A frozen fish is in a state of solid which is because its flesh has ice crystals formed within. Therefore, defrosting is a process that is done to melt these ice crystals in the flesh and bring them back to their natural form which is in the form of water.
This defrosting has other commonly known names such as thawing, de-icing, and also unfreezing. As for frozen fish, because it can be found all year round, it can be bought in bulk and stored at home to use whenever required without worrying about it losing its nutrient properties.
Defrosting a fish means making the fish free from ice buildup in its surface and cells and tissues, which is done to bring the fish to room temperature or above 0 degrees Celsius.
Defrosting or thawing the fish is an important part to do while preparing the fish because this step will make sure that the heat will transfer efficiently and properly all over the fish flesh when the fish is cooked later on.
This method of thawing is the best one to follow in regard to safety and nutrition as the fish will constantly be in the stable temperature when it is being defrosted. Thus helping the fish to retain their original taste, texture, and healthy contents the best.
During the preparation, the refrigerator will have to be turned up at a temperature up to 4.4 degrees Celsius. And by the time the refrigerator is settling down, take a knife and poke a hole in the vacuum bag or unseal it without taking the frozen fish out.
Put the bag of frozen fish over a plate keeping the poked part towards the top to let the air pass. Then let the fish sit inside the refrigerator overnight without creating any disturbance until it is thawed.
While keeping the fish inside the refrigerator, it is necessary to keep them in a stable temperature therefore the best place would be far behind the shelf.
After the fish is thawed with this process, it will retain its natural color and texture so the fish will be pliable and flexible, therefore it will bend without breaking. If still feels firm or appears icy, it might still be partially frozen and thus needs more thawing.
After its done, wipe the fish with a paper towel or kitchen towel and set aside to cook.
Note: This method of defrosting will take about 6 hours to 8 hours for one pound of fish. The timing may differ according to the amount of fish used.
This method of defrosting is the quickest one that can be done without damaging the nutritional content of the fish. This process takes a little effort but if the fish will have to be de-iced as soon as possible yet still retain the texture and health value, this method is the best one to follow.
Prepare the frozen fish by taking the fish out of the sealed bag by cutting the vacuum seal off with a knife.
Transfer the unsealed frozen fish to a clean plastic bag and close the entrance to prevent the leaking. Then take a big bowl and put the plastic bag inside the bowl. Take the bowl to the sink and collect the running water from the tap till the fish in the plastic bag is submerged under the water.
After this, keep the bowl aside and cover with a lid. Change the water after 10 minutes as it will become cold. However, repeat the process until the fish is thawed.
Keep checking within 10 minutes to 15 minutes of interval. As the fish softens when touched and becomes flexible enough to bend, the thawing can be concluded as done.
The fish must not feel firm or appear icy, because these are the symptoms of the fish being still partially frozen and needing more cold water wash. So repeating the process might be needed however after defrosting, wipe the fish with a paper towel and they are set to cook.
Note: Submerging under the tap water will let the fish thaw at a stable temperature. As the water will have to be changed multiple times, it can take one hour for the fish to defrost.
The saltwater method to defrost a fish gives two different results with just one simple step. The first result is that this step makes the defrosting faster and the second result is the marination. However, the measurements must be followed and the fish will have to be dipped twice.
Make a seawater brine by mixing 12 teaspoons of sea salt into two liters of water collected in a bowl. Divide the saltwater into two different bowls and then cut the vacuum bag to take the frozen fish out of it to soak for some minutes in one of the halves of water.
As the saltwater soaking is over after 10 minutes to 15 minutes, put the fish in a plate or a container and wrap them with plastic wrap. Pip the container inside the refrigerator to thaw.
Place them towards the back of the shelf as the temperature is more stable there. Let it sit undisturbed to defrost for a whole day. As the saltwater soak would make it quicker to defrost, thawing may not take up a whole day.
When the fish is defrosted, they will lose its stiffness because the ice crystals will have melted already. Therefore if some stiffness is still there, it might have to be kept for more time.
But if the thawing is done, take the other half of the saltwater brine and soak the thawed fish in the saltwater for about 5 minutes. This will marinate the fish better.
After the final soaking is over, rinse the fish flesh thoroughly by running it under the running cold water before keeping it aside ready to prepare for cooking.
Note: For the fish that is soaked in brine, the thickness of the fish fillet will determine the thawing duration, if the fillet is half an inch in thickness it will take about 20 minutes which will be about 30 minutes for one inch of fillet.
Although preferable, defrosting fish in the microwave is not recommended. Defrosting by using a microwave is the quickest method to thaw the frozen fish however it has its own downsides of uneven thawing as well.
However, trying this method on the thinner fish flesh once in a while to grab a quick meal is not heavily avoided although the timing needs to be set in regards to the amount of fish being defrosted, making the fish flesh thinner will help the fish cook evenly.
To prepare the fish, take the frozen one out of the vacuum-sealed bag and cut it into thinner fleshes to place it on the baking tray. The baking tray should be lined with either parchment paper or aluminum foil before placing the fish to avoid water leakage to the surface of the baking tray when the fish defrost.
After placing the frozen fish over the lined baking tray keep the baking tray inside the microwave to defrost. For this, set the setting on to defrost and set the amount of fish being placed inside the microwave to be thawed. Once done, let the fish defrost inside the enclosed space of the electrical equipment.
After the set timer goes off, use an oven mitt to take the baking tray out making sure not to spill the melted water. Check the doneness with the help of the thermometer and when the internal temperature of the defrosted fish reaches 63 degrees Celcius, they can only then be taken as ready to be cooked.
The ice crystals formed inside the flesh of the fish limit the cooking of the fish on so many levels. Although freezing the fish is important to preserve them well, defrosting or thawing the fish slowly and properly is equally important for multiple reasons below.
These are also the crucial part that directly affects the condition and taste of fish when cooking.
It is easy to find frozen fish in the market than the fresh ones. This is because fish are extremely expensive when fresh and cheaper when frozen.
Therefore the fresh ones are high in demand because people believe that frozen fish are not healthy which for the fact is not true. To bring the facts out, the frozen fish is healthier than the fresh ones.
It is because to freeze fish, the flash freezing method has been used. To flash freeze the fish, it is dipped in liquid nitrogen or sometimes in a mixture of ethanol and dry ice.
It is a method in which the temperature drops very fast. This quick change in the temperature makes the water freeze almost as immediately. This type of process is really beneficial because it preserves most of the nutrients the fish carries because the cells do not deform when they are frozen this way.
However, in the case of fresh ones, the fresh fish might have taken about a week to reach the supermarket refrigerators. And even if not, the longer the fish is kept after it loses its life, the more nutrient content it loses.
As for the living fish, the quality of water is a major concern. If the water quality is bad, it can build toxins and affect the nutrient quality of fish. Therefore buying frozen ones is the best choice to make.
Here are some of the tips that are necessary to keep in mind while defrosting the fish. These can work as a savior for quality, effort, and time.
