1. Chilled fish
2. Fresh frozen fish
3. Salted, lightly salted and smoked fish
4. Fish preserves
5. Canned fish
6. Fish Tricks

In connection with the onset of a hot season, one should be more discriminating in the choice of products. This also applies to fish and fish products. Buying only live fish, we can be sure of its freshness. How not to make a mistake and make the right choice when buying?

Chilled fish

As for chilled fish. Its shelf life ranges from 1 to 12 days, it all depends on the storage temperature. The lower the temperature, the longer the shelf life. The eyes of the fish should be convex and transparent. Muddy, sunken eyes indicate that the fish definitely had time to lie on the counter longer than necessary. The surface of the fish should be clean and shiny, the scales are not dry and fit snugly to the skin. Gills should be red or dark red, not faded or brown. The body must be elastic, and after pressing your finger back to its original state. The fish must have a smell like fresh fish.

Fresh frozen fish

At present, it is believed that fish frozen in a live state by natural cold, if properly defrosted, are almost as good as fresh. And to defrost properly, it should not be at room temperature or in water, but in the refrigerator. In fresh-frozen fish, the color of the gills is gray with a reddish tinge. White gills mean that the fish is frozen for the second time. Signs indicating the freshness of the fish in the eyes are the same as that of chilled. Fat will surely give out fish, stale too long, with its smell and yellowish color. When re-frozen, the scales become turbid, the gills have a nonspecific odor, the meat of the fish moves away from the bones, and the traces of brown blood indicate that the fish was completely defrosted.

Salted, lightly salted and smoked fish

Salted, lightly salted, smoked fish should be thick, not too well-fed and not too thin. The bones should not show through, and the gills should be pink, in any case not black. There should be no mucus. If there are gaps in the carcass, it means that we have practically decomposed fish in front of us, which, in order to prolong it, was simply salted. Press it with your finger - a bad fish does not restore its shape. When buying such fish in vacuum packaging, you must check the tightness of the package; there should be no air in it, brine, the film should be tightly pressed to the fish. It is important to smell fish: if it has an unpleasant smell, it means that it is defective.

Fish preserves

These are fish products that have not undergone heat treatment, so they contain vitamins and trace elements. When buying, you need to pay attention to the shelf life, tightness of the packaging, color, consistency of the product, the content of impurities, the condition of the skin fish , transparency of the oil.

Canned fish

Another type of fish products - canned. These are fish products that have undergone heat treatment and have a long shelf life - up to 2 years. When buying, special attention should be paid to the appearance of the can - no bloating (bombing). When opening, look at the inner wall of the tin - it should be free of rust stains. The fish should be of a homogeneous consistency, the sauce is not turbid, without gas bubbles, and the smell of rancid oil indicates damage to the product.

Fish Tricks

Sellers use various tricks, such as selling carcasses of fish without a head, to make it harder to determine the freshness, or even try to give out thawed fish for chilled. Tint gills manganese or watercolors. To make sure that the gills of the fish are not painted, rub them with a damp cloth. If you are confused when choosing a fish, do not hesitate to ask the seller for the accompanying documents for this type of product. Be extremely careful, do not be fooled.

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