What is Seabass? How much is 1kg? Prepare properly and suggest dishes from Seabass
Seabass, a diverse and nutritious culinary ingredient, it has become the favorite choice of many culinary enthusiasts. However, not many people know where seabass comes from, what types there are and how much seabass costs per kilogram. Let’s learn about this fish with KINGFISH through the article below!
I/ What is Seabass?
1/ Identification characteristics of seabass
Seabass has a long and slender body, the color is mainly gray. The fish’s snout is slightly pointed and its mouth is wide, but the mouth is usually smaller in size than the fish’s body. Seabass can reach a length of up to 1m8, however, usually their size ranges from 19 to 25cm.
Seabass is distributed mainly in tropical and subtropical regions in the Western Pacific region. They can also be found in some areas of
North Asia. In Vietnam, seabass often live in the sea, estuaries, canals and shrimp farms. In particular, they are popular in the Southwest and Northern Delta provinces.
2/ nutritional value of sea bass
According to a study from the American Heart Association, regularly adding fish to your daily diet can improve your health. Seabass, with its low calories and many nutrients such as omega-3, vitamins and protein, is considered a good choice for improving health. Eating seabass 1 to 2 times per week can bring many benefits to the body:
Eye nutrition: Fish meat contains lots of vitamin A, an important antioxidant for eye and vision health. Vitamin A plays a role in maintaining vision and protecting the eyes, helping the eyes stay bright and healthy.
Diabetes support: People with diabetes often have to limit many foods in their diet. Seabass is a good choice for them when eaten in moderate amounts and processed properly.
Benefits for pregnant women: Seabass contains a lot of omega-3 and protein, helping to support the health of pregnant women and the development of the fetus. This is a useful food source for pregnant women.
Aids in weight loss: For those wanting to lose weight or stay in shape, sea bass is a good choice, as it is low in calories and high in protein (23g of protein) which helps maintain feelings of fullness and aids in weight loss.
II/ Popular types of seabass
There are two popular types of seabass, including sea seabass and brackish water seabass. To distinguish these two types, we usually rely on the color of the fish’s body:
Both types of seabass have common characteristics: the meat is less fishy, white and has few bones. This makes them very suitable for processing into many delicious dishes such as porridge, steaming, frying, braised and many other dishes.
1/ Sea Seabass
This type of fish is brown on the back and silver on the sides and belly.
2/ Brackish Seabass
This type usually has a yellow brown color all over its body.
III/ How much does sea bass cost for 1kg
How much does sea bass cost for 1kg?
• Seabass fillet costs about 250,000 VND/kg.
• Fresh seabass size 0.5 – 1kg/fish costs 180,000 – 200,000 VND/kg.
• Fresh seabass size 1.5 – 2 kg/fish costs from 210,000 – 230,000 VND/kg.
IV/ How to prepare Seabass
Processing seabass is an important process to prepare fish for processing. Below is how to prepare sea bass:
Scale and gut: First, you need to scale the fish to remove the outer layer of scales. Then, cut open the fish from the belly up to the head to remove the internal organs.
Cleaning the blood: You remove the blood right from the fish’s spine area. This helps remove remaining blood and makes the fish meat cleaner.
Rub lemon: Use lemon slices to gently rub the fish. This helps remove the fishy smell and makes the fish cleaner.
Deodorize with alcohol or vinegar: You can use water mixed with a little white wine or vinegar to deodorize the fishy smell. Then, wash the fish 2-3 times with clean water to completely remove impurities and antibacterial substances from wine or vinegar.
Make a groove on the fish’s body: Using a knife, create a slight groove down the fish’s back, then flip the knife horizontally to create a light cut. This helps the fish absorb the batter evenly when fried and makes the outer layer crispier.
V/ Delicious dishes from Seabass
1/ Steamed seabass with ginger and onions
Ingredient:
– 1 sea bass (about 1 kg)
– 1/2 onion
– 50g mushrooms
– 1 ginger root
– Spring onion
– Coriander
– 1 chili pepper
– 1/2 garlic
– Fried onion
– 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
– 1 teaspoon sesame oil
– 2 tablespoons cooking oil
– 1 teaspoon seasoning powder
– 1 tablespoon soy sauce
– Common spices (sugar, salt, MSG, ground pepper)
Processing:
Step 1: Prepare and marinate fish
• Wash the seabass and remove the intestines and gills.
• Use a knife to cut a few diagonal lines on the fish’s body.
• In a rice bowl, mix seasoning powder, salt, sugar, MSG, and ground pepper. Apply this spice mixture evenly on the body and inside of the fish.
• Marinate the fish for about 20 minutes to let the fish absorb the spices.
Step 2: Prepare other ingredients
• Cut green onions into pieces about 2 knuckles long.
• Peel the onion, wash and cut into segments.
• Peel the ginger, wash and cut into thin strips.
• Peel the garlic and chop it.
• Soak the mushrooms in water for about 20 minutes to bloom, then cut into large strips.
• Cut the chili into small slices.
Step 3: Stir-fry ingredients
• Place the pan on the stove and pour 2 tablespoons of cooking oil. When the oil is hot, add garlic and fry until fragrant.
• Add 1/2 tablespoon sugar, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon oyster sauce to the pan. Stirred.
• Next, add onion heads, mushrooms, onions and ginger to the pan. Stir-fry over high heat for about 5 minutes.
• Add 1 teaspoon sesame oil and stir-fry for another minute, then turn off the heat.
Step 4: Steam fish
• Prepare a large plate. Place green onions, cilantro, ginger and some stir-fry on a plate, then place the fish on top.
• Put the remaining stir-fry inside the fish and around the plate.
• Place the fish dish in the pot and steam it over high heat for about 30 minutes.
Step 5: Finished product
Finally, decorate the steamed fish dish with green onions, cilantro and some fried onions. You will feel the aroma of spices, soft and delicious fish meat.
2/ Distilled seabass with soy sauce
Ingredient:
– Seabass 500 gr
– 200 gr soy sauce
– 100 gr vermicelli
– Shiitake mushrooms 10 pieces
– (mushrooms)
– 5 mushrooms
– 3 green onions
– 1 onion
– 5 purple onions
– 3 branches of coriander
– 1 chilli
– 1 piece of ginger
– Oyster sauce 1/2 tablespoon
– Soy sauce 1/2 tablespoon
– Common spices
– Cooking oil
Processing:
Step 1: Prepare seabass
• Buy seabass, clean the surface of the fish by rubbing salt to remove the fishy smell. Then, wash the fish and drain.
• Slice the fish lengthwise into small pieces so that the seasoning penetrates more evenly.
Step 2: Cook the sauce
• Fry the purple onions until golden brown in a hot oil pan, then add a little of the fried oil to the noodles to avoid the noodles from sticking.
• Stir-fry shiitake mushrooms and ginger over medium heat for about 1 minute. Then, add the dehydrated soy sauce to the pan and add the onions and green onions. Stir well.
• Add sugar, MSG, soy sauce and oyster sauce to the pan. Stir well to blend flavors.
• To enhance the flavor, add a little soy sauce to the sauce.
• Marinate the fish with the sauce you just made for about 15 minutes.
Step 3: Steaming fish
• Prepare a pot to steam fish. Place the fish in the pot and steam for about 50 minutes.
• Then, put the vermicelli in the steamer with the fish and steam for another 4-5 minutes.
• Add green onions, coriander and chili to the pot to increase the aroma of the dish. Turn off the stove when finished.
Step 4: Finished product
• Take the fish out of the pot and add a little pepper to the surface to enhance the flavor.
• Sauteed seabass with soy sauce is often served with white rice and homemade sweet and sour dipping sauce.
• The fish meat is tender and delicious, well-cooked, not fishy, combined with delicious soy sauce, chewy vermicelli and fresh mushrooms.
3/ Seabass with sweet and sour sauce
Ingredient:
– 1 seabass
– Garlic 1 bulb
– Green onion 30 g
– 1 small piece of ginger
– Coriander 20 g
– 1 chili pepper
– Tamarind juice 4 tablespoons
– Cornstarch 100g
– Brown sugar 4 tablespoons
– Spices 10 g
Processing:
Step 1: Prepare seabass
• Use lemon slices to gently rub the surface of the fish, helping to remove slime and clean the fish.
• If you don’t have lemon, you can use salt or wash the fish with cold water mixed with a little wine or vinegar. Then, rinse the fish with clean water again and drain by placing the fish in a basket.
• Use kitchen paper to dry the remaining water on the fish for easy seasoning.
• Use a sharp knife to lightly cut the fish meat into 3-4 lines on each side of the fish. The purpose is to easily absorb the seasoning and cut off the collagen layer on the fish skin, helping the fish not to swell up when fried. There is no need to cut the fish meat apart like fillet.
• If you want to avoid the fish stretching and don’t want to make cuts, you can rub salt on the fish’s skin after surgery or skew a stick vertically from the fish’s gills to the body.
Step 2: Preliminary processing of other ingredients
• Wash the green onions and cut half into small pieces, cut the rest into small strips to put in the fish’s belly.
• Wash the cilantro and cut it into pieces similar to onions, then soak the onions and cilantro in filtered water to reduce the pungent smell.
• Mince the garlic, you can use a blender to save time. Wash the chili peppers with water and chop a little finely. Cut the remaining part in half, remove the seeds, then cut into strips and soak in water.
Step 3: Marinated fish
• Sprinkle the fish with one teaspoon of salt and one teaspoon of pepper. Use your hands to rub the seasoning evenly over the fish.
• Place the soaked cilantro into the fish belly, then add the sliced ginger and let the fish absorb the spices for about 15-20 minutes.
• After the fish absorbs the spices, take out all the cilantro and ginger. Place the fish in a large bowl or basin, then add cornstarch.
Step 4: Make the sauce
• On the stove, put brown sugar in a small pan with tamarind juice and chili sauce. Stir well until sugar dissolves.
• When the sugar boils, add minced garlic and minced chili, fry until fragrant. Season to taste with sugar, seasoning powder and a little fish sauce for flavor.
• Heat the mixture until it boils and thickens slightly
Step 5: Make sweet and sour fish sauce
• On the stove, heat a cup of cooking oil. Add the fish and fry until the fish is golden and cooked.
• Pour the sauce over the fish when the fish is cooked, or put both fish and sauce in a new pan and cook for another 2-3 minutes to let the fish absorb the sauce.
Step 6: Finished product
Seabass in sweet and sour sauce has fragrant, fatty meat and crispy golden skin. Rich sweet and sour sauce, combined with raw vegetables or white rice and chili garlic dipping sauce makes the dish wonderful.
VI/ How to preserve seabass for longer
Step 1: Clean, divide, and package
1. Clean the fish and remove the bones.
2. Wash fish thoroughly and pat dry.
3. Divide the fish into small portions corresponding to the amount you will use at a time.
4. Pack fish in one of three ways:
– Wrap the fish in wax paper or aluminum foil, making sure the fish is tightly wrapped.
– Use a zippered bag, rub the bag to remove air in the bag before sealing.
– Place the fish in an ice tray and pour water to cover the fish.
Note when packing:
• Classify and note storage time on each bag for easy identification.
• Divide fish into small portions instead of preserving the whole fish to avoid waste when defrosting.
Step 2: Adjust the refrigerator temperature
• Freezer: Store at -18 degrees Celsius to keep the fish’s best flavor. Storage time depends on the type of fish, from a few months to 1 year.
• Cool compartment: Store at a temperature of 2 – 4 degrees Celsius and use within about 1 – 3 days.
VII/ Conclusion
Hopefully the above information has given you an overview of seabass. Hope you choose to buy fresh seabass and cook attractive dishes for your family and friends.