Perhaps the biggest challenge in cooking a perfect fillet of fish is making sure that it doesn't fall apart while you are cooking or serving it. No matter what type of fish you are preparing, follow these steps to make sure you come out with a beautiful, intact fillet that looks as good as it tastes.
Instructions
1. Choose a fillet that is thick, rather than thin. A thicker fillet means there will be less chance of the fillet falling apart while you are cooking it. A thicker fillet isn't as delicate as a thinner piece of fish.
2. Cook the fish for a shorter amount of time so the connective tissues that hold the fish together don't have time to fall apart. It's recommended that you cook fish for 10 minutes per inch of thickness. The fish should be flaky and not translucent when it is done, but it should still hold together as a fillet.
3. Raise the fillet's temperature higher than the temperature of other meats before taking it off the heat source. You can tell your fish is done when a food thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the fish fillet is at least 140 degrees F.
4. Turn the fish while baking or frying fish fillets. This allows both sides to be cooked evenly without the fish getting overdone and falling apart during the cooking process.
5. Keep fish from falling apart while you are grilling by placing the fillets in something that will physically hold the fish together. You can keep the skin on the fish, place the fish in a greased metal basket or wrap the fillets in foil or parchment paper.
6. Add 1 tsp. of vinegar to the water when you are poaching fish. This will help keep the poached fish together without adding a vinegar taste to the fish.
7. Remove the fish from the heat source immediately after it is done. Keeping the fish on the heat source will overcook the fish and make it more likely to fall apart before you serve it.
Tags: apart while, fall apart, falling apart, fish together, heat source
