How to clean the rubbery skin from monkfish before cooking?

How to clean the rubbery skin from monkfish before cooking? - Selective Focus Portrait Photo of Woman With a Towel on Head Looking in the Mirror

I really like the tender parts of monkfish. I buy the fish gutted and decapitated and i tear the slimy gross skin from the back. Then I cut it up into small chunks for frying. However, removing just the outer slimy gross skin still leaves the 2nd layer of skin that's in between the outer and the meat -- that is very hard and rubbery. The problem is it seems impossible to clean before cooking as it is almost integrated into the meat.

Is there any way for me to clean monkfish so that I can enjoy the tender portions without the rubbery part?



Best Answer

This video posted by Rogers Powel shows the technique very clearly.

  1. Place place the filet skin side down.
  2. Grasp the tail end, and slip your thin, flexible knife into the filet by the tail end, scraping against the skin, cutting down the length of the fish.
  3. Turn the fish over, and inspect. If any pieces remain, removing them is similar to removing the silverskin from a pork or beef tenderloin. Slip your knife under the end of the remnant, pulling the blade up against the skin and cutting down its length to remove.

I recommend watching this video or others, because the technique is easier to see than understand from a written description.




Pictures about "How to clean the rubbery skin from monkfish before cooking?"

How to clean the rubbery skin from monkfish before cooking? - Person Right Hand
How to clean the rubbery skin from monkfish before cooking? - Selective Focus Portrait Photo of Smiling Woman With a Towel on Head Looking in the Mirror
How to clean the rubbery skin from monkfish before cooking? - Person Holding Fern



How do you remove the membrane from a monkfish?

Monkfish cooks quickly and can get rubbery when overcooked, so be sure to watch it carefully. While a 1-inch thick fillet will take just 6 to 7 minutes of cooking time, a thicker 3-inch fillet may easily take 15 minutes or more.

Why is my monkfish rubbery?

For the record, the membrane is edible, it's just a bit tough and conflicts slightly with the otherwise tender, deliciousness of cooked monkfish. And, as mentioned above, monkfish flesh shrinks when it cooks. The membrane shrinks even more \u2013 like a rubber band \u2013 and will contort the cooked fish slightly.



How to prepare Monkfish




Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Images: Andrea Piacquadio, Bennie Lukas Bester, Andrea Piacquadio, Madison Inouye