BajaNomad - WHAT WAS WRONG?

WHAT WAS WRONG?

beachbum1A - 2-8-2008 at 07:22 PM

A friend came to visit last wek and we went to Ensenada's Mercado Negro to pick up something for dinner. Walking and looking we both finally settled on some Black Sea Bass (can't remember the Spanish translation but a short word or 4 or 5 letters).
$60 pesos a kilo. Picked up a piece of about 5-6 kilos, smelled it and it smelled OK, no odor. Felt firm in my hand and not slimey. Bought a little bit more than 1/2 a kilo and went home.

Lite up the charcoal, cut the fish into 1 1/4 thick steaks and proceded to grill our entree.

BAD NEWS! As the fish cooked it became very mushy, to the point where we were trying to decide if it was "OK" to eat it.
Well we did eat it and neither of us got sick but it didn't taste very good - not bad, but definately not good.

The fire wasn't very hot and we should have used more charcoal as it took a long time to cook. I didn't marinate it in anything, just straight onto the grill.

Do you think it was old fish or maybe not kept on ice? Didn't smell fishy before I cooked it so what do you think? Help please!

woody with a view - 2-8-2008 at 07:26 PM

maybe was frozen and thawed a few days in a row before you bought it. lucky you had an iron gut.

Sallysouth - 2-8-2008 at 07:27 PM

That is exactly what i was thinking Woody.Makes for mushy fish, tastless also.

beachbum1A - 2-8-2008 at 08:52 PM

Damn! Didn't even think of that. What you go to a market like that, the term "frozen" doesn't even enter into my vocabulary but it could very well be. Thanks.

BornFisher - 2-8-2008 at 09:01 PM

Mero is black sea bass. Sorry to say but much of the fish in the market is beyond its prime. Saying that, I`ve had great halibut and mero from there. Sure wouldn`t buy any yellowtail though! The blue shrimp,is always a "10"!!

capt. mike - 2-9-2008 at 08:36 AM

if it didn't taste very good..............why the H did you eat it??!! :?:

beachbum1A - 2-9-2008 at 08:56 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by BornFisher
Mero is black sea bass. Sorry to say but much of the fish in the market is beyond its prime. Saying that, I`ve had great halibut and mero from there. Sure wouldn`t buy any yellowtail though! The blue shrimp,is always a "10"!!

Yes, Mero wa the Spanish name-thanks. And you're right about the YT, most of it was whole but looked "old" if you know what I mean. Skin was dull, eyes weren't shinny. But why wouldn't most of the seafood offered there be prime?

Oso - 2-9-2008 at 10:15 AM

I never buy anything at the Mercado Negro, too many tales of using clorox to "freshen up" the fish etc. But, beyond that, I never buy already filleted fish of any kind anywhere. If I can't catch it myself or buy it still moving from the panga when it hits the beach, then at a very minimum I want to see the eyes. They gotta be bright and clear. If they are the least bit cloudy, fuggedaboutit.

sylens - 2-9-2008 at 05:37 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by beachbum1A
Damn! Didn't even think of that. What you go to a market like that, the term "frozen" doesn't even enter into my vocabulary but it could very well be. Thanks.

yeah. i had heard you need to be very careful at the mercado negro. we buy our fish at DE GARO, a little tiny shop that also sells stuff from trader joe's :lol:

it is around the corner from the esquina de bodegas (across from embotelladora vieja) at miramar 666. it was recommended to us by a wonderful local chef (chema, for those of you who know seisveintitres) :bounce:

but you need to go early, as they often close around noon when they sell that day's catch.

BornFisher - 2-9-2008 at 08:57 PM

I`m guessing the quality of the fish is poor because of the care the fish is given after caught. All I know is I know good fish, and when I go thru that market I wonder how they can sell their fish and who would buy it. Correction to my other post, I haven`t had the mero, but the swordfish was awesome. And if you can get good halibut and swordfish for $5 a KILO, go for it!! And again--the shrimp has always been great!!
PS-- has anyone tried the clams????

Roberto - 2-10-2008 at 09:20 PM

I'm sure that, as long as you know someone there, you can get quality fish.

I don't. I've been there quite a few times. I would NEVER buy anything there that I was planning on eating. There is no way to tell the quality of what you're buying. Fish has been processed, stacked, etc. Whole fish - there are MANY ways to make bad fish look good, and when you make the wrong choice, you can consider yourself lucky of all you get is questionable taste.

My two cents, offered free of charge, so you know what it's worth. :lol:

JESSE - 2-10-2008 at 09:49 PM

Some species are simply not good for the grill, and need to me pan fried in order to keep its texture.

HotSchott - 2-12-2008 at 08:27 AM

That's how endangered species taste...mushy.

beachbum1A - 2-12-2008 at 09:22 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by JESSE
Some species are simply not good for the grill, and need to me pan fried in order to keep its texture.

Probably a lot of truth to this. That's why it might be a good idea to stay with what you have had before-cooked the same way. But then that would be so boring right!

beachbum1A - 2-14-2008 at 08:28 AM

Quote:

yeah. i had heard you need to be very careful at the mercado negro. we buy our fish at DE GARO, a little tiny shop that also sells stuff from trader joe's :lol:

but you need to go early, as they often close around noon when they sell that day's catch.

FINALLY founf De Garo yesterday, tucked away in the back with a few other small stores. Bought 1/2 kilo of white seabass and was given a bag of salad greens as a "first time shopper" there. Sauted in olive oil/garlic for dinner and was very tasty. Thanks for the lead!!

Bruce R Leech - 2-14-2008 at 08:38 AM

I think you answered your own question, when you said the fire was not very hot and it took a long time to cook. you need a hot fire and you cant cook it long or it will do what it did.

Tomas Tierra - 2-14-2008 at 04:22 PM

I have seen quite a few species of fish sold under the name "Mero" at mercado negro. Including the dreaded "oil fish". Others include Broom tail grouper (maybe just maybe better than BSB), and gulf grouper. If you ate the oil fish you would know it the next day as you pass STRAIGHT FISH OIL for the better part of one day. Can be a funny joke played on someone, providing they are not staying overnight

For that matter I've seen Mako shark sold as swordfish and keyhole limpet sold as abalone there to.

Casa de los muertos I call that place.