The Fish We Cook, Tuna

ALBACORE TUNA

The albacore tuna is the choicest of the four kinds of tuna. Its flesh is light in color and mild flavor is the reason it has been given the name "chicken of the sea", and it is the only tuna that can be sold as white meat tuna in the United States. It is also known under the names of albacore fish, ahi, tombo, binnaga, tunny or long fin tuna. The albacore can be distinguished by its long pointed tail, its metallic blue back and its silvery bottom. Found in the temperate waters off the shores of southern California, the albacore averages 10 to 60 pounds but has been known to reach 93 pounds and 5 feet in length. It is a very important fish both commercially and for sport fishing. It has a rather chewy, layered meat with a mild flavor and a high fat content. After cooking it will have a light tan color and can be a little dry if over cooked. The best way to cook albacore tuna is to sauté, pan fry, oven fry, bake, broil, poach or grill.
BLUEFIN TUNA
Bluefin tuna can be found in most warm, temperate seas throughout the world and are abundant from Alaska to California on the west coast of the United States. Like the other varieties of tuna it is a very fast, strong swimmer and traveling in schools they inherit the name" wolves of the sea". They have a dark green or blue colored back with a silver belly and yellowish tinges on its tail and average 15 to 80 pounds but have been known to top the scales at 1600 pounds and 14 feet in length. Also known as horse mackerel, the bluefin has a grayish or pinkish meat that is rich in flavor and a higher oil and fat content than the other varieties of tuna. The best way to cook bluefin is to bake or poach.
SKIPJACK TUNA
Found mostly in tropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean, the skipjack is the smallest of the tunas averaging only 4 to 24 pounds but can reach 31 pounds. It is an important fish for sport and commercial fishermen.
It has a dark metallic blue top with a silver sides and its flesh is light in color and rich in flavor and moderate in fat content. The best way to cook skipjack tuna is to saute, pan fry or broil.
YELLOWFIN TUNA
Found in most warm waters, the yellowfin tuna is largely marketed as ahi tuna. It averages 30 to 150 pounds and has been known to grow to 400 pounds. It has a blue back with yellowish tinges on its sides and receives its name from its yellow tail and belly fins. It is also found under the names of atun or tunny and is very popular off the coast of southern California. As a commercially important fish, most of the yellow fin tuna is canned. As a sport fish they are known as the toughest fighters of all of the tuna. The yellowfin has meat that is light in color and rich in flavor with a moderate fat content. The best way to cook is to bake, broil, poach or grill.

Hi! My name is Tom. I worked for 40 years buying and selling fish in the retail market. After years I found out people don't want complicated recipes for cooking fish. They want simple and easy cooking instructions. I have a site that lists and describes most types of fish found in the United States with recommendations and easy instructions on how to cook them. If you want to learn how to bake, broil, deep fry, oven fry, pan fry, poach, sauté or steam fish the easy way, check these out.
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The Fish/Shellfish We Cook - Lobster

LOBSTER
Lobster is one of the most delicious and prized shellfish found in today's seafood markets. They are found in saltwater in all parts of the globe and they range in size from the large, clawed North American lobster to some of the smaller spiny lobsters which do not have claws. All lobsters have 5 pairs of legs and a hard outer shell which they shed, or molt, many times during their life which enables them to grow. The largest American lobster known topped the scales at about 44 pounds. They are slow-growing and it is believed they have a lifespan of over 100 years. Lobsters shed their shell about 20 times in their first 5-8 years and once or twice a year after that. It is because of this that it is hard to determine the actual age of a lobster. They spend most of their life walking but have the ability to propel backwards with a swift curl of the tail. They can do this at a speed of about 11 miles per hour. There are two basic groups of lobsters, clawed and spiny lobsters. The American lobster which is also known as northern or Maine lobster is a true lobster and the spiny lobster which is sold as lobster is actually a different species. The female lobster is considered by many to be the best eating. They can be distinguished by the leathery fins on the underside where the body meats the tail. The male has the same fins but they are very bony.
COMMON or MAINE LOBSTER
The common lobster is the most popular and the only true lobster found in the United States waters. Also known as northern, American or Maine lobster, the common lobster are found in the cold waters of the North Atlantic from Canada to North Carolina. It averages about 2 -4 pounds and 9-15 inches in length but it has been known to reach 3 ½ feet and 44 pounds. It ranges from yellow or reddish-brown to bluish-green when alive and turns bright red with white meat when cooked. The common lobster has 5 pair of legs with the front 3 pair having claws. The front pair of claws is very large and are used for crushing and cutting its food where the second and third pair is very small. The common lobster is considered by many to be the best tasting of the different species. The lobsterette and the langostino are similar in shape and taste to the common lobster but they are much smaller, about 3 inches long, and only the tails are eaten.
SPINY LOBSTER
The spiny lobster, also known as warm water or rock lobster, has long spines that they use for protection and lack the large claws characteristic of the common lobster. The spiny lobster is prized for its tail meat which comprises about 1/3 of its total weight. The majority of frozen lobster tails are taken from spiny lobster. They are marketed under 2 different types, warm water and cold water. Warm water tails come mostly from Brazil and the Caribbean. The Caribbean spiny lobster is the most common warm water tail found in the United States. The cold water tails come mostly from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa with Australia being the largest producer. The spiny lobster has a smooth shell that is usually brownish-green with large yellow or white spots on the first segment of the tail. Cold water tails will not have these spots. If from the Pacific, they have a smooth shell and lack the spots and vary in color from dark red to orange and brown. Like the common lobster, the shell turns bright red when cooked and the meat turns opaque white.

Hi! My name is Tom. I worked for 40 years buying and selling fish in the retail market. After years I found out people don't want complicated recipes for cooking fish. I have a site that lists and describes most types of fish found in the United States with recommendations and easy instructions on how to cook them. If you want to learn how to bake, broil, deep fry, oven fry, pan fry, poach, sauté or steam fish the easy way, check these out.
how-to-cook-fish
If your interest is in shellfish, check out how-to-cook-shellfish