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Question for fish eaters

U

undertaker

Coach
Messages
10,817
Hi, just a general question I want to ask any of you who eat fish regularly or not:

With fish fillets that are white (e.g. fish from species like flathead, blue eye cod, snapper etc.), I noticed a couple of nights ago after frying a flathead fillet, there were what looked like to be some 'black lines' in parts of the fillet. I was wondering what these are? I don't believe it was blood, because these black lines look like a very small piece of string when you pick them up from the fillet with your finger. Also, I don't see these 'black lines' when eating non-white fish like salmon, ocean trout etc.

Thanks
 
Twizzle

Twizzle

Administrator
Staff member
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150,959
I've only ever noticed them in flathead but I never eat it, they are only good for the crab pots imo.

There are much better eating fish than flathead.
 
U

undertaker

Coach
Messages
10,817
Too bad I didn't take a photo of it. However, I did find a photo on the internet and I hope this makes my description a little bit clearer to understand:

DSCF1352.jpg


You can see them on the bottom fillet, where the fillet curves in
 
Twizzle

Twizzle

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150,959
Its like a tiny black piece of string, seen heaps of them as my dad loves flathead.

Never bothered him, he just eats it.
 
muzby

muzby

Village Idiot
Staff member
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45,711
those are blood left in the veins of the fish..

you can see them from time to time across all species..

can be the result of a poor 'bleed out' of the fish when it is killed off, or a case of a stressed fish during time of the kill.

no major issue, either just pick them out or just eat them as if cooked properly you've killed off any bad stuff..
 
U

undertaker

Coach
Messages
10,817
Twizzle said:
Its like a tiny black piece of string, seen heaps of them as my dad loves flathead.
Click to expand...

correct. Although I have seen then in other types of white fish (not ones like snapper, where the fillets are usually small), flathead is the one I always see them in and they usually are towards the ends of the fillet.

OT, you said in your first post that there are much better fish than flathead. Which ones could you recommend me? I normally eat Blue Eyed Cod/Trevalla and NZ King Salmon (which tastes nicer and has a much higher omega 3 level than Atlantic/Tasmanian Salmon)?
 
Twizzle

Twizzle

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150,959
Depends where you are mate.

Do you catch fish or buy them ?
 
Twizzle

Twizzle

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150,959
Sydney co-ops will probably sell alot of bream, flathead, whiting, snapper and flake.

I'm a bit spoilt being in Tweed as we get all sorts of tropical reef fish which are alot better.

If you can get kingfish I'd strongly suggest it, as well as snapper but very bony. Whiting is pretty nice but very small fillets unless they are Sth Aust whiting.

Most of the co-ops will sell local fish but if you can get any reef fish they will probably be tastier unless they have been frozen. We get alot of imported fish up here in the local supermarkets like Barra and Nile Perch but they have all been frozen farmed fish which Coles and Woolies can get very cheap. Tastless.

Its always better to get them from a co-op, that way they are fresh. Dont tough anything with any grey in it. Look for bright colours instead of dull colours and if its a whole fish make sure their eyes are shiny.

If buying prawns make sure there is a bluey colour in their tail, assuming they are not cooked. I prefer to buy green prawns and cook them myself.

You'll get very good oysters down there, Sydney rock oysters. Best raw with a squeeze of lime for mine.

I'm only scratching the surface here but yeh, I'm a very big seafood fan.
 
U

undertaker

Coach
Messages
10,817
Twizzle said:
Sydney co-ops will probably sell alot of bream, flathead, whiting, snapper and flake.

I'm a bit spoilt being in Tweed as we get all sorts of tropical reef fish which are alot better.

If you can get kingfish I'd strongly suggest it, as well as snapper but very bony. Whiting is pretty nice but very small fillets unless they are Sth Aust whiting.

Most of the co-ops will sell local fish but if you can get any reef fish they will probably be tastier unless they have been frozen. We get alot of imported fish up here in the local supermarkets like Barra and Nile Perch but they have all been frozen farmed fish which Coles and Woolies can get very cheap. Tastless.

Its always better to get them from a co-op, that way they are fresh. Dont tough anything with any grey in it. Look for bright colours instead of dull colours and if its a whole fish make sure their eyes are shiny.

If buying prawns make sure there is a bluey colour in their tail, assuming they are not cooked. I prefer to buy green prawns and cook them myself.

You'll get very good oysters down there, Sydney rock oysters. Best raw with a squeeze of lime for mine.

I'm only scratching the surface here but yeh, I'm a very big seafood fan.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, I don't eat oysters, crabs, lobster etc. (due to religious reasons)
 
Bazal

Bazal

Post Whore
Messages
99,802
Fresh flathead is as good as most reef fish tbh Twizz. The problem is the fish shops usually sell Tiger Flathead, an offshore species, which are larger, drier and "fishier" than smaller inshore species like Sand Flathead or even Dusky Flathead (although the Dusky has a higher max size they have a smaller average size and the big fish are very hard to come by).

As mentioned, the lines you see are just veins. It's not necessary to bleed fish like Flathead out because of veins like these. They are an ambush hunter, and as such they don't need the same blood supply to the power muscles as, say, a mackeral or a tuna or an Australian salmon. Flatties have less blood flow to the muscles, so you see larger veins in some fish because they don't need to saturate the muscle like a fast swimming pelagic fish. That's also why you don't see them as much in true salmon, which are top water schooling fish.

Sydney Co-ops should also sell Swordfish and Marlin which IMO are excellent. Very mild and boneless. Marlin especially is very affordable compared to Swordfish for not much of a quality difference. You'll also get a lot of Blue-Eye Trevalla and Gemfish that come in off the deep water trawlers off NSW, and Kingfish is very good. Mahi Mahi (Dolphinfish) will be easy to get in summer (still available in winter too) and is delicious. Mulloway (Jewfish or Butterfish sometimes) is good, so is John Dory....
 
U

undertaker

Coach
Messages
10,817
Bazal said:
As mentioned, the lines you see are just veins. It's not necessary to bleed fish like Flathead out because of veins like these. They are an ambush hunter, and as such they don't need the same blood supply to the power muscles as, say, a mackeral or a tuna or an Australian salmon. Flatties have less blood flow to the muscles, so you see larger veins in some fish because they don't need to saturate the muscle like a fast swimming pelagic fish. That's also why you don't see them as much in true salmon, which are top water schooling fish.
Click to expand...

In response to the 'black lines', I also found this:

"I may be wrong but I've always been told that's iodine from the seaweed that constitutes part of the fishes diet or part of the preys diet"
 
Bulldog Force

Bulldog Force

Referee
Messages
20,619
muzby said:
those are blood left in the veins of the fish..

you can see them from time to time across all species..

can be the result of a poor 'bleed out' of the fish when it is killed off, or a case of a stressed fish during time of the kill.

no major issue, either just pick them out or just eat them as if cooked properly you've killed off any bad stuff..
Click to expand...

I always thought they were veins themselves. I see them whenever I shell prawns. They are harmless - agreed!
 
muzby

muzby

Village Idiot
Staff member
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45,711
Bulldog Force said:
I always thought they were veins themselves. I see them whenever I shell prawns. They are harmless - agreed!
Click to expand...

yeah, it kind of only applies to fin fish, not crustacea..

that black line you see on the prawn is their digestive tract.


you're eating poop.
 
Last edited:
Chicken_Hunter

Chicken_Hunter

Coach
Messages
17,035
Flathead is great.

Tbh i prefer your estuary species over reef species. Whiting is the most scrumptious fish you can get.
 
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