Description
This brown-grey, diamond-shaped fish resembles the unrelated pomfrets of South East Asia, which despite the name belong to a different family.
Available wild caught, it is a free-swimming surface-dwelling fish usually found in shallow waters off northern Australia, and caught mainly as bycatch of coastal net-fisheries.
Price
Medium priced.
Relations
Trevallies (including Bigeye, Black, Bluefin, Bluespotted, Diamond, Giant, Golden and Silver Trevallies), Darts, Jack Mackerel, Queenfish, Samsonfish, Turrum, Yellowtail Kingfish, Yellowtail Scad.
To Buy
Sold whole (gilled and gutted); look for lustrous skin, firm flesh, and a pleasant, fresh sea smell.
To Store
Make sure whole fish is scaled, gilled, gutted and cleaned thoroughly. Lay fish in a single layer on a plate and cover with plastic wrap or place in an airtight container. Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months, below -18ºC.
To Cook
Average yield is 35%. Has a slightly fishy flavour, and slightly oily, medium-textured flesh with medium flakes and few bones, which are easily removed. The thick skin is best removed.
Cooking Methods
Steam, poach, deep-fry, pan-fry, bake, grill, barbecue, smoke, pickle, raw (sashimi). It can tend to be dry so marinating prior to cooking helps prevent drying out, as does wrapping in foil or banana leaves if baking or barbecuing.
Goes Well With
Basil, caraway, chilli, coriander, cumin, curry, fennel, garlic, ginger, herbs (such as coriander, dill, French tarragon, parsley, sage, thyme), lemon, lime, olive oil, onion, oregano, sesame oil, soy sauce, tamarind, teriyaki sauce, tomato, vinegar, wasabi, white wine.
Imports
Frozen whole product is imported from Asia.
