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Fish Dishes?

Chris152

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Now my youngest has flown the nest, I'm cooking for one in the evenings. Not having to have a conversation about what's for tea, I seem to have defaulted to frozen fish, the breaded/ whatever variety, and realise I've wanted to eat mainly fish for quite a while but haven't on account of differing tastes.

I don't want to keep eating the pre-prepared fish. We don't have a fish monger in town (we do have a small supermarket), so my choice if I'm to prepare the raw fish myself is between getting a big delivery from the fish market in Cardiff (which is excellent, but I'm not clear if you can freeze it and don't like to store fish in the fridge), or buying unprepared frozen fish and cooking from frozen. I think that's just something I need to decide on.

From what I've seen, there are some real foodies on the site. Can anyone recommend simple fish dishes that I could have a go at?
 
Fish generally freezes extremely well. I buy most fish direct from the boats via one of the on-line sellers. Delivery is free for £50 plus and I stock the freezer in that way.

Fish dishes that I serve for us and in our restaurant.

Mussels. Takes under 5 minutes in white wine and a bit of cream etc. Steamed. Try to get hand picked rather than machine harvested rope grown (almost all supermarket mussels are the latter). They are MUCH better. Currently our come from Wales.

Skate. Very cheap. Pan fry in a medium pan in plenty of butter and add capers at the end. Takes circa 10 mins per side and the flesh should scrape off the bone very easily, leaving skeleton intact.

Monkfish. Easy to get. Slice off all traces of membrane. Gently pan fry or roast. Can wrap in pancetta.

Dover sole. Expensive usually but superb. Skin both sides, cut off the frill with scissors and pan fry. Debone when cooked by sliding top fillets off, pull all bones out in one go, then rebuild the fish as four fillets.

Turbot. Or big Brill. Fillet and roast. Expensive but excellent.

Place. Flour and pan fry, skin on (skin is soft). easy and cheap. Likewise dabs.

Pollack - I hate it. Don't believe nonsense that it is as good as cod. Pure marketing nonsense.

Piece of cod or haddock. Dip each portion in flour. Then beaten egg. Then panko breadcrumbs (1 kg bags on amazon are cheap - don; buy spendy supermarket ones). Pan fry. Or deep fry.

Salmon fillets. Farmed salmon is much of a much nice and has the sea lice problem. But it is cheap and quick. I have a steam oven so I usually steam it, but it panfries well. Moderate heat. Skin on. Don't play with it or it will stick.

Scallops. Under 3 minutes to pan fry.

Lobster. Most of the cheaper stuff is Canadian and not as cheap as it was. Cut in half lengthways, remove diestive tract and pan fry. Serve with home made mayo. Maybe some chilli.

Sea Bass. practically all farmed (as is similar bream) and in my view tasteless really, but works quite well with lemon and herbs and butter in baking parchment or foil wrapping, and cooked in the oven for 2o minutes at 180 where it will steam nicely.

Fish pie. Supermarkets sell the mixes on fish counters (well Waitrose do) and it's OK. Make a simple roux, add some cream and either a mashed potato, mandolin thin slice potato or puff pastry top, egg wash and bake in over at 180 for 30 mins.

Clams. Nice but three times the price of mussels. Cook same way.

Razor clams. Lovely. Needs some prep skill. Cook fast in a hot skillet or steam or roast.

I could go on. Rick Steins books on fish are quite good. So is Hugh FW. There are other more specialist ones.
 
Fish generally freezes extremely well. I buy most fish direct from the boats via one of the on-line sellers. Delivery is free for £50 plus and I stock the freezer in that way.

Fish dishes that I serve for us and in our restaurant.

Mussels. Takes under 5 minutes in white wine and a bit of cream etc. Steamed. Try to get hand picked rather than machine harvested rope grown (almost all supermarket mussels are the latter). They are MUCH better. Currently our come from Wales.

Skate. Very cheap. Pan fry in a medium pan in plenty of butter and add capers at the end. Takes circa 10 mins per side and the flesh should scrape off the bone very easily, leaving skeleton intact.

Monkfish. Easy to get. Slice off all traces of membrane. Gently pan fry or roast. Can wrap in pancetta.

Dover sole. Expensive usually but superb. Skin both sides, cut off the frill with scissors and pan fry. Debone when cooked by sliding top fillets off, pull all bones out in one go, then rebuild the fish as four fillets.

Turbot. Or big Brill. Fillet and roast. Expensive but excellent.

Place. Flour and pan fry, skin on (skin is soft). easy and cheap. Likewise dabs.

Pollack - I hate it. Don't believe nonsense that it is as good as cod. Pure marketing nonsense.

Piece of cod or haddock. Dip each portion in flour. Then beaten egg. Then panko breadcrumbs (1 kg bags on amazon are cheap - don; buy spendy supermarket ones). Pan fry. Or deep fry.

Salmon fillets. Farmed salmon is much of a much nice and has the sea lice problem. But it is cheap and quick. I have a steam oven so I usually steam it, but it panfries well. Moderate heat. Skin on. Don't play with it or it will stick.

Scallops. Under 3 minutes to pan fry.

Lobster. Most of the cheaper stuff is Canadian and not as cheap as it was. Cut in half lengthways, remove diestive tract and pan fry. Serve with home made mayo. Maybe some chilli.

Sea Bass. practically all farmed (as is similar bream) and in my view tasteless really, but works quite well with lemon and herbs and butter in baking parchment or foil wrapping, and cooked in the oven for 2o minutes at 180 where it will steam nicely.

Fish pie. Supermarkets sell the mixes on fish counters (well Waitrose do) and it's OK. Make a simple roux, add some cream and either a mashed potato, mandolin thin slice potato or puff pastry top, egg wash and bake in over at 180 for 30 mins.

Clams. Nice but three times the price of mussels. Cook same way.

Razor clams. Lovely. Needs some prep skill. Cook fast in a hot skillet or steam or roast.

I could go on. Rick Steins books on fish are quite good. So is Hugh FW. There are other more specialist ones.
That's fantastic, Adrian. Exactly what I was hoping for. I'm going to work my way through the list, where I can get them.

My favourite, I think, is plain boiled crab - I lived near Newlyn many years ago and used to buy from the business that sent them all over the country, wonderful and relatively cheap. And just-off-the-boats wet fish from the business next door. Happy days!

I'm going to do a search for sellers from boats, it's easy enough to reach £50. Are they frozen when they arrive, or do you freeze them?
 
Don't forget Kedgeree.
Fresh tuna or quality tinned or jar Albacore Tuna is great for salads such as nicoise.
Prawn curry is foolproof.
Sardines are great on toast. You can get very high quality canned cheaply.
Lidl and Aldi both do gravadlax that is cheap and good.
Caviar is silly price but Waitrose
 
They are usually frozen and packed in ice bags. I have found the quality to be exceptionally good. A lot of fish is frozen on the boat and ideally stays that way. Agree re crab. I usually buy it live. We are in Kent and I usually but from Jacksons on line, or go down to the coast and buy off the boats, or go to Billingsgate at 4 am. Pesky Fish on line are very good - but their opening is erratic. They are just about to relaunch with Herd delivery (who also do meat).

You can also get trout pretty easily and if you can find a local trout farm and but fresh - rainbow or brown - then that is ideal. Fries well, and goes nicely with some lightly fried sliced almonds.

Sea trout is often better than salmon and can be cooked similarly or sliced thinly and served raw as ceviche.

Whiting is very cheap. Fish and chips shops often sell it described as cod. Being mushy and lacj of flakes is an obvious give away. Generally bland but good for fish cakes or spiced indian style fish cakes.

Squid is dirt cheap and very easy cooked as rings - really quickly on a hot cast iron pan ideally.

Octopus is not everyone's cup of tea, but the tentacles cooked well in a sauce, or blackened can be amazing.

In Asian shops you can often get Kingfish. Cooks similarly to Bass. Great in curries and spices.

If you can get your hands on eel, then it is very rich and memorable.

Elvers are great but rare and super expensive now.

Sprats etc, washed and dredged in flour are super cheap, can be fried or deep fried in 2 or 3 minutes and are great with chips or bread and butter.

If you like Indian food, buy Atul Koachars Indian Fish Cookery second hand from Abe books. He is very good and the recipes are easy.

Atul frequently cooks soft shelled crab. Generally in batter and it takes 5 mins max in a deep fryer. Hard to find fresh, but readily available frozen from Asian shops. Extremely tasty. Goes well with spice mayo type sauces.

I've not delved into Japanese fish dishes here as it requires sashimi grade and you need to be pretty careful. However, it can be truly excellent.
 
Don't forget to try samphire. Goes well with a lot of fish dishes. Collect free from sea shore or buy from markets etc. Try to get as fresh as poss and cut off any brown ends. Naturally sweet, juicy and salty vegetable.

That's enough to be going on with.
 
So where abouts are you Chris? There are dozens of fresh fish vans plying their trade all over the country, they set off from Grimsby every week and they either set up in a spot for customers to visit or some deliver direct to your door.

Ps don’t think anyone has mentioned smoked fish, Grimsby has some excellent traditional smoke houses.
 
We used to get our fish from the Cornish Fishmonger but recently their prices have gone through the roof and TBH their swordfish is best avoided.
 
Definitely enough for now! Thank you - I've been hunting online since you posted, trying to find a good source, preferably not too far away.

I'm near Cardiff, Ian (tho not close enough to pop to the market for dinner).* There are definitely plenty selling fish, but I became really picky about it being either just out of the sea or frozen asap after catching. We used to have a really good fella who'd bring it each Wednesday but he sold the business and the person who took it on wasn't so particular and it put me off.

*That said, if it's going to be crab, I'll make a special journey to get a live one, can't beat it. But that's once or twice a year these days.
 
Roger
I am on the mailing list for a few. Obviously I am in Kent so that affects it (by which I mean I avoid the ones up north due to delivery). They issue the market prices each day and the good stuff sells out fast.
Most of my online sourcing is from The Fish Society and Pesky Fish.
Chapmans wholesalers are close enough to deliver to me or I can collect.
If I am on the coast I use Jackmans in Deal.
Shellfish from La Mer who think also do online.
I am 20 ish miles from Billingsgate fish market which opens at 4am (don't go on Saturdays - tourists and anyway everything was sold on Friday) until I think 7am. Literally half the price of fishmongers and supermarkets or less - but you have to buy a tray for some things. I can buy live scallops in shell there at 80p each currently for example. We go there if we are doing some event consuming a lot of fish courses.

I've got a bit of a thing about quality. I try pretty hard to avoid farmed salmon due to the lice and pollution problems, likewise the small bass you get these days. We are only 35 minutes from a couple of south coast fisheries where I can buy direct from the boat stalls shortly after landing. Fish is jolly expensive now!
 
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OK. I am not an expert on Wales. I took a sailing boat into Aberystwyth recently (2 weeks ago) and they have a small fleet operating out of the harbour there, next to the lifeboat station. Only one boat went out in the entire week I was in the harbour. Only one boat was trawling and that appeared to be a bottom dredger (which is very destructive). Everyone else was doing prawns, crabs and lobsters and they stayed in port.
There is a guy in Cardigan bay somewhere who does totally excellent mussels. Hand picked. Far better than the Scottish stuff we get in supermarkets round here. Supplies a lot of restaurants. No doubt he will pop up on line. I get them through Pesky Fish.
 
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Do Pesky deliver fresh or frozen? It looks from their site like fresh but I can't see where it specifies. But it does look a really good setup - once I've got my head around the 'market' thing and finding what's available.

And yes, when I head west I tend not to go to the places boats might fish from but I've never really got the impression a lot of it goes on.

eta - Just looked it up, Wiki says 'Commercial fishing in Wales employs approximately 600 people full-time and was valued at £39 million in 2021.[2] 92% of Welsh fishing vessels are designated small-scale'.
 
Do Pesky deliver fresh or frozen? It looks from their site like fresh but I can't see where it specifies. But it does look a really good setup - once I've got my head around the 'market' thing and finding what's available.

And yes, when I head west I tend not to go to the places boats might fish from but I've never really got the impression a lot of it goes on.

eta - Just looked it up, Wiki says 'Commercial fishing in Wales employs approximately 600 people full-time and was valued at £39 million in 2021.[2] 92% of Welsh fishing vessels are designated small-scale'.
I think it depends on what you order. Last stuff I had from them was 4 packs of Welsh mussels which were live and not frozen and 6 Dovers which were vac packed individually and packed in ice bags so they were in perfect condition and frozen. It comes in a recycle box and is full of ice bags. Just give them a call. They are a bit of an odd set up as they keep fiddling with their distribution arrangements and diappear sometimes for a few weeks. That said whenever I buy from them the pictures on line exactly match what they sell and the quality has been A1.

You are not far from Cornwall so it might be worth enquiring who Nathan Outlaw buys from (top bloke and he has a new book out) or Paul Ainsworth at No 6 Padstow.

I have no issue with frozen fish. A deep sea boat will freeze on board straight away and at temps domestic freezers usually can get to. Parasite killing is important. What I don't want is defrosted in the market, frozen again, part defrosted in transit, and sold as "fresh" in the supermarket 5 days later. Waitrose I'm looking at you!
 
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Roger your swordfish remark made me smile. Have you ever seen one in the sea? They are bl**dy big and I wouldn't want to get near the pointy end. Best avoided indeed :)

On a serious note I am wary of swordfish. I know most wild fish can have worms but swordfish is notorious for metazoic parasites and quite scary worms. I've seen them emerging from fish caught off Italy and in Atlantic catch near Gibraltar. Made me squeamish. I think they try to deal with them by super deep freezing for a set period (can't recall details). I know people go on about "fresh" fish but practically all the big fish have to be frozen. Thawing needs doing with care.
 
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Surprised you found him pompous. I've met him a few times, the first being a few years ago for lunch - I was a guest of another well known chef, and he was really pleasant and friendly over several hours. He's a big fella! Anyway, the relevant point here is he was the first UK fish chef to get two stars and his sourcing must be impeccable or he could not sustain his reputation.

Whenever I've sailed down in Devon and Cornwall (last time was three weeks ago) mackerel could be pulled out easily for free, slung on a portable BBQ and eaten straight away. I like them but they are bony devils. I guess you either like fish or you don't. When my FIL is with us he basically only eats fish, so I have done about 18 fish dishes in the last three weeks. He's not keen on bones so I remove them all prior to dishing up.
 
Fair enough. As someone who sources cooks and eats loads of fish I was just trying to be helpful and constructive for the original OP - who clearly does want to eat fish and was looking for helpful ideas. As a cook I think Nathan's books are pretty good and his new one may be ideal for someone wanting to try accessible and modern fish recipes. It shows the cooking step by step which is helpful for the inexperienced I thought.
 
Now this is going to be controversial, before FAS, frozen at sea, a boat would leave the uk say Grimsby and take a few days to get to the fishing grounds, with the bigger boats that was Iceland, fish for quite a few days 12? The fish was instantly gutted and down into the hold where it was packed in ice then back home, hopefully on an evening when there was a weekday in the morning. The fish was unloaded into 10 stone boxes ( a kit) with a sprinkle of fresh ice on top. Then after the market it went off to be filleted and sent away overnight to all parts of the country. That was quite an operation set up in short order (by a man I got to know very well) when the Beeching closures were announced.
By this point the fish could easily be 10-14 days old. Still sold as fresh!
Now the Fishermen when on their boats wouldn’t eat fish until it was 10 days old as they said it was too fresh and didn’t taste right. Think about Game being hung.
Living in Grimsby we always had good fish, and we knew instantly when it wasn’t. It certainly didn’t taste like it was old fish.
But it does make me wonder if the “fresh” fish everyone claims to be so good wouldn’t be improved by being kept on ice for a while?
Ian
 
I've got an inkling they use dry ice for the fish, along with everything else in the frozen isle,
as I get mouth ulcers from such, aswell as the freezer veg and any canned stuff like sweetcorn, stock cubes too, amongst other stuff like fancy coffee and other products which I also guess gets the same treatment, even some ingredient in black pudding FFS.
Not that the rest matters, but I'd love to eat fish regularly.
Perhaps it's something else, just a guess, but sure is consistent with a super restrictive diet, my own one that I've spent near 20 years trying to figure out and repeat exactly,
Not like the easy going keto or gaps diet by comparison.


Even brought my hob from me folks, but never bothered with my outdoor frying plans.
Perhaps next year, if I'm in good enough form for making a shed.

I'd love to know if my dry ice theory is off the mark, should anyone have any ideas that it may actually be something else?
Thanks
Tom
 
I think it depends on what you order. Last stuff I had from them was 4 packs of Welsh mussels which were live and not frozen and 6 Dovers which were vac packed individually and packed in ice bags so they were in perfect condition and frozen. It comes in a recycle box and is full of ice bags. Just give them a call. They are a bit of an odd set up as they keep fiddling with their distribution arrangements and diappear sometimes for a few weeks. That said whenever I buy from them the pictures on line exactly match what they sell and the quality has been A1.

You are not far from Cornwall so it might be worth enquiring who Nathan Outlaw buys from (top bloke and he has a new book out) or Paul Ainsworth at No 6 Padstow.

I have no issue with frozen fish. A deep sea boat will freeze on board straight away and at temps domestic freezers usually can get to. Parasite killing is important. What I don't want is defrosted in the market, frozen again, part defrosted in transit, and sold as "fresh" in the supermarket 5 days later. Waitrose I'm looking at you!
Yes, I'd much rather frozen on-board than hanging around in a supermarket or elsewhere. Waitrose is a 5 minute walk from home, maybe if I monitored what is new on any day that could work better. But definitely plan to find a frozen supplier.

Anyway, I've printed off your list and will tape it to the wall in the kitchen, looking forward to working through it! I have lots of fish cookbooks but I've never really got on with them for some reason - a simple list will work much better. I'm probably just not one of life's cooks. Thank you.
 
I come from the cook it quick and easy school. We eat fresh fish at least once a week. One daughter allergic to white fish so it’s salmon or trout when she is there and what ever white fish is available other wise.
Salmon often bought as a whole side. We then cut potions to suit and freeze. Cooked in microwave with a sprinkle of dill, takes minutes and minimal washing up. White fish cooked the same way unless we buy skate wings which are too big for MW. They go in oven. I’m quite happy to eat fish without a sauce but will make parsley sauce occasionally.
Also enjoy fresh sardines as along as they are filleted first. These just get grilled.
We do cycle to a local fish market on the coast but more usually buy from fishmonger in local supermarket.
Wife also does a lovely prawn curry with spinach and coconut milk.
 
Just don’t buy the swordfish and the Tiger prawns require a second mortgage. They used to be our Go-To but not any more
Just for info, Lidl, especially on the approach to Christmas, often sell boxes (wood sides) of frozen tiger prawns. Last time I bought a few boxes they were very cheap. I think they were about £6 a box and a box was enough to do a generous serving for 4. Obviously they have about a million air miles and they are medium size (not to be confused with large Dublin Bay) but they tasted very good.

th.jpeg
 
I've got an inkling they use dry ice for the fish, along with everything else in the frozen isle,
as I get mouth ulcers from such, aswell as the freezer veg and any canned stuff like sweetcorn, stock cubes too, amongst other stuff like fancy coffee and other products which I also guess gets the same treatment, even some ingredient in black pudding FFS.
Not that the rest matters, but I'd love to eat fish regularly.
Perhaps it's something else, just a guess, but sure is consistent with a super restrictive diet, my own one that I've spent near 20 years trying to figure out and repeat exactly,
Not like the easy going keto or gaps diet by comparison.


Even brought my hob from me folks, but never bothered with my outdoor frying plans.
Perhaps next year, if I'm in good enough form for making a shed.

I'd love to know if my dry ice theory is off the mark, should anyone have any ideas that it may actually be something else?
Thanks
Tom
Yes. Check out histamine intolerance or histamine overload but don’t bother to ask your GP as there is a good chance you will get a blank look.
 
Yes. Check out histamine intolerance or histamine overload but don’t bother to ask your GP as there is a good chance you will get a blank look.
Interesting to read up on that, thanks Roger, though I can eat lots of food "on the list" without bother
and by that I mean giant helpings.
even though I do get few of those symptoms like dizziness, I reckon that could be explained otherwise.
I've started eating eggs recently, popping a few in the "bing bings" is so easy, and the fluffy beasts get some aswell.
and wouldn't be surprised if something along those lines of histamine intolerance or hives might indeed show up soon.

Can't eat tinned sardines either, but tuna in a can, not noticed so far... though I wouldn't be surprised either,
if I chose to do a test, i.e popeye a can or two every day, I reckon the mouth ulcers would be there in a fortnight.

Talking about GP's, seemingly there might be a new school of thinking, as a newcomer to the practice has mentioned
studying keto, which was indeed a refreshing surprise, after getting the sthick from the ol boy for years,
"an empty sack can't stand up on it's own", though I wasn't quick enough to reply,
better a sack than a pile of threads!
That and the food pyramids from 1990's microwave cookbooks which the dietitian suggested, being some medical merry go round, not being very helpful atall with an I know best attitude, heavily infulenced through ignorance or fear.

Anyway appologies, back on topic again, in the hope some folks who visit here,
might indeed have spent some time on the trawlers.
as I still reckon there is something in the fish, as those reactions appear faster with frozen fish than anything else.

Tom
 
Lucky me I have been out on trawlers a few times. Only once deep sea though. It's not for the faint hearted or squeamish, though they say you get used to it. The trip I did was meant to be 5 days but turned into 9 days at sea plus a couple at Thorlakshofn on SW Iceland. I was 20, had just done my first degree and it was before I started my follow up education. Two of the permanent young guys on the boat were also lifeboatmen (when home) and I'm still in touch with them. Very memorable experience with properly big seas and relentless work shifts round the clock. It was around a 40m stern lift freezer trawler. Otherwise just much small mainly inshore lobster boats, crabbers and line fishers.

Ian I had no idea 10 stone of fish is called a Lot. I know the markets sell whiting and such like to fish and chip shops by the stone still. I've only ever heard the restaurant trade refer to a box of fish, which is usually a poly box of similar size to a gastronorm tray.

Most fish I get is landed on the south coast within 15 miles. The journey is a day onboard and to market that day or early next morning. Rogor mortis needs to wear off which it has done on day 2. If despatched it gets to me on day 3 if I am lucky or day 4. I can't tell a difference between day 2 landed and day 4 delivered in terms of freshness for what I buy.

I buy quite a lot of dover sole, as basically I am addicted to it for Saturday night supper. In decent restaurants in London people are paying at least £40 each for a medium sized (at best) simply grilled dover sole now.
 
Progress. The haddock came frozen from the supermarket, and I forgot to buy breadcrumbs. I used an innovative method of applying the egg after the flour, which involved pouring it on and rubbing it in. I may review the method in future. Have to say, it was delicious with baby new potatoes and a squeeze of lemon.

IMG_20240923_174112_edit_212559987088396.jpg

Next time you're looking to upgrade your chef, Adrian, send me a DM?

ps Don't fret, I shan't post daily updates on my tea!
 
Well done. Seriously we all have to start somewhere. When I was just about 17 and first went to University I cooked bolognese in a Kenwood slow cooker for a party. This resulted in 30 people getting "norty botty". :eek:

Fish cookery puts a lot of people off though it's super easy once you learn the basics. It's faster than just about anything else.

Keep posting your results. Seriously, it's activity and fun that feeds this forum.

Three trays: seasoned flour then egg then panko (or ordinary crumbs). Repeat if you want to get cheffy. Fry. Eat. Brag aboit how good it is. We usually cook other stuff in a separate pan as timings are different and so are heat levels.
 
Well done. Seriously we all have to start somewhere. When I was just about 17 and first went to University I cooked bolognese in a Kenwood slow cooker for a party. This resulted in 30 people getting "norty botty". :eek:
As a student, I cooked bolognese for my then Canadian girlfriend. She pretended to enjoy it, and later described it as ground beef, bacon and tomatoes warmed up. It's better these days, but I'm not sure how much better :)
 
Think yourself lucky for a near miss. 🤣 My first "proper" gf cooked me, for our first "special" date (ie parents were not in her house and she had a very short skirt on), fish fingers with spaghetti and salad cream, which was memorably vile, followed by cheesecake made of broken biscuits topped with grated cheese mixed with yoghurt. It was beyond disgusting. I was only 16 and wet behind the ears but even I knew she was not the one for me that night. She became lesbian a few years later :)D) and visited us with her wife for a week recently. I was tempted one night to serve them a memory lane meal. ;)
 
I may try this source - I bought from them in the past when my usual was closed and it was excellent. Free delivery over £100 or a bit short of £10 with DPD for baskets less than £100. Selection straight from Newlyn market sounds good, I've just written to confirm that the fish in the 'Fish box club' is suitable for freezing on arrival. Shan't be buying the cock crabs tho, terrible price!
 
I may try this source - I bought from them in the past when my usual was closed and it was excellent. Free delivery over £100 or a bit short of £10 with DPD for baskets less than £100. Selection straight from Newlyn market sounds good, I've just written to confirm that the fish in the 'Fish box club' is suitable for freezing on arrival. Shan't be buying the cock crabs tho, terrible price!
We usually have a week in Newlyn most years (sister in law has a holiday let there) and that’s where we go for our fresh fish.
 
I had this reply, all sounds good to me:
'Good morning
Thank you for your email. All the fish is fresh from the mornings market and can be frozen on receipt.
Kind regards' etc .
I'll try a box and report.
 
Interesting pricing. For example they are selling clams at £19.95 a kilo plus delivery. Waitrose today was £14.95. Cornish are selling 2kg bags of mussels for £18.99. That is more than double what they can be sourced for in supermarkets (though the latter may be smaller and so more shell to meat). The £44 fish boxes for "typically 3-4kg" (thats a big range) seems to be mostly cheap filleted fish such as whiting, pollack, megrim and mackerel which are all at the cheap end in fishmongers.

The 5kg wholesale boxes are from £19.99 but if you select cod, it is £125 so £25 a kilo. At Billingsgate (closest fish wholesale market to me) I would expect to be paying about £14 a kilo. They are charging £95 for pollack which is expensive for a fish that 20 years ago was by catch and near unsaleable (for good reason in my view).

Monkfish tails 5kg wholesale is £189, which is insanely expensive.

Fish prices are very volatile and care is needed in selection here by the look of it.
 
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