Of all the theoretically “simple” foods that people may be intimidated to cook, fish is at the top of the list. The most common pitfall is overcooking it. That fish is not necessarily cheap only adds more anxiety to the situation.
“The real challenge in cooking both fish and meat is to get the texture right,” Harold McGee says in “On Food and Cooking.” The goal is to make sure you don’t overheat them to the point that their proteins begin to shrink and push out moisture. That happens at a lower temperature in fish than in meat, McGee says. Most fish reach that shrinking point at 120 degrees and dry out around 140 degrees, though there is some variability depending on the type. McGee says the majority of fish are firm but still moist between 130 and 140 degrees; a few denser varieties, such as tuna and salmon, are particularly juicy at 120 degrees.
If you’re looking to increase your confidence when cooking fish and avoid the dreaded overcooking, here are some simple, beginner-friendly techniques to help you.
Packet cooking
Whether you call it packet cooking or en papillote, the method of wrapping fish in parchment with a splash of liquid, some aromatics and vegetables makes for a no-fuss but elegant meal. At its core, you are steaming.
Boiling, braising and steaming: Tips and recipes to help you harness the power of water
“The moist heat prevents the fish from drying out, and the steamed aromatics penetrate the fish with flavor,” my colleague Ann Maloney said in the Fish en Papillote recipe she shared. “Once the fillets are placed in the folded parchment, they bake undisturbed, so there is no need to worry about breaking up fillets while flipping them in a pan. Finally, I find this method doesn’t fill my house with a fishy scent the way some other methods of cooking fish can.”
This technique works well with a variety of fish, though, as Ann says, ideally with pieces that are no more than one inch thick.
You don’t even necessarily have to turn on the oven. Salmon in Packets With Green Herb Marinade walks you through how to accomplish it in a microwave.
Even if you don’t go the packet route, consider other ways of steaming. Daisy’s Steamed Fish and Steamed Whole Fish With Soy-Braised Mushrooms both employ a bamboo steamer, while Steamed Fish Fillets use a bowl set in a steamer basket inside a wok or deep saucepan. Want to steam a whole fish? Try Sizzling Whole Fish.
Slow-roasting
If overcooking is one of the enemies of fish, then drop your oven temperature. Slow-roasting “is my favorite way to cook salmon, mostly because the gentle heat makes it almost impossible to overcook the fish,” Samin Nosrat says in “Salt Fat Acid Heat.” Moreover, the technique allows fat to render during cooking and keeps the fish moist. This makes slow-roasting ideal for salmon, which is higher in fat, but Nosrat recommends trying it with steelhead trout and Alaskan halibut.
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Check out Adam Roberts’s Slow-Roasted Salmon and Herby Rice Pilaf, where the fillets cook at 250 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes until they reach an internal temperature of 125 degrees. In her recipe, Nosrat goes even lower, cooking a two-pound fillet at 225 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes. One helpful point she makes: “Because this method is so gentle on its proteins, the fish will appear translucent even when it’s cooked.”
Poaching
Poaching is a gentle cooking method well-suited to delicate foods such as fish, according to Nosrat. “Fish poached in water, wine, olive oil or any combination of the three will emerge with an exceptionally tender texture and clean flavor,” she says.
Poached fish will stay moist while refrigerated for a day or two. It’s nice to eat while cool, as well.
A few tips from McGee: Start moderate-size fillets and steaks in water that’s just below a boil so that bacteria on the surface are killed instantly. He recommends then taking the pot off the heat and adding cool liquid to bring the temperature down to 150 to 160 degrees and letting the fish cook gently. Letting the fish cool in the liquid promotes a moister texture since you won’t encounter the same kind of surface evaporation that happens when a hot piece of fish is exposed to air.
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You can also use the approach of leaving the fish over reduced heat, covered, while it cooks. That’s what Ellie Krieger does in Poached Salmon and Napa Slaw With Citrus-Miso Dressing. Ditto this Poached Fish With Hot Soy Sauce.
Confit
Think poaching, but with fat. The advantage with poaching in something like oil or butter, McGee says, is that the heat is conducted more slowly and gently because those ingredients don’t evaporate and cool in the same way as options such as water, wine or broth. Moreover, the temperature is even more stable.
You can expect “silky and moist” results when going with this Olive Oil-Poached Salmon, which can also be made with a neutral cooking oil, such as sunflower. In that recipe, the fish is cooked submerged in oil in a 325-degree oven, while this Oil-Poached Rockfish uses a 250-degree oven for a longer cook time.
Whole roasted
Roasting a whole fish “is beautifully forgiving: Even if you leave it to roast a little longer than it should, maybe to crisp up the skin, the fish stays moist,” says Domenica Marchetti. After experimenting with her first whole-roasted fish, Marchetti found that “the meat was firm and sweet and much tastier than the pre-cut steaks and fillets I’d become used to cooking. This makes sense: Fish bones impart flavor, while the skin keeps the flesh beneath moist as it roasts.”
The foolproof way to cook fish is also one of the simplest: Roast it whole
A whole fish also makes for an impressive presentation, and you can experiment with different ways to season and stuff it. In Whole Roasted Fish With Pomegranate Molasses, G. Daniela Galarza seasons the outside simply with salt and pepper, stuffs the fish with orange slices and scallions, and roasts it on a bed of zucchini and carrot.
