Clean and Firm Fish and Shrimp with a Few Drops of This Water, Remove the Fishy Odor, and Retain Nutrients When Cooking

Shrimp and fish naturally have a strong fishy smell. If they are not fresh, the smell becomes even stronger. When cooking fish, not only the color but also the smell plays a crucial role. Especially if the fish or shrimp is too fishy, it can be difficult to eat as it stimulates the taste buds and can cause nausea. To remove the fishy smell from fish, shrimp, and seafood in general, use these types of water, not only eliminating the fishy smell but also preserving the delicious taste of the fish and shrimp.

First, cleanliness is important

When buying fish, remember to scrape off the black stomach lining. The head of the fish should be gilled because it contains a lot of dirt. For shrimp, clean them and remove the veins. Then use salt to scrub the fish to remove the sliminess.

Remove the fishy smell with white wine or cooking wine

If you have white wine or cooking wine, pour a glass of wine into a bowl of filtered water and soak the fish or shrimp for about 5-10 minutes. Then take them out and rinse them again to remove the fishy smell. If you don’t have wine but have beer, you can use beer instead.

Use ginger saltwater or rice water

Rice water is also very effective in removing the fishy smell. Or you can slice some ginger and put it in saltwater, then soak the fish or shrimp in it for a few minutes.

Use lime or vinegar

Lime and vinegar are acidic and can help eliminate the fishy smell of fish and shrimp. You can soak the fish or shrimp in these liquids to remove the fishy smell and make the meat firm. Then rinse with clean water.

Use alkaline water

Alkaline water with a pH above 9 can effectively remove the fishy smell of fish and shrimp. Moreover, alkaline water can help you preserve fish and shrimp for a longer time, better preventing bacterial invasion. If you have an alkaline water machine at home, use the high pH water to soak the fish for about 20 minutes.

Boiling water

Boiling water is one of the ways to remove the fishy taste of fish and seafood. After washing the fish or shrimp thoroughly, before cooking, warm up the boiling water and quickly blanch the fish or shrimp in it. After blanching, immediately start cooking. This blanching method helps the fish or shrimp to firm up quickly and retain the sweet nutrients in the meat, making the cooked fish or shrimp sweeter and softer. For braised fish or fish soup, this blanching method helps the fish meat stay firm without breaking apart and enhances its flavor. As for shrimp with eggs, blanching the shrimp in hot water helps the eggs stay inside the shrimp when cooking.

Note on cooking to prevent fish and shrimp from being fishy

– Fish and shrimp become fishy when they are not fresh, not only fishy but also unpleasant. Therefore, when you buy fish and shrimp, you need to process them immediately. If you can’t cook right away, freezing them as soon as possible is the best option. Fish and shrimp that are left unfresh will change the protein into toxic substances, which is very dangerous.

– When cooking, add ingredients with a sour taste like tamarind, starfruit, herbs, etc. to eliminate the fishy smell.

– If you add water when cooking seafood, be sure to use hot water, avoid using cold water, as it can make the fish and shrimp fishy.