Barbecue - Fish Grill
For the home barbecue, fish is a healthy alternative to red meat especially for those watching their weight and gives a deliciously alternative taste to the heavy sauces and meat dishes that we get used to from summer barbecues. However, not all fish is suitable, or even particularly tasty, when cooked on a barbecue.
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Because fish cooks very rapidly on a barbecue, it will often collapse into flakes as bits of it stick to the metal grill, which needs to be avoided. Fish is cooked to perfection when it is slightly opaque. Insert a sharp knife between the layers of the meat and turn it slightly so you can see the condition of the flesh inside the fish, if it still looks translucent in the centre, give it a minute or two more. Turn fish only once. Flipping fish back and forth can cause them to break up. Firm fish such as tuna or salmon can be cooked directly on the grill if handled carefully. A hinged wire basket can be very useful when cooking more delicate fish such as perch, or shellfish. Cook whole fish such as mackerel with a couple of additions to boost the flavour, such as sliding slices of lemon and some sprigs of thyme in the mackerel, and score the skin slightly. Try squid, you need to cut the bodies into flat pieces and cook very thoroughly on the barbecue until they've started to curl at the edges and brown. You can always seal fillets of fish in a foil packet where, although they won't benefit from the direct contact with the fire, you can ensure they don't stick to the grill and also boost their flavour by adding a little herb butter, crushed garlic or lemon or lime juice to the package. Barbecue fish photograph by Andreas D, used under a creative commons attribution licence.
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