Poor Man’s Lobster (SV Experiment)

[Bearcarver]

Poor Man’s Lobster (SV Experiment)

Well I gotta post this even though it wasn’t a total success:

I’ve done Poor Man’s Lobster in the past with Great results. They were put in a Pot with Water, Salt, and sugar, brought to boil & then to simmer, etc, etc etc.
However I decided to try a new way, incorporating my Sous Vide Supreme, so the following was my results:

First I got the cheapest Frozen Fish I could find (Whiting), and put them in the freezer until a time came when Mrs Bear wasn’t gonna be here, because she doesn’t eat fish or seafood.
Then the day came, so the day before & got it out & thawed it out.
Then I rinsed it off & began to dry it with paper towels, and I noticed it took a ton of Paper towels, because the flesh side of these fish was like a Sponge. They were completely saturated with water, but not being a quitter, I continued to squeeze them all out the best I could.
Then I put them in two vacuum bags, so I could keep then in one layer.
I had SV’d Catfish one time before frying, and they came out great, so I used the same 140° for 1 hour on these too.
Then I removed them from the bags, patted dry, and put them in a foil pan & into my Toaster Oven with a little melted butter.
After about 20 minutes on Broil, I removed them from the oven, splashed some more melted Butter on them & ate them.

They tasted fine, but were very mushy, just like they were after Thawing them out, before I even started this whole thing.
So I figured the method was fine, but I gotta try it with some decent fish next time, and not these skinny sponges.

This one won't be going into my Step by Step Index, and I won't be buying any more " Pacific Whiting".

Well you don’t know if you don’t try.


Bear



7 Little Whiting Fillets:

Racked & Ready for the Sous Vide:

Going in the Toaster Oven with a little Butter:

Fresh out of Toaster Oven with the rest of the Butter---Ready to eat:

 

[SmokinAl]

Sounds like if you would have skipped the SV part & just broiled them or fried them in lemon & butter, they might have been real good.
Oh well we all have our days where the wrong decision is made. I know I sure have a bunch of them!
Al

 

[gary s]

A Like for the Info. Sometimes it just doesn't turn out, But you'll never know if
you don't try. Lord I have some Flops !!

Gary

 

[Bearcarver]

Sounds like if you would have skipped the SV part & just broiled them or fried them in lemon & butter, they might have been real good.
Oh well we all have our days where the wrong decision is made. I know I sure have a bunch of them!
Al

Nope, These were bad from the start. My bad decision was not tossing them sooner.
Mrs Bear got them because they were only $2.99, and everything else was $7.99 or more. :eek:
I was excited until I opened the bag & saw them.
If they would have smelled a little stronger I would have tossed them before doing anything to them.
The only reason I attempted it, once I saw them thawed out was Mrs Bear wasn't home & I didn't have anything else thawed out.
No more Frozen Pacific Whiting.
I gotta try this same thing with Catfish, Flounder, Striped Bass, or some other real fish.

Bear

 

[atomicsmoke]

noticed it took a ton of Paper towels
----
You know something is not right when paper towels to dry the fish cost more than the fish itself. :-)

 

[Bearcarver]

A Like for the Info. Sometimes it just doesn't turn out, But you'll never know if
you don't try. Lord I have some Flops !!

Gary

Thank You Gary!!
Yeah--The process worked Great--Now I can't wait to get some decent fish to do this same thing with.
And Thanks for the Like.

Bear

 

[DanMcG]

Get some walleye or perch John, thats what we make poorman shrimp out of around here. Walleye opens around here this saturday..

 

[atomicsmoke]

Walleye and perch where i live cost more than lobster.

 

[Bearcarver]

noticed it took a ton of Paper towels
----
You know something is not right when paper towels to dry the fish cost more than the fish itself. :)

Exactly!!
These Mushy fish reminded me of when my Snowblower chute fills up & blocks up with "Slush". If you grab it to knock it out, your gloves get completely soaked in a second, just like you reached into a bucket of cold water.

Bear

 

[DanMcG]

Walleye and perch where i live cost more than lobster.

Really, We're not that far apart, but I guess living near one of the best walleye lakes in the northeast helps get it at a reasonable price.. about a couple beers a pound.

 

[atomicsmoke]

Really, We're not that far apart, but I guess living near one of the best walleye lakes in the northeast helps get it at a reasonable price.. about a couple beers a pound.

Rubbing more salt into wound? Beer too is cheaper south of the border.

 

[gmc2003]

I don't know Bear, you did eat them and said they tasted fine. So at least they didn't wind up in the trash(like a couple of my past cooks). Maybe putting them on a cooling rack in a cookie sheet with some weight on them would have helped dry them out a little more. What's that old saying "Nothing ventured, Nothing gained".

Point for sure.

Chris

 

[dls1]

Sorry to hear about your outcome Bear, but I'm pretty certain I know what the culprit was; Sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP/STP).

Many sea food products, Pacific whiting included, from mass production factory ships that are often out to sea for weeks at a time, and are fully harvested and processed at sea, are treated with a solution of water and sodium tripolyphosphate, which preserves them as soon as they are harvested, after which they're frozen. This treatment helps preserve the product, but it also causes the product to gain and retain a lot more water weight. In some cases, the additional water weight gain can be as high as 20%-25%.

Though it's not required, sodium tripolyphosphate may have been included as an "ingredient" on the package of the fish, which you probably no longer have. For better results in the future, reject any any product that has that listed on the package.

 

[chopsaw]

I can see the stpp being a problem . I've bought frozen swai filets that I used a roll of paper towels , to try to dry them out . I grilled them hot and fast , come out good , but alot of moisture gets " boiled " off .

 

[Bearcarver]

Get some walleye or perch John, thats what we make poorman shrimp out of around here. Walleye opens around here this saturday..

Yup---I would have listed them, but legal Walleyes are kinda rare in our fishing haunts.
Bear Jr & his wife were catching some very nice Yellow Perch a couple years ago, but he's been so busy with his Tower business that they haven't been doing much fishing. I'm gonna have to do some Trolling at Giant.

Bear

Walleye and perch where i live cost more than lobster.

Most of the fish in my stores are getting like that too.

Bear

 

[Bearcarver]

Really, We're not that far apart, but I guess living near one of the best walleye lakes in the northeast helps get it at a reasonable price.. about a couple beers a pound.

Can't Beat that Price for Walleyes!!!

Bear

 

[Bearcarver]

Sorry to hear about your outcome Bear, but I'm pretty certain I know what the culprit was; Sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP/STP).

Many sea food products, Pacific whiting included, from mass production factory ships that are often out to sea for weeks at a time, and are fully harvested and processed at sea, are treated with a solution of water and sodium tripolyphosphate, which preserves them as soon as they are harvested, after which they're frozen. This treatment helps preserve the product, but it also causes the product to gain and retain a lot more water weight. In some cases, the additional water weight gain can be as high as 20%-25%.

Though it's not required, sodium tripolyphosphate may have been included as an "ingredient" on the package of the fish, which you probably no longer have. For better results in the future, reject any any product that has that listed on the package.

Sounds like that could be the problem.
I still had the big bag in the freezer, with just a little in the bottom, so I looked all over both sides. No mention of the STPP anywhere.
The only reason I still have the bag is if I throw it in the Dumpster in back of Bear Jr's Shop, the Raccoons will be Dumpster Diving like Crazy. I have to wait until the night before trash pick-up.

Bear

 

[crazymoon]

Bear, Danmcg is right about yellow perch, you need to get junior out there to get you a mess of perch fillets for your next batch !

 

[Bearcarver]

I don't know Bear, you did eat them and said they tasted fine. So at least they didn't wind up in the trash(like a couple of my past cooks). Maybe putting them on a cooling rack in a cookie sheet with some weight on them would have helped dry them out a little more. What's that old saying "Nothing ventured, Nothing gained".

Point for sure.

Chris

Thank You Chris!!
Yeah--They needed something like a good grilling to Dry them out, but I had my Taste buds set on some Poor Man's Lobster with Butter. (One Track Mind & Belly)
And Thanks for the Like.

Bear

 

[SonnyE]

Well, not everything works out as we might like it to.
I'm wondering about method. I caught this little blurb in this video when looking around at Smoked Salmon methods.
(Of course I realize there is a BIG difference in the two species.)
But I also know a wet pound of cabbage yields more profit than a dry pound of cabbage. (So a pound of Whiting saturated with water might only yield 10-12 ounces of meat. And mushy meat.)
Maybe they slow freeze your particular brand of whiting so it sucks up water, then deep freeze it?
Anyway, something fishy with fish saturated with water. Especially when sold by the pound.o_O
I wouldn't give up, but I wouldn't buy that brand or source again. And definitely let the store know, and know why.
You know what you like. And mushy fish isn't it.

What about making a fish chowder with the Raccoon bait?;)