You don’t have to throw out leftover fish fillets orshellfish after dinner. You can safely reheat seafood for up to 4 days after ithas beencooked. Seafood dishes with garlic or onions can taste even better thesecond time around. The only challenge to reheating seafoodis that it can dryout or get a fishy smell. As long as you know a few tricks, you’ll never haveto worry about preparing seafoodleftovers.
Avoid Using the Microwave if You Can
Microwaves blast food with high temperatures that canovercook the outside and leave the middle cold. That is why meals like soupandrice dishes, that you can stir during the reheating process, turn out best.
Reheating a fish fillet in a microwave isn’t a good optionbecause the quick heating method can dry it out making it taste tough orrubbery. Nuking seafood in the microwave can also give it an unpleasant fishysmell because of how it makes the fatty oilsbreakdown. This is especially truefor hearty fish like leftover salmon or trout. Seafood with a lower fatcontent, like tilapia, scallopsand shrimp, usually hold up better when theyare reheated in a microwave.
If you have to reheat seafood in the microwave, make sure toalways add a splash of water and leave it covered. Make sure to becareful whenyou remove the covering afterward so that you don’t get burned by the steam.
Reheat Leftover Seafood in the Oven
The best way to reheat any type of seafood is in the oven ata low temperature. Ovens radiate a steady amount of heat that evenlyreheatsfood. Your seafood will smell just as good as the first night since the slowreheating process does not breakdown fatty oils likethe microwave does.
To reheat seafood inthe oven:
– Preheatthe oven to 275°F.
– Placethe leftover seafood on a lightly greased baking sheet or casserole dish,splash it with water, and cover it with foil.
– Putthe fish in the preheated oven and let it heat up for 10 to 15 minutes. Theinternal temperature should be between 125°Fand 130°F when it is done.
Or, Make a New Meal with It
Seafood dishes like shrimp and grits or gumbo can taste evenbetter heated up the next day. Some fish, like leftover salmon, won’thold upas well. These leftover can easily be re-imagined into another meal.
Hearty leftover fish like salmon and tuna often taste bettercold. Many people enjoy putting large flakes of cold salmon in a salad orslicing it up over a bagel with cream cheese. You can cut up a cold tuna steakand mix it with mayonnaise, lemon juice and capers tomake a delicious tunasalad sandwich. Other types of leftover seafood can be used in recipes for fishcakes, crab cakes, chowder andsoup.
Now that you know the trick to preparing leftover seafood,don’t be afraid to make it a central part of your diet!
If you’re looking for more ideas on how to re-imagine yourleftovers, stop by our seafood counter at City Fish Market and ask one ofus!We’d love to share more of our tips and tricks with you.
