Optimizing for efficiency: boiling frozen salmon without defrosting
Background: I'm trying to eat healthier - not necessarily optimizing for taste but for cooking complexity/time and health.
I have frozen salmon filets (small/thin) I'd like to cook in boiling water, doing nothing else than boiling water, setting timer and returning to a cooked meal.
How do I know salmon is done? At the moment whole process (dropping salmon into boiling water and cooking for 20 minutes) seems alright but I'm afraid of not cooking meat thoroughly. I found oven cooking thermometer but it doesn't seem to be designed for use in water
Best Answer
The problem will be one of temperature difference. The outermost mm of your salmon will thaw immediately but the innermost one will still be raw.
Some meat thermometers will work in water but i doubt that they will be accurate in a thin filet as they are mostly for use in large chunks of meat.
So the only good way to check fore done-ness is to cut the filet in two and check the texture yourself. If it starts to "flake" (i.e. the meat fibers start to separate) it is done. Ideally you will be able to "break" a filet cleanly in two. But do that too often and you'll end up with salmon soup.
So my recommendation: oven-roast your salmon. There will be two advantages: one is that you can easily check the inside and pop it back in the oven if you are not satisfied. On the other hand its easier to make tasty salmon in the oven. You can even work in a herb-crust or something like it. Health-wise they are exactly the same as long as you don't start drenching the fish in oil.
Another option could be to poach the fish in a ziplock bag. It will take a bit longer as the heat circulation will be slightly worse but locks in the flavor, gives you the option of adding some herbs and the option the measure the done-ness without creating a mess.
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Can you cook frozen salmon without defrosting?
First, don't worry about thawing your salmon. Yep, there's no need to move it to the fridge the night before, then realize it's not completely thawed when you want to cook it, then panic and try to speed-thaw it so it'll be ready in time. Simply leave it in the freezer until you're ready to cook it.Can you cook frozen salmon in boiling water?
Can you cook Salmon from Frozen? One of the most popular questions we get asked is \u201ccan you cook Salmon from frozen\u201d, the answer is YES, it's easy, and there are lots of different ways to cook Salmon from frozen. Each method is just as good as the other -the method you choose is down to personal preference.How long boil frozen salmon?
Place frozen salmon skin side up on the paper, then place lid on skillet. Allow fish to steam for 6-8 minutes, depending on thickness, until defrosted on the outside and still a bit cold in the center of the portion. (Use a knife to peek into the thickest part of the salmon and gauge doneness.)How can I speed up defrosting salmon?
Microwave: The fastest way to defrost salmon is through microwave defrosting. Put the salmon in a microwave-safe plate and cover it with paper towels or plastic wrap to prevent splatters.How to Cook Frozen Salmon | Thrive Market
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Answer 2
If you don't care for the taste, you have two options.
Optimized for comfort
Start buying uniform size fish. Cook it through using a guess for the time as a starting point. You just pull the fish out, try eating it, and if it is raw in the middle, you put it back into the pot. Record the time the fish took until it was cooked through. The next time, repeat, but leave it inside for the duration it took the last time before checking the first time. Repeat as needed, until you pull out a fish that was through the first time.
Now slap a 25% to 30% security factor - e.g. if you got a cooked fish after 30 minutes during the tests, define your new "cookign time" as 40 minutes. From here on, every time you cook fish of the same size (which is easy if you are buying those shaped frozen pieces), cook with that timer and turn off when done. For even more convenience, use an appliance that can turn itself off by timer.
Optimized for speed
Buy a thermometer. There are tons of different kinds, and some of them can be submerged. You can even buy one that has a sound alarm when a temperature has been reached. Make sure you always stick the thermometer deep into the middle. Use a table for doneness to decide how much you want your salmon cooked. Then boil by temperature.
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