Fish Poaching?

[Jeanne G]

Has anyone out there poached fish? I was talking to a chef I know last night and he suggested - b/c the talapia he served last night was sauted in butter and I wanted a suggestion for lower fat - poaching it.

He said to use chicken broth, a little wine and fresh herbs, heat it up to almost boiling then drop in the fish and (with out boiling) cook for a few minutes.

I'm thinking of trying it tomorrow night but wanted to ask if anyone's done this. I'd hate to ruin my purchase of nice fresh fish. I did search for "poached" and didn't find much. However, when searching for "fish" it's too overwhelming to sort through it all!

Thanks!! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[lorilei]

Jeanne - I have poached fish before, and it is a fine way to infuse your fish with flavor without adding fat.

You can use a variety of poaching liquids. White wine is excellent. Poaching fish in milk takes away a "fishy" flavor. And chicken broth adds flavor.

Here's an interesting recipe you might want to try eventually:

TEA POACHED SHRIMP

This tea-infused poaching liquid not only adds an unusual flavour when cooking but imbues it with a lovely colour, too. The lemon juice ensures a firm texture to the shrimp.

2 L (8 cups) water
4 bags lapsang souchong or other quality black tea
60 mL ( 1/4 cup) lemon juice
5 mL (1 tsp) salt
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 long strip lemon peel
1 small onion, quartered
1 small clove garlic, halved
450 g (1 lb) peeled, deveined shrimp

Place water, tea bags, lemon juice, salt, thyme (if using), lemon peel, onion and garlic in a large saucepan set over high heat. Bring to a boil.

Simmer for 5 minutes.

Reduce heat to low and add shrimp. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until shrimp are bright pink, and curl up. Using a slotted spoon, remove
shrimp from poaching liquid. If serving hot, toss with a little butter or extra virgin olive oil and serve immediately. If serving cold, plunge into ice water. Drain well, then pat dry and keep covered in refrigerator until ready to serve. Makes 2 to 3 servings.

Variations:

-- Spicy lemon-tea poached shrimp: add 2 ml (1/2 tsp) hot pepper sauce to poaching liquid.

-- Lemon-tea poached fish fillets. Substitute salmon, trout, Arctic char or another firm fleshed fish for shrimp. Prepare poaching liquid as specified above, using instead a wide, shallower pan. Add fillets of fish to barely simmering poaching liquid. For every 2.5 cm (1-inch) of thickness, poach fish for 8 minutes.

Source: Tea Council of Canada.

[sneezles]

Jeanne
Last March I poached for the first time and I used a lobster boullion that I found at the grocery store. It was wonderful. I can't recall the name of the product but it came in a jar and was with the other types of boullions.

[Jeanne G]

Thank you both for the replies! Sneezels, what type of fish did you poach and for how long? Lorelli, the shrimp one looks good, especailly to sub the lemon tea. I would have never thought of tea!

How long do you poach it for? Is two minutes standard? I'm guessing I can tell by looking, but just to be safe....?

I really like to discover a new (and healthy way) to do things!

[Emily Catherine Horton]

Jeanne G,

Whenever I fix fish, if I'm not using a recipe, I always poach it; it's so easy, the least messy, and a really nutritious method.
Just fill a saute pan with 1/4 to 1/2 inch of water, and add the fish (you can use absolutely any kind.) I usually just squeeze lemon juice on it; if you love fish, and you have a good fillet, you really don't need anything else. If the piece isn't too thick, it shouldn't take longer than 5 minutes. Pay close attention, though, because it's easy to cook it too long (not a problem if you like your fish dry). Just keep testing it to make sure it's done in the center. Have fun experimenting!

Emily

[mah]

a few years back there was a poached salmon recipe using clam juice for the liquid, garlic and fresh parsley. i believe you boiled the juice, garlic and parsley together for a short time and then added the salmon to bake for a short time in the oven. i still make it every so often.

[Jeanne G]

Well! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif I poached some halibut last night. And I certainly appreciate everyone's input. I used chix broth & wine with herbs from my garden, 2 sprigs each: rosemary, lemon thyme & oregano. It was quite good, although it took longer than I would have thought. Emily, the cut was so thick I had to put part of it back into the liquid. But it did turn out great and I didn't over cook it!

sneezles, I searched for lobster boulion but couldn't find it. And mh, the lady at the fish market suggested clam juice too(which I have in my fridge) but I wanted to use extra chix broth I had leftover.

Now on to make the shrimp one posted by lorilei!

[Pat58]

Another favorite of mine when poaching fish is to add whole peppercorns (6 to 10), sliced garlic and two bayleaves to the poaching liquid. The lemon thyme sounds great! I will have to try that.

[Jeanne G]

Pat,
I never considered bay leaves, bet that would be tasty & the garlic too! Mmmmm Thanks! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/wink.gif

[sneezles]

Jeanne
Sorry to have not replied sooner. I wish I could remember the name of the product (but I have CRS) there is a later thread that mentioned the jarred boullion from Penzey's maybe they have it. I poached cod and it took about 8 minutes (they were fairly large)

[Jeanne G]

Sneezles,
Thanks for the info. I've seen so much here about Penzey's I'll have to check them out.