Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with fish

Why did they make me eat fish on Fridays?

tastybrains — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 07:52:42 -0800

In some religions (at the very least Catholicism), eating fish on Fridays is (or at least was) a requirement and seems to remain a bit of a tradition. I was raised by some strict Catholics, but never understood what the real rule was. Do you have to eat fish, or do you just have to not eat meat? And how exactly is "meat" defined in this situation? This question is one I've wondered for a long time, triggered by my intense dislike of all seafood. Most recently, what triggered this question was the fact that it seems that all corporate cafeterias I know of serve fish every Friday (and stank up the whole place).

As a child, on Fridays during Lent, I was given a lot of shit for refusing to eat fish like everyone else. My question was always "if we can't eat meat, why can't we just order some cheese pizza?!" Really...why? Why is fish the traditional alternative to meat, instead of *real* nonmeat foods like tofu and beans and pasta and the aforementioned cheese pizza?

I also wondered exactly how fish was not meat, but chicken was. I mean, where is the line drawn between meat-dead-animals and non-meat-dead-animals? Is it warm-blooded versus cold-blooded (if so, could I eat amphibians and reptiles on Fridays if I wanted to observe this rule? Are frog legs and alligator fair game?)? Is it land-dwelling versus water-dwelling (if so, could I eat a dolphin or a manatee?)?

What about mealworms? Could I eat those?

how do I judge the quality of salmon (or other fish) in the supermarket?

krautland — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 05:04:11 -0800

how do I judge the quality of salmon (or other fish) in the supermarket? I just bought some terrible smoked salmon. it wasn't even cheap and the packaging informed me it was "wild alaska salmon, certified to the standards of the marine stewardship council" (I translated that from german). so I thought it wasn't farmed and that I'd in fact be getting some premium wild salmon to garnish my slice of bread with but I was wrong. this salmon has no texture, the color is awfully orangy-looking now that I've been able to closer inspect it and it's just one solid color without any shift at all. I also can't taste anything thanks to some bitter smell.

please help me not make this mistake again. please tell me how to look at fish in a market and understand if it's good or bad or new or old or quality or cheap. please recommend how to judge packaged salmon as well.

oh ... us seals don't help me much ... they rarely have them in german supermarkets.

My aquarium got cloudy and I don't know why

DMelanogaster — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:58:40 -0800

I have a 20 gallon fishtank with three goldfish and one plecostamus. Everything's been great for over a year until yesterday. There was some water evaporation so I decided to add some plain tap water, a couple of gallons, maybe. I've done this before with no ill consequences. Then I discovered that I had some Aqua Plus left, and poured in about 1/2 cup. It's always worked fine both in this tank and in my pond outside. However, this morning (the "morning after") my tank is completely cloudy! The fish look okay but I just don't understand what's going on. The tap water was completely clear, and Aqua Plus is used to clear up cloudy tanks! What could be going on here?? the fish are still looking good but the cloudy tank looks horrible.

How much am I hurting the environment when I have a sushi tuna roll?

underwater — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 18:02:20 -0800

What are the thermodynamics of frozen sushi-grade tuna? I just toured the Tsukiji Fish Market and learned that the tuna there is kept on the boat at -48 Celsius for up to 2 years before it is delivered to the market. How much energy is expended in this process, and how does this information translate into the environmental impact of me eating a tuna roll? Say a bluefin tuna weighs 200kg, and let's assume an average tuna is kept frozen for one year and that the tuna is at 15 degrees Celsius when caught (I couldn't find great data on this; tuna body temperature is higher than the average water temperature, but I couldn't find absolute data on this--please chip in if you have any), and that a tuna roll contains one oz. of tuna.

I don't know how the tuna is frozen or what energy source is used for this, so I'm not sure how to make assumptions about that, but perhaps you do.

Help me devise a delicious fish dish for my wedding!

rglass — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 16:02:42 -0800

What would be a delicious fish dish for my wedding? What are your favorite fish recipes, flavors or dishes? I am looking to serve a white fish at my wedding either crusted or with a sauce/relish but am having trouble coming up with something really great. No pork products or seafood (shrimp, lobster, crab etc) can be in the dish. In general, I like more of a savory flavor than a sweet one on fish. Also, nothing too heavy/creamy/cheesy. All suggestions welcome!

Do my fish need a change?

Drasher — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 07:33:07 -0800

[AquariumFilter] I have a Magnum H.O.T. filter on a 29g freshwater tank and I am considering changing to a Penguin Emperor 400. Is this a wise move? Do I have to run them in parallel? (and another weird question about inhabitants) [OK, the "AquariumFilter" pun was slightly intended] The tank is freshwater and has an assortment of guppies, Cory catfish, kuhli loaches, and a pleco. The substrate is gravel and the plants are all live (Java moss and fern). I have tried getting some easy fish to reproduce in the tank and after ten years, the guppies have finally done it!

The Magnum is a pain to clean and change; it must be removed and completely dismantled to change the filter elements. It looks like the elements of the Emperor just lift out while the filter remains running. I usually do not run chemical filtration (carbon); I stick to mechanical (filter "floss") and biological (bio-wheel).
It looks to me like the Emperor might be easier to service and the 400 has two large bio-wheels.

The Magnum quit on me again yesterday. Yeah, I know, my fault, but the filter element must have grabbed all of the algae junk at one time and clogged(!). Anyway, it was pulling nothing and cavitating.

I don't know how long that had been going on, but I could see that the fish were stressed. Then I saw something REALLY weird. I saw six (or so) worms. It looked like they could be tubifex worms, but I haven't put any live tubifex worms in the tank for a couple years! It is even possible that the worms lived and/or reproduced for that time? What good (or bad) does that say about the tank's eco-system?

Best snorkeling in Puerto Rico?

exhilaration — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:17:13 -0800

What are the best beaches for snorkeling in Puerto Rico and Vieques? I visited this amazing beach in PR two years ago and am looking for something similar... When I visited Puerto Rico back in 2007, I stood in waist-deep water at the Tres Palmas Marine Reserve at Steps Beach in Rincón and watched tropical fish swim around my legs. I'm looking for other snorkel spots in PR that are equally accessible and family-friendly: they don't require a boat or even good swimming ability.

Bonus points for the eastern side of Puerto Rico and especially Vieques!

Lavos spawn ten years later?

jalexc — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:07:13 -0800

What is this spiky fish carcass? When I was in the Outer Banks a month ago, there were these spiky fish shells all over the beach. Here's a picture. I looked around on Google and Wikipedia for pufferfish, blowfish, porcupine fish, etc. before finding one site that had a similar picture claiming it was a porcupine fish. That site was the only one though; the other search results had rounder or otherwise different fish.

So, do you know what this thing is? Bonus question: do you know why a bunch of these would be washed up on the beach? I go to the Outer Banks fairly often and have never seen these before.

What was nibbling at my legs in the sea at Naples Beach this morning?

media_itoku — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 13:38:59 -0800

I was swimming at Naples Beach Florida this morning and a very persistent, long thin fish kept nibbling at my legs. It was 2-3 inches long, maybe 1/4 inch thick, & had bold black & white stripes. It seemed to want to attach to me in the same way shark lamprey do. What was it?

What's this herb? I'm floundering.

maudlin — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 14:59:40 -0800

It's green, it grows, it tastes like fish. What is it and what can I do with it? I was picking up choi and herbs at a Chinese green grocers a couple of days ago, and I was offered this plant to try. The owner couldn't tell me what its English name was, and I forgot to ask what the herb is typically used for, so here I am.

The plant smells faintly of fish, and definitely tastes like a combination of mild whitefish and generic greenstuff. I was thinking it would go well in any recipe where I would use fish sauce, but if you have any other ideas, or if this is more of a medicinal herb than a cooking herb, let me know.

How can I ensure my fish live long, happy lives?

biochemist — Sun, 31 May 2009 11:47:32 -0800

What size tank and type of fish are best for a beginner with a ~20 tank size limit? I'd like something that isn't too time-consuming. I've googled it and seen this, but the former results vary wildly and the latter is mostly for larger tanks.

1) What size tank would you recommend for a beginner? It's for a dorm room with a ~20 gallon limit.

2) What type of fish are happiest in this size tank? I'm going for freshwater.

3) I've read that you need to fill the tank and let it sit for a week, and I've read that you don't need to do that. Which one is it?

How to safely clean this stinky food container?

cadge — Tue, 26 May 2009 21:36:07 -0800

How do I safely clean a very stinky glass dish with plastic Tupperware-style lid that sat out on the counter for days after holding smoked mackerel? I have a glass dish with a plastic Tupperware-style lid that I used to store smoked mackerel in the fridge last week.

After the mackerel was finished, I didn't get around to washing the dish, which was mostly empty but still had oils and small fish bits in it. It sat out, sealed, on the counter, for several days (and a couple of those were very warm days).

I just opened the dish to wash it and it was really, really rank (more so than I've ever smelled it). Are there extra steps that I should take to safely clean this container and continue to use it (and avoid any foodborne illnesses)?

Are cheap fish oil capsules OK?

bobbyno — Mon, 25 May 2009 12:01:19 -0800

Are Trader Joe's Salmon Oil capsules still good for you even though they are so much cheaper then health food store brands? I would like to take fish oil capsules for health benefits but I found that the prices of fish oil capsules that are "molecularly distilled" and therefore, clear of toxic heavy metals, are very expensive. But, I found that Trader Joe's carries molecularly disitilled salmon oil capsules and sells them for $7 for a large bottle. A comparable bottle of the health food store brands would be $30 to $50 or more. How can this Trader Joe's Salmon Oil be so inexpensive? Are they really a high quality supplement that is benficial to take?

Fish simulacrum

kepano — Sun, 24 May 2009 18:14:01 -0800

Where can I buy a fake (non-edible) salmon fillet? Okay this might be a weird one, but that's what MeFi's for, right? I'm looking to buy a non-edible but somewhat realistic simulacrum of a salmon fillet. It doesn't have to be floppy but it should represent the fish in it's raw state (somewhere between 6-12 inches in length).

(I wish it was for a prank, but it isn't)

I've seen some nifty things done with Fimo, so I'm wondering if Etsy might be the place to look. Any suggestions?

I catch a fish, I cook a fish, I eat a fish, I like it!

furtive — Fri, 08 May 2009 14:10:37 -0800

Trying to remember a cool site about ethical seafood and fish? It showed maps and had lists on the right, and if you entered a fish/shrimp that you currently buy it would rate it in regards to health, overfishing, farming etc. and suggest alternatives. Anyone remember what it was?

Short Story Question

nvly — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 20:16:58 -0800

What is this short story about a diver falling from the sky? The (scuba?) diver falls through a hole from the sky and there are normal people walking around below. Ends with a line about fish gasping and convulsing on the street. Probably not more than 400 words long.

what fish is this?

minicloud — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 12:29:41 -0800

Can anyone identify what kind of fish this is? I'm stumped! And its not a mackerel or red snapper, as suggested by some twitterers, either. I'm sorry if this isnt a very worthy askmefi question, but I dont know where else to turn!

Where to Buy Fish in Downtown NYC?

toomuchkatherine — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 13:29:27 -0800

Can anyone recommend a good place to buy fish in lower Manhattan or North Brooklyn? I live in Greenpoint, and I've done a little research already but everyone seems to suggest places that are in Park Slope/South Brooklyn, and as such, inconvenient for me.

I just want to get more into eating fish. I'm trying to do it in a responsible way, so feel a little sketched out by Chinatown, even though it's an obvious choice (have no way of telling whether those fish were sustainably harvested or not). Anybody know a place that has decent fresh fish, below 23rd Street? Extra points if it doesn't break the bank.

Traditional-schmaditional

owtytrof — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 12:49:42 -0800

RecipeFilter: Seafood stew stumper! A local Italian restaurant serves a fantastic bowl of cioppino, which I would like to try to replicate at home. The problem is that the dish I'm trying to make is not cooked in the traditional tomato and garlic broth, which is all I can find via Google, but a creamy lemon butter version.

I'm fairly handy in the kitchen, and not afraid of improvisation, but I need a starting point. Any tips, ideas, or actual recipes for this apparently rare version of cioppino would be greatly appreciated!

No-carb carnivore cooking and diet tips?

korpios — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:08:31 -0800

What are some cooking and diet tips for an ovo-lacto carnivore? (No, that wasn't a typo.) After reading Good Calories, Bad Calories, I swiftly changed my entire dietary regimen over to a near-zero-carbohydrate diet. I still eat leafy greens — but other than that, I barely touch single-carb foods and refuse to eat anything with more than a single carb per serving. The bulk of my diet now consists of meat, eggs, and cheese, along with servings of spinach leaves here and there. While I've gotten creative with mixing ingredients into omelettes, I'd like to expand my culinary horizons a bit while staying within the boundaries of my chosen diet. Does anyone have any suggestions for doing so? (Examples: ingredients to try, useful cooking techniques, or recipe sources.)

Note: Please do not reply with either moral or major health concerns regarding my diet; that's not what I'm asking for. Minor health concerns, e.g., "you might want to take a Vitamin C supplement", are okay.

My fish smells like fish!

dame — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 16:55:18 -0800

How do I get my shells to stop smelling like fish? I bought some shells on vacation in the Bahamas, including a starfish. It seemed plenty dried out when I bought it, but now, upon unwrapping, it smells very fishy (shocking, I know). Do I just need to leave it to dry or is there something else I should be doing too?

Help me figure out this Mystery Roe

qvtqht — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 15:54:46 -0800

A few weeks ago, I ate a strange sushi made with a large black roe. Does anyone know what it is? A friend was at a Japanese restaurant in Brooklyn and picked up an order for me too. Among other things, I asked for a piece of salmon roe sushi.

They said that they were out of salmon roe, but they have _____, and it was just delivered, so it is really fresh, and would be a good substitute.

_____ turned out to be something very dark, if not black. It looked a little bigger than any salmon roe I've seen. It tasted similar to salmon roe, but sweeter. It seemed very fresh indeed. There was no fishy taste at all, but fresh salmon roe doesn't have a fishy taste either.

It did not look dyed, but I could be wrong about that.

Has anyone encountered anything like this? Any idea what it was? I liked it, and wouldn't mind eating some more in the future.

Where to develop underwater camera film?

roxie110 — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 09:46:28 -0800

Where should I get my underwater camera film developed in San Francisco (or by mail, if there's a good option)? I bought one of those cheap underwater cameras for a trip to Mexico, but don't really want to get it developed at a drug store like Walgreens or Rite Aid. But because it's a cheap camera, there are probably only a few good photos on there, and I don't want to spend a fortune for 20 blurry fishlike photos. Any suggestions for a happy medium? Thanks!

The last time I ate fish, it was in fingers...

[ixia] — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 00:15:24 -0800

After a decade of vegetarianism, I'd like start including fish in my diet. I live near my city's major fish market, but I have no idea what to buy or how to cook it. I would love to hear your favourite simple fish recipes. What can I cook which is:

a) Practical to cook for one person.

b) Not too challenging to the palate of someone who has never really eaten fish.

I'd like to start out eating with fish that are relatively mild, but I am not brave enough to ask the local fish sellers "Um, hi...which of your fish taste least like fish?"

Despite my vegetarianism, I am generally an enthusiastic and adventurous eater. Strong spices, interesting flavour combinations and unusual cooking methods are all very welcome.

Best fish with the most omegas and least Hg

mateuslee — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 06:47:06 -0800

What is the tastiest seafood with the most omegas and the least mercury? I try to eat well, but always feel sort of lost in the fish department because I don’t know what to eat.

I want to find a fish (or seafood like shrimp, mussels, etc) that is easy to bake (can just be breaded and baked, for ex) and tasty, plus high in protein and omegas, but which has a low level of mercury and is safe to eat.

Is there a resource, for example, that charts mercury levels against omega content?

I live in the Netherlands, so this might limit some choices – and I rarely have time to go to the fresh fish market… so most of my food is bought in the supermarkets.

(Bachelor-friendly) recipes appreciated!