Hello Peter,
I have been following your emails on frozen fish and sashimi with great
interest. Mida Food Distributors Inc. is an importer and distributor of
frozen seafood in the Philippines. Among many things we distribute is the
Atlantic Salmon from Norway and Chile which is often consumed as sashimi
here, with the Norwegian origin being preferred here because of the higher
oil content of the fish from here - i.e. the more white fat lines the
better.
I refer to your statement:
This observation is based on my experience of
attempting to measure the effects of the freeing/thawing cycle alone, as
distinct from the from the effects of storage in the frozen state, on
texture of fish. If the fish is frozen and thawed under good practices -
frozen rapidly and thawed rapidly - any affects of the freeze/thaw cycle is
difficult to detect even by an experience laboratory panel, and only then
when data are pooled over several samples.
>From readings of literature on how to best handle fish, we were told to
suggest to our restaurant clients that thawing is best done slowly in a
chiller overnight rather than rapid defrosting by running (in a sealed
plastic bag) under running water. Yet you say above that rapid thawing is
best (for sashimi above). Can you comment on the defrosting overnight in a
chiller vs rapid thawing and what methods of rapid thawing do you suggest?
Can you also suggest some basic readings on various methods of freezing -
blast vs contact freezing vs cryogenic freezing (say nitrogen or CO2) vs
ammonia IQF tunnels - what are the different effects on using either for say
shrimp or fish fillets. Another company works as an inspection company in
Indonesia and purchasing agent and we often deal with packers who ask about
these differences but generally follow what their favorite buyers recommend
in terms of what freezing equipment to purchase. Is there a short course
somewhere on this issue?
Thanks a lot,
Chingling Tanco
Managing Director
Mida Food Distributors Inc./Mida Trade Ventures Int'l Inc.
Manila, Philippines
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