# How to remove the fishy smell



## saftab

I love eating fish and I try and cook (grill, pan fry) it at home too. I love the grilled fish in restaurants. I have mixed results when I do it at home. The following are two of biggest problems

a) At times the fish releases liquid on the serving plate after I remove it from the grill pan - never happened at a restaurant (the good ones)
b) At times the fishy smell remains - Never happens at a restaurant (the good ones).

Any suggestions / tips / advice on these two points will be greatly appreciated.


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## ChefJune

1. If you have a fishy smell to start with, you'll have one after the fish is cooked.  Fish should never smell "fishy" -- only of the ocean.  clean.  If you get a fishy smell, leave the fish in the market!

2.  Maybe you want to drain the fish on the way from the pan to the serving platter?  Or, are you heating your platter, so the hot fish does not hit a cold dish?  both are good solutions to the liquid on the serving plate.


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## daisy

To Reduce Fish Odours:



Sprinkle a little curry powder in the frying pan before cooking.
*[FONT=&quot]or[/FONT]*​ Rub pan well with a cut lemon to remove all traces of fish smell.
 
 From Hands:
Wash hands in warm tea to get rid of seafood odours.
*[FONT=&quot]or[/FONT]***​ Rub the hands with a little butter.
*[FONT=&quot]or[/FONT]*​ Squeeze some lemon juice over the hands, rub hands together for a few seconds, then rinse with soap and water. Repeat if necessary.

From Oven Dishes:
Put some tea-leaves or tea-bags into the dish and fill up with water.  Leave to stand for 15-20 minutes, then rinse thoroughly.
 
 To Reduce the Smell Produced by Cooking Prawns: 
Add a tablespoon of vinegar and a bay leaf to the cooking pot. Or add a few drops of sesame oil.

To Reduce Cooking Odour from Salmon: 
Cover fish with lemon juice and refrigerate for at least an hour.


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## attie

Good points Daisy and as Chef June says, if it smells fishy at the markets somethings fishy about it. I handle fish day in day out and am a walking cat lure, they love me. I wash me hands in white vinegar often, that clears the smell. When grilling fish I coat it in fine semolina, it gives it a nice golden crunch.


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## YT2095

the smell from fish is an Amine/Amide functional group. acids of any sort will hydrolise this molecule and break it down, thus removing the smell.

Acetic/ethanoic acid (vinigar) or Citric acid (lemon juice) will work perfectly. avoid Bases though such as alkaline soaps or Bicarb, they`ll have little to no effect.


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## buckytom

umm, yeah, what yt said!

i was just gonna say that.. 

i can't believe no one said, "how do you keep a fish from smelling? cut off it's nose."


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## htc

I wash my fish with salty water before cooking. (whole fish)


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## m.trummer

I always wash my fish and then often marinate it for an hour or so.  I use a variety of marinades including lemon, garlic, herbal and ginger teriyaki


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