chinook fillet. If you are defrosting a thin fillet, let’s say of sockeye, then if you take it out of the freezer and place it in the fridge in the morning, it very well may be ready to cook by dinner.
How to thaw fish improperly is to place it on the counter at room temperature. By doing this you run the risk of bacteria growth in your fish and you negatively affect texture. Another faux-pas is to put your seafood in a bowl of warm water, as this promotes bacterial growth and will definitely degrade the quality of your recipes. Most certainly do not attempt to defrost seafood in the microwave as this will wreak havoc on your fish, cooking some pieces while increasing the chance that the rest of the fish will either be dry and tough, or mushy. Neither is necessary with the proper planning.
One suggestion is to take a number of pieces of seafood out of the freezer and place in the refrigerator at the beginning of the week and that will make it so that you have defrosted pieces throughout the week. We suggest that you vacuum seal any seafood you intend to freeze, as this increases the freshness factor, and also allows the seafood to last longer in the freezer.
If you really need to have a piece of fish for dinner, and forgot to take it out of the freezer and place in the fridge far enough in advance, then in a bind, place the seafood (still in its vacuum-sealed bag) in cold water. Place a bowl or plate on top of it to insure that it is fully submerged. How to thaw fish properly means that the temperature of the fish never reaches a level that promotes bacterial growth, so you will need to change out the water every so often in order to keep it cold, well below room temperature
After enjoying an epic adventure to Nushagak River Adventures Lodge, you owe it to yourself to enjoy premium meals of high quality, delicious, healthy, wild Alaska salmon fillets. In order to enjoy the best tasting fish, pull fillets out of the freezer and place in the refrigerator to thaw. Within 24 hours you should have a fillet that is ready to be cooked, and your friends and family will be sure to notice how good your seafood recipes taste compared to most fish that can be purchased at the store. The combination of best fish-care practices of wild Alaska salmon in the field, in order for you to bring home premium fillets, followed up with how to thaw fish properly, gets you well on your way to enjoying many gourmet Alaska salmon meals.
