What did I do wrong (fish heads) or was I just ripped off?

jobbingmusician

Hope someone can help. I bought 3 salmon heads in the market yesterday - they were enormous and looked to have plenty of good fish on them. Cooked them in the slow cooker with tinned tomatoes, courgettes, mushrooms. Tasted a bit - didn't taste brilliant. Finished cooking them, served to OH and he simply refused to eat it. He wasn't being horrid, just said it was off.

Taking the fish off the bones was a really revolting job, and I felt really sick by the end, so I just threw the whole lot away. I think DH was right - it WAS revolting.

DH thinks I cooked the fish too long (90mins on high slow cook). Is he right, or was I just sold off fish?

What should I have done with the heads? (Assuming they were OK)

thriftlady_2

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall has a recipe for roast cod's head.He roasts it for 30-50 mins at 220c.Sounds good and plenty of meat apparently.If your salmon tasted bad it was probably off.

I can't buy such things fresh or off,my only fishmonger is Tesco and they only sell user-friendly fillets and steaks.

Trow

What did the heads smell like when you bought them? Thats the best way to tell if fish is okay. I would have thought if it was off the kitchen would have been VERY overpoweringly fishy, and not a 'fresh' fish smell.

We have a place that sells fish locally, and you honestly cannot smell it, it is SO fresh - so much better than supermarket fish.

jobbingmusician

They were frozen, so difficult to smell. I suppose they did smell fairly strong when defrosted

sophistica

I buy salmon bones from the supermarket to make soup. They only need to be poached in a vegetable stock or chicken stock for 3-5 minutes. Then you make the soup using the stock water and then afterwards you take the fish off the bone and add it to the soup - right at the end. You can't stew fish in the slow cooker (in my opinion).

comping_cat

Trow wrote:

What did the heads smell like when you bought them? Thats the best way to tell if fish is okay. I would have thought if it was off the kitchen would have been VERY overpoweringly fishy, and not a 'fresh' fish smell.

We have a place that sells fish locally, and you honestly cannot smell it, it is SO fresh - so much better than supermarket fish.

I agree, apparently if you can smell the fish as you walk past, you shouldnt buy it as it wont be fresh. Even frozen fish, although will have a slight smell, shouldnt smell too much once defrosted. Any smelly fish, i would stay well clear of!!!