Three Tricks for Buying Seafood at the Supermarket

By
Jane B
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Image by Gina Janosch from Pixabay

If you live in a place where a seafood market isn’t available for convenient access, buying fish and shellfish in the supermarket might be the best option for you. Since you can’t rely on the expertise of a fishmonger while shopping, there are some things that you should keep in mind.

Here are three tricks you should use to ensure you’re buying fresh, good quality seafood at the supermarket!

Look for a Packaged Date

If you’re buying pre-packaged seafood, it is always crucial to look for a packaged date, which will show you when the product you’re buying was prepared to sell. If it exceeds more than 2 or 3 days, you might want to avoid it.

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Whole sardines, pan-fried in a super hot cast-iron pan, served with charred lemon slices, olive oil, sea salt, parsley. Get a few fresh whole sardines cleaned + gutted from your fishmonger. In a well-seasoned cast-iron or carbon steel pan, heat some neutral oil on med-high heat until slightly smoking. Pat sardines completely dry and carefully add to the pan. Cook undisturbed for about 2-3 minutes until nice and golden on the bottom. Carefully flip and cook for another min or two. Some splattering may happen. Cook in batches to avoid crowding in the pan! To char some lemon slices, in a separate pan, heat up a little oil on med-high, then add some lemon slices (pick out seeds), about ¼ in thick. Cook undisturbed for about 3-4 min, checking occasionally until charred in spots. The charred lemon will mellow out and not be as sour/bitter. Great with fish dishes–you can eat the rind and all! To serve, drizzle olive oil over sardines, sprinkle w sea salt, parsley, chili pepper flakes, and more lemon if you want!

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Avoid Mondays

Did you know that Mondays are the worst day to buy seafood at the supermarket? Fishermen generally don’t go out to work on Sundays, which means the freshest catch you’ll be able to buy on a Monday will be at least a couple of days old. Going on the other days throughout the week is a safer idea.

Trust Your Nose

Even if a package shows fish or seafood still hasn’t reached its expiration date, an unpleasant smell can tell you that you should be avoiding it. So, trust your nose and don’t buy any foul-smelling fish or shellfish.