"Blinky the Shark" wrote

I'd never even heard of muddy fish taste until this thread kicked off.
And I've fried plenty of (Mmmmmmm...) catfish.

People here mention it often, that's why I posted it.

nancy

On Tue 08 Apr 2008 08:50:36p, Blinky the Shark told us...

Wayne Boatwright wrote:

On Tue 08 Apr 2008 06:59:03p, MareCat told us...

"Sqwertz" wrote in message
...
Nancy Young wrote:

I see people talk about muddy tasting catfish and tilapia.

Catfish and carp, sure. But not tilapia IME.

Not IME, either. Pretty much all of the tilapia I buy around here
(mostly from Ecuador) is good stuff. Weis frequently has filets on
sale,
and I love the loins I've found at Costco.

Mary

I have eaten catfish all my life and fairly often. I have yet to have
eaten one that tasted muddy.

Even when they come from muddy waters. Sorry -- I couldn't resist. I
started reading a biography of blues musician Muddy Waters, today. I'll
leave now. Nothing to see, here, folks...



Yes, even the farm-raised catfish tend to get into the muddy bottom. Good
purveyors transfer them to clear water pools with grain for a while before
taking to market. I have a cousin in Mississippi who owns several catfish
farms, and their process always includes that step.

--
Wayne Boatwright
-------------------------------------------
Tuesday, 04(IV)/08(VIII)/08(MMVIII)
-------------------------------------------
Countdown till Memorial Day
6wks 5dys 3hrs 55mins
-------------------------------------------
One man's terrorist is another man's
patriot
-------------------------------------------

"Blinky the Shark" wrote in message
news
cybercat wrote:

"Janet Bostwick" wrote in message
...
Nancy Young wrote:
"aem" wrote

snip

I'm with you. The one time I tried tilapia, there was a texture thing
that I didn't like. Of course, I'm not much for eating fish, I like
flounder and cod, with the occasional wild salmon.

And there isn't enough buttermilk to make me eat bluefish again.

nancy

O.k., now I understand. . .you like flounder, cod and salmon. I
couldn't figure out why you wouldn't like tilapia. I don't like
flounder, cod and salmon. It's a texture thingy. I do believe, though,
that almost any kind of fish can have that muddy taste. I think you
have to know and choose your sources first of all and then after that I
think it is a crap shoot.
Janet

I have never tasted this alleged "muddy" taste, and I make catfish
regularly. Mine is always fresh and clean tasting.

I'd never even heard of muddy fish taste until this thread kicked off.
And I've fried plenty of (Mmmmmmm...) catfish.



To me, it is the cleanest tasting fish there is. And I've caught it myself
and eaten it later that day.


** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **

Wayne Boatwright wrote:

On Tue 08 Apr 2008 06:59:03p, MareCat told us...

"Sqwertz" wrote in message
...
Nancy Young wrote:

I see people talk about muddy tasting catfish and tilapia.

Catfish and carp, sure. But not tilapia IME.

Not IME, either. Pretty much all of the tilapia I buy around here
(mostly from Ecuador) is good stuff. Weis frequently has filets on sale,
and I love the loins I've found at Costco.

Mary

I have eaten catfish all my life and fairly often. I have yet to have
eaten one that tasted muddy.

Even when they come from muddy waters. Sorry -- I couldn't resist. I
started reading a biography of blues musician Muddy Waters, today. I'll
leave now. Nothing to see, here, folks...


--
Blinky
Killing all posts from Google Groups
The Usenet Improvement Project: http://improve-usenet.org
Blinky: http://blinkynet.net

cybercat wrote:

"Janet Bostwick" wrote in message
...
Nancy Young wrote:
"aem" wrote

snip

I'm with you. The one time I tried tilapia, there was a texture thing
that I didn't like. Of course, I'm not much for eating fish, I like
flounder and cod, with the occasional wild salmon.

And there isn't enough buttermilk to make me eat bluefish again.

nancy

O.k., now I understand. . .you like flounder, cod and salmon. I
couldn't figure out why you wouldn't like tilapia. I don't like
flounder, cod and salmon. It's a texture thingy. I do believe, though,
that almost any kind of fish can have that muddy taste. I think you
have to know and choose your sources first of all and then after that I
think it is a crap shoot.
Janet

I have never tasted this alleged "muddy" taste, and I make catfish
regularly. Mine is always fresh and clean tasting.

I'd never even heard of muddy fish taste until this thread kicked off.
And I've fried plenty of (Mmmmmmm...) catfish.


--
Blinky
Killing all posts from Google Groups
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Blinky: http://blinkynet.net

Blinky the Shark wrote:
Zeppo wrote:


"James Silverton" wrote in message
news:j5NKj.8122$qB1.7389@trnddc07...

Marl wrote on Tue, 8 Apr 2008 09:25:09 -0700 (PDT):

MJ There was a report awhile back about tilapia from China, MJ not
being all that safe. I've curtailed buying most MJ anything I can,
which emanates from that country, until MJ they get their quality
control act together.

I suppose traditionally raised tilapia might well have a muddy taste
since they were grown in the shallow muddy waters of rice paddies before
the fields were drained to ripen and harvest the rice. It's really a
very efficient use of space.

Let's be honest, I don't like the texture of tilapia even ones I've
selected from those swimming in a tank.


Interesting. I like tilapia but have a problem with the texture of
catfish. It has the same sinewy texture as mako shark.


Mmmmmmm......sinewy texture.

Blinky loves catfish; Blinky doesn't remember ever having mako shark
(probably professional courtesy).



I can't remember locally available shark being identified by species.
And I've cut way back on consumption of top-level predators so I don't
pay much attention to whatever shark might still be available.

Probably the last time I fixed shark, my daughter was just shy of three
but perfectly capable of relaying her thoughts.

Her review of the grilled, teriyaki marinated shark steaks? "Dis
chicken tastes insgustink".

As a parent you're not supposed to laugh at comments like that so I had
to excuse myself, retreat to my bedroom, close the door and put a pillow
over my face.

Michael "Dog3" wrote:

notbob dropped this
: in rec.food.cooking

On 2008-04-08, Michael "Dog3" wrote:

Pardon my ignorance but wouldn't the "muddy" taste permeate the
buttermilk?

Frankly, I don't buy into the bmilk-removes-muddy-taste in the first
place and find the whole premise of muddy tasting catfish to be dubious
in the second. How is a bottom feeding fish most commonly found in
muddy silt laden water supposed to taste, like it lives in Perrier
water? Gimme a break. I've eaten catfish from all over the US and it
always tastes just fine to me, and without the help of buttermilk. Now,
if you want to use buttermilk to coat that fish before you dredge in
cornmeal, I'll even help.

I've never cared much for the taste of cat fish. I've had it in stew type
dishes and it was okay. I see catfish nuggets here and there but have
never tried them. Honestly, I have fried fish maybe 3-4 times in the past
couple of years and it's usually been tilapia used in fish tacos. I prefer
my fish grilled or baked.

That has got me thinking (ow!). Any reason that catfish don't lend
themselved to grilling?


--
Blinky
Killing all posts from Google Groups
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Blinky: http://blinkynet.net

Zeppo wrote:


"James Silverton" wrote in message
news:j5NKj.8122$qB1.7389@trnddc07...
Marl wrote on Tue, 8 Apr 2008 09:25:09 -0700 (PDT):

MJ There was a report awhile back about tilapia from China, MJ not
being all that safe. I've curtailed buying most MJ anything I can,
which emanates from that country, until MJ they get their quality
control act together.

I suppose traditionally raised tilapia might well have a muddy taste
since they were grown in the shallow muddy waters of rice paddies before
the fields were drained to ripen and harvest the rice. It's really a
very efficient use of space.

Let's be honest, I don't like the texture of tilapia even ones I've
selected from those swimming in a tank.

Interesting. I like tilapia but have a problem with the texture of
catfish. It has the same sinewy texture as mako shark.

Mmmmmmm......sinewy texture.

Blinky loves catfish; Blinky doesn't remember ever having mako shark
(probably professional courtesy).


--
Blinky
Killing all posts from Google Groups
The Usenet Improvement Project: http://improve-usenet.org
Blinky: http://blinkynet.net

Muddy Fish (James*Silverton)wrote:
Perhaps, I'll have to give it a try for catfish,
which in all my tries has tasted "muddy". Would something
really acidic, like lemon juice, perhaps diluted, work? Buttemilk is
not something that I keep around.
------------------------------------------------------
I don't use a lot of fresh buttermilk except in recipes & found this
product to be excellent.

http://www.sacofoods.com/culteredbuttermilkblend.html

In article , "Nancy
Young" wrote:
"Virginia Tadrzynski" wrote
[snip]
Nance, thanks for the trip down memory lane.......my father used to go
catfishing in the PeeDee and bring home some whoppers. He would nail them
to a tree, skin them and cover them with buttermilk. When asked why, he
would mumble about having to 'soak the shit outta 'em'......After eating
farm raised versus fresh caught bottom feeding catfish, I now know what he
meant. Soaking them takes the 'bottom' out of the taste. They don't
taste like shit eaters anymore.

Haha, that's funny. He had a way with words, I like that. I had
tilapia once, and I guess it was muddy because I really didn't like
it, I just didn't put a name to why it tasted like crap.

You folk over there really eat some strange stuff. ;-)

Heh. I never noticed a problem with catfish, though.
Seems like maybe I got lucky.

Our esteemed barramundi also have a reputation for tasting "muddy" if
raised exclusively in fresh water. A local dam is stocked with them
(they won't breed in fresh water) and they've grown bloody *big* in
it, but no one I've met thinks they're worth eating.

In similar vein, a native freshwater crustacean here in Oz has been
commercialised in recent years [the redclaw, _Cherax quadricarinatus_
http://www2.dpi.qld.gov.au/fishweb/3380.html] but, frankly, I don't
think it's a patch on most species of ocean prawns. However, on one
occasion the blokes who were doing the early R&D on redclaw held some
in a tank of salt water for a day before they were cooked and scoffed
down. Taken with a cold stubbie of beer they were very acceptable.

Cheers, Phred.

--
LID

In article , Myrl Jeffcoat wrote:
On Apr 8, 8:07=A0am, "Nancy Young" wrote:
I see people talk about muddy tasting catfish and tilapia.
Today I got my Cook's Illustrated and they discussed this.
Long story short, they recommend an acid soak first, and their
acidic soak of choice is buttermilk. =A0Soak for an hour before
cooking ... rinse off the buttermilk, pat dry and proceed with
the recipe.

I have noticed the "muddy" taste occassionally with tilapia. In the
past much of the tilapia was coming from Ecuador, but more recently,
it's been coming from China, and that' when I noticed the muddy flavor
more.

The Chinese recycle *everything*. ;-)

There was a report awhile back about tilapia from China, not being all
that safe. I've curtailed buying most anything I can, which emanates
from that country, until they get their quality control act together.

Amen.

Cheers, Phred.

--
LID

notbob wrote on Wed, 09 Apr 2008 00:16:34 GMT:

?? Pardon my ignorance but wouldn't the "muddy" taste
?? permeate the buttermilk?

n Frankly, I don't buy into the bmilk-removes-muddy-taste in
n the first place and find the whole premise of muddy tasting
n catfish to be dubious in the second. How is a bottom
n feeding fish most commonly found in muddy silt laden water
n supposed to taste, like it lives in Perrier water?

The possible removal of the muddy taste of catfish is
interesting but I haven't tried it yet. However, to me the whole
point is that catfish don't taste like they live in Perrier and
I don't like the result!

n Gimme a break. I've eaten catfish from all over the US and
n it always tastes just fine to me, and without the help of
n buttermilk. Now, if you want to use buttermilk to coat that
n fish before you dredge in cornmeal, I'll even help.


James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

E-mail, with obvious alterations:
not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

"ms. tonya" wrote

Muddy Fish (James Silverton)wrote:

Perhaps, I'll have to give it a try for catfish,
which in all my tries has tasted "muddy". Would something
really acidic, like lemon juice, perhaps diluted, work? Buttemilk is
not something that I keep around.
------------------------------------------------------
I don't use a lot of fresh buttermilk except in recipes & found this
product to be excellent.

http://www.sacofoods.com/culteredbuttermilkblend.html

Oh! I forgot about that, I put it on my shopping list, thanks.

nancy

On Wed 09 Apr 2008 05:26:32a, Nancy Young told us...


"ms. tonya" wrote

Muddy Fish (James Silverton)wrote:

Perhaps, I'll have to give it a try for catfish, which in all my tries
has tasted "muddy". Would something really acidic, like lemon juice,
perhaps diluted, work? Buttemilk is not something that I keep around.
------------------------------------------------------
I don't use a lot of fresh buttermilk except in recipes & found this
product to be excellent.

http://www.sacofoods.com/culteredbuttermilkblend.html

Oh! I forgot about that, I put it on my shopping list, thanks.

nancy

I keep that around for recipes that call for small quantities of
buttermilk. However, I've found it to be a miserable failure in buttermilk
cornbread. I'm not sure exactly why it fails, but my recipe calls for
almost equal quantities of buttermilk and stone-ground cornmeal. The
batter is much too thin using the Saco product. Perhaps if I just used
less.



--
Wayne Boatwright
-------------------------------------------
Wednesday, 04(IV)/09(IX)/08(MMVIII)
-------------------------------------------
Countdown till Memorial Day
6wks 4dys 18hrs 10mins
-------------------------------------------
This is the most amazing loaf of bread
I've ever owned.
-------------------------------------------

Nancy Young wrote:
I see people talk about muddy tasting catfish and tilapia.
Today I got my Cook's Illustrated and they discussed this.
Long story short, they recommend an acid soak first, and their
acidic soak of choice is buttermilk. Soak for an hour before
cooking ... rinse off the buttermilk, pat dry and proceed with
the recipe.

Interesting thread, nancy.

I don't like catfish, because it always tastes muddy to me and also
because they are such ugly buggers but I haven't found that to be
the case with tilapia (which is not that easy to find in my part of the
world for some reason).... I have the same problem with bream (dunno if
you've ever tried it?) We used to go fishing in my young and foolish
days - and usually threw any bream we caught back into the water,
because no matter what we soaked it with, or for how long, it always
tasted muddy to me... IIRC, my Dad used to soak bream in a very weak
solution of vinegar and water to get rid of the muddiness, but never
worked for me...
--
Cheers
Chatty (Picky) Cathy

Monday is a lousy way to spend one seventh of your life.