What could cause mushy fish? I bought two nice looking flounder fillets
at he supermarket today. They were "previously frozen" but wild caught
and seemed firm enough to me when I dipped them in egg wash and breaded
them up to fry them.

The oil was hot enough. I tested it with a drop of water. The burner
temperature was correct and even.

The bottom of the fillets had browned nicely but when I went to turn
them, they were mush. I wound up throwing the whole pan full of fillets
and oil into the trash.

Any guesses on what caused the fish to turn to mush?

Texas Janet, scratching her head.
--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

Janet Wilder > wrote:

>What could cause mushy fish? I bought two nice looking flounder fillets
>at he supermarket today. They were "previously frozen" but wild caught
>and seemed firm enough to me when I dipped them in egg wash and breaded
>them up to fry them.

Let's see... flounder's not the firmest species to begin with,
they were previously frozen, they were from the supermarket. How
many reasons do you need?

S.

Steve Pope wrote:
>
> Janet Wilder > wrote:
>
> >What could cause mushy fish? I bought two nice looking flounder fillets
> >at he supermarket today. They were "previously frozen" but wild caught
> >and seemed firm enough to me when I dipped them in egg wash and breaded
> >them up to fry them.
>
> Let's see... flounder's not the firmest species to begin with,
> they were previously frozen, they were from the supermarket. How
> many reasons do you need?
>
> S.

More than that I'm afraid. I've noticed the same issue several times
recently with several different kinds of seafood. In the past I've
purchased the same types of seafood from the same Albertson's
supermarket and not had any issues. I've also noticed in these mush
cases that the item in question also seemed notably salty. In all cases
the items were indicated as "Wild caught, USA". I suspect some change in
processing procedures may be to blame.

Pete C. > wrote:

>Steve Pope wrote:

>> Let's see... flounder's not the firmest species to begin with,
>> they were previously frozen, they were from the supermarket. How
>> many reasons do you need?

>More than that I'm afraid. I've noticed the same issue several times
>recently with several different kinds of seafood. In the past I've
>purchased the same types of seafood from the same Albertson's
>supermarket and not had any issues. I've also noticed in these mush
>cases that the item in question also seemed notably salty. In all cases
>the items were indicated as "Wild caught, USA". I suspect some change in
>processing procedures may be to blame.

Let's see... with rising energy prices they are not keeping
the stuff frozen to as low a temperature as formerly was
the case. Maybe even letting it thaw sometimes, or not
freezing it as soon during processing, or letting it
thaw sooner before retail.

Nah, that's conspiracy theory stuff. Never happen.

Steve

On May 21, 5:57*pm, Janet Wilder > wrote:
> What could cause mushy fish? *I bought two nice looking flounder fillets
> at he supermarket today. They were "previously frozen" but wild caught
> and seemed firm enough to me when I dipped them in egg wash and breaded
> them up to fry them.
>
> The oil was hot enough. I tested it with a drop of water. The burner
> temperature was correct and even.
>
> The bottom of the fillets had browned nicely but when I went to turn
> them, they were mush. I wound up throwing the whole pan full of fillets
> and oil into the trash.
>
> Any guesses on what caused the fish to turn to mush?
>
My guess is they were thawed too fast. Or more than once. Frozen
fish can be fine when it is quick frozen while very fresh, kept
completely frozen throughout storage, then thawed slowly. I have had
no problems with frozen fish from TJs but wouldn't trust my
supermarkets. The good fish monger is not local, but not too far away
when I want reliable fresh fish. -aem

On May 22, 8:57*am, Janet Wilder > wrote:
> What could cause mushy fish? *I bought two nice looking flounder fillets
> at he supermarket today. They were "previously frozen" but wild caught
> and seemed firm enough to me when I dipped them in egg wash and breaded
> them up to fry them.
>
> The oil was hot enough. I tested it with a drop of water. The burner
> temperature was correct and even.
>
> The bottom of the fillets had browned nicely but when I went to turn
> them, they were mush. I wound up throwing the whole pan full of fillets
> and oil into the trash.
>
> Any guesses on what caused the fish to turn to mush?
>
> Texas Janet, scratching her head.
> --
> Janet Wilder
> Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
> Good Friends. Good Life

Flounder is always at its best fresh. It is a fish that goes soft when
frozen.

JB

Janet Wilder wrote:
>
> What could cause mushy fish? I bought two nice looking flounder fillets
> at he supermarket today. They were "previously frozen" but wild caught
> and seemed firm enough to me when I dipped them in egg wash and breaded
> them up to fry them.
>
> The oil was hot enough. I tested it with a drop of water. The burner
> temperature was correct and even.
>
> The bottom of the fillets had browned nicely but when I went to turn
> them, they were mush. I wound up throwing the whole pan full of fillets
> and oil into the trash.
>
> Any guesses on what caused the fish to turn to mush?
>
> Texas Janet, scratching her head.
> --
> Janet Wilder
> Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
> Good Friends. Good Life

In addition to what other folks have contributed, I'd suggest that if
this sort of situation should happen again, save the cooked faulty fish
and return it the following day to the store for a refund since the
product was unsatisfactory. That's what I'd be inclined to do,
especially when the rising costs of food and gasoline are considered.
The least the store manager could say is, "no," but I bet that won't be
the case.

Sky

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