# Poaching fish



## otuatail (Mar 10, 2016)

I was wondering if there are any good fish poaching recipes. I was thinking of using those oven bags and pooching the fish in some sauce.


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## Andy M. (Mar 10, 2016)

The oven bag should work fine.  I like to poach salmon filets with grated ginger and garlic, scallions and some soy sauce and white wine.  You could add a dash of sesame oil too.


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## CharlieD (Mar 10, 2016)

I never use bag when poaching salmon. I guess I did not know you need one. Go figure, live and learn. What does bag do? I poach plain and add some salt, dill and some lemon juice or some sauce latter.


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## Andy M. (Mar 10, 2016)

Actually Charlie, if you're using a bag or parchment/foil to make a pouch, you cook it in the oven. Technically it's not poaching, you're  steaming.


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## CharlieD (Mar 10, 2016)

Ah, as always I did not read the message carefully. Thank you.


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## Addie (Mar 10, 2016)

I found the following on poaching fish. The recipe looks delicious. But then you know me and seafood. 


http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/mediterranean-striped-bass


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## Steve Kroll (Mar 10, 2016)

Okay, I LOVE FISH. I really, really do. I'll eat pretty much any species. I like perch, salmon, trout, crappies, snapper, tuna, arctic char, sea bass, and even fishy fishes like mackerel.

And I enjoy them pan-fried, steamed, broiled, grilled, blackened, deep fried, and baked.

But I do not like poached fish. Poaching does nothing but cook all the delicate fat out of the fish and turn it into a dry, flavorless lump of meat. Even in restaurants, I've never had good poached fish. 

The one exception I'll note is a few years ago when I had butter poached lobster. That was delicious. But that isn't your normal poaching. Maybe it should be, though.


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## Bigjim68 (Mar 10, 2016)

otuatail said:


> I was wondering if there are any good fish poaching recipes. I was thinking of using those oven bags and pooching the fish in some sauce.



I bought a commercial version of what you propose a few months back.  Salmon fillets packaged in a plastic bag with a sauce, then frozen.  They were fine thawed and cooked in the bag.  Your idea should be fine.  

I would think any sauce typically used with salmon would work.


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## CraigC (Mar 10, 2016)

As long as they are in season, it isn't poaching!


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## Aunt Bea (Mar 10, 2016)

Growing up we only poached perch fillets for poor man's "shrimp" cocktail.  I think you could use the technique with any mild tasting fish.

We poached the perch fillets in a frying pan with a tight fitting lid in about an inch of water that had been seasoned, when the water came to a boil we set if back to a simmer and slid the fillets into the pan, covered it and waited 2 or 3 minutes until they were opaque.  We removed them from the pan and set them in a covered casserole that had been lined with paper towel and chilled them until serving time.  We served the poached perch with a cocktail sauce made from ketchup, prepared horseradish, lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce.


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## CharlieD (Mar 10, 2016)

Steve Kroll said:


> Okay, I LOVE FISH. I really, really do. I'll eat pretty much any species. I like perch, salmon, trout, crappies, snapper, tuna, arctic char, sea bass, and even fishy fishes like mackerel.
> 
> And I enjoy them pan-fried, steamed, broiled, grilled, blackened, deep fried, and baked.
> 
> ...



Could not agree more. I never poach for myself. Do it for my BIL on occasion when he comes over. Total waste of fish if you ask me.


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## RPCookin (Mar 10, 2016)

Love fish "en papel" (in paper - that's how it was on the menu in La Paz, Baha Sur, Mexico), although I'm more likely to do it in foil.  I cooked wahoo and grouper that way often when we lived in the Bahamas, and now I do cod or haddock or whatever decent ocean fish I can get here in the "land of not much".  Easy to do simple seasonings, a slice of lemon, and a couple of rings of bell pepper and onion with it.


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## otuatail (Mar 13, 2016)

Hi Thanks for all the suggestions. What I had in mind is a kind of cook in sauce like those famous jars for chicken. Done slowly sufficient just to make shure it is cooked through.


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## Mad Cook (Mar 17, 2016)

otuatail said:


> I was wondering if there are any good fish poaching recipes. I was thinking of using those oven bags and pooching the fish in some sauce.


If you want to eat salmon, trout, etc., cold the very best way is a very old English way, passed down through my mother's family and featuring in 18th century cookery books. It works for any quantity of fish from a single slice to a full-sized salmon.

The modern version: choose a fish kettle or pan just big enough to hold your fish. Add enough court bouillon, fish stock or water to cover the fish and add a bunch of herbs of your choice and a sliced lemon. place on the stove and bring to the boil. Allow it to bubble gently for a minute and remove the pan/fish kettle from the heat. Do not remove the lid or disturb the pan until the contents are quite cold. Fend off curious children/husbands, etc.

This works every time. The size of the pan and the quantity of water determines the "cooking" time and the fish is never dry or over cooked.

Enjoy.


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## GotGarlic (Mar 17, 2016)

Mad Cook said:


> The modern version: choose a fish kettle or pan just big enough to hold your fish. Add enough court bouillon, fish stock or water to cover the fish and add a bunch of herbs of your choice and a sliced lemon. place on the stove and bring to the boil. Allow it to bubble gently for a minute and remove the pan/fish kettle from the heat. Do not remove the lid or disturb the pan until the contents are quite cold. Fend off curious children/husbands, etc.



This reminds me of a similar recipe I've made, with the same method, which uses half water and half white wine along with the herbs and lemon. It was quite good


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## Addie (Mar 17, 2016)

Steve Kroll said:


> Okay, I LOVE FISH. I really, really do. I'll eat pretty much any species. I like perch, salmon, trout, crappies, snapper, tuna, arctic char, sea bass, and even fishy fishes like mackerel.
> 
> And I enjoy them pan-fried, steamed, broiled, grilled, blackened, deep fried, and baked.
> 
> ...




Oh be still my heart and tummy! That sounds heavenly!


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## Addie (Mar 17, 2016)

Why not take a page from lobster poached in butter?

To make beurre monte, bring 2 tablespoons water to simmer in large saucepan. Whisk in butter, 1 piece at a time, reducing heat to low and being careful not to boil butter. Submerge lobster tail in butter and poach over low heat until heated through, 5 to 6 minutes. (Optimum temperature of beurre monte is between 180 and 190 degrees.)

Substitute "fish" in place of the lobster. When making the sauce do not stop whisking in the butter. You want to create an emulsion. You can infuse an herb that is fish friendly while whisking.


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