Drink Pairing (with below side): Pinot Gris

Directions:
1. If they’re still attached, remove the small side muscles from the scallops and discard them.  Season the scallops with salt.

2. Heat a millimeter deep layer of oil in a large frying pan or cast iron skillet over high heat, just until it starts to smoke.

3. Add the scallops to the pan, taking care not to crowd them.  Once they touch the pan, they will stick.  Do not try to move them.  They will release from the pan naturally when they’re close to being ready to flip.

4. Sear them hard on one side to develop a good brown crust.

5. Turn off the heat, flip the scallops and let them cook in the residual heat for about thirty seconds, just until opaque.

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Whole/In The Round: Whole fish or fish “in the round” are being sold completely intact, exactly as they were caught.

Examples: Whole Rockfish, Whole Fresh Sardines

Drawn/Gutted: Drawn fish are whole fish that have been gutted…i.e.  had their viscera (stomach, roe sacks, other guts) removed.  Gutted/Drawn fish generally last longer than fish that are 100% Whole/In The Round, because the guts spoil faster than the meat.

Example: Whole Rainbow Trout

Headed & Gutted (aka H&G): Headed & gutted fish have had their viscera (guts) and head removed.

Example: Whole Pink Salmon

Dressed: Dressed fish have had their viscera, head, tail, and fins removed.  They have also been de-scaled.

Bullets: Head, tail, fins, other pieces and viscera removed, with the skin on.  This term is generally used instead of “dressed” for sturgeon, because they have particularly unusual anatomy requiring more cleaning and the end product is a bit different.

Portioned Sturgeon fillets are generally considered more consumer-friendly than bullets because they are much smaller and can be cooked similarly to other fish fillets.

Browse Whole Fish (most Drawn or Headed & Gutted)

Fish Portion Terms

Portion Types

Steaks: Steaks are portions of fish that have been cut across the body rather than along the sides.  Often, but not always, they include a section of backbone.

Example: Swordfish Steaks

Fillets: Fish fillets are cut along the entire side of the fish, removing the meat from the spine and most of the bones.

Browse Fish Fillets

Butterflied Fillets: Butterflied fillets are two fish fillets in one.  Both fillets are cleaned similarly to normal fillets, but they’re left connected to each other.

Example: Yellow Perch Fillets

Fillet Portions: Fish fillets, especially those from particularly large fish, are often cut into smaller portions to make them more manageable.  A fairly standard restaurant portion weighs 6oz, but larger or smaller filet portions are also sold.

Cheeks: Some large fish have portions of meat on their heads, separate from the fillet, that are of sufficient quality to be harvested and sold separately.

Example: Halibut Cheeks

Preparation terms

The below terms are most often applied to fish fillets.

Skin On: The fish skin is left on the portions.  Skin on fish fillets & fillet portions are often used in pan seared fish recipes, so the skin crisps up, providing an attractive texture and presentation.  If desired, you can remove the skin from skin-on fillets after you buy them.  See how to remove fish skin for the basic technique.

Skinless/Skin Off: Skin removed prior to sale.  Whether to leave round fish skin on is often a question of personal preference, the species being used, and the recipe being used.  Flatfish skin is very leathery and generally considered inedible

Pin Bones Out (aka PBO): Many fish fillets have small, thin, flexible bones distributed along the side of the fillet.  Generally these are removed (usually with a pair of tweezers) prior to cooking and serving the fish.  “Pin Bone Out” fillets have already had the pin bones removed for you.

Frozen At Sea (FAS): Is a term for fish or fish portions that have been frozen within hours (usually 5 or 6 hours) of the fish being caught.  The fish are cleaned, processed, and frozen on the vessel that caught them.

Frozen at sea fish has a reputation for being much higher quality than fish frozen much later, and even some fresh fish depending on how long it has been out of the water.

In addition, FAS fish may be more environmentally sustainable because it can be transported more slowly than fresh fish (and thus usually using lower-carbon methods – i.e. trains instead of jets).

See Can Chefs Cozy Up to Frozen Fish? (Washington Post, 2008) for more info about FAS fish.

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1. Remove the Head & Collar

Grab hold of one of the fish’s fins by the head and pull up, using it to lift the flesh up to make cutting easier.  Cut down into the fish with the blade angled towards the head.  Stop when your blade hits the backbone.

Flip the fish and make another similar cut down to the backbone.  Cut through the backbone and remove the head & collar meat.

2. Cut Above the Backbone to Remove the First Fillet

Turn the fish so that the gutted belly is towards you.  Place your knife at the head end, just above the backbone.  Angle the blade of the knife slightly up (away from the backbone).  Run the knife through the body of the fish from head end to the tail.  You should be able to remove one whole fillet (belly fat & bones still attached).  Set it aside.

3. Cut Below the Backbone to Remove the Second Fillet

This cut’s a little trickier.  Return your knife to the head end of the fish, this time just below the backbone.  Angle the blade of the knife slightly up (towards the backbone), but not so much that you cut into the backbone.  Run the knife through the body of the fish from head to tail.  You should be able to remove the backbone & tail.

4. Cut the Belly Fat/Bones From Each Fillet

Take one fillet at a time.  Hold your knife at an angle fairly close to the curve of the fish’s belly meat, make a flat cut across the belly, just under the bones and fat to lift them off & remove them.  Make one final cut straight down at the bottom of the fillet to remove the bottom skin & fat.  Repeat with the other fillet.

If you want to take the skin off of your fillets, see how to remove fish skin for tips.

You’ll want to use a different technique for flatfish (like halibut).

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Here’s the technique for taking the cleaned lobster bodies (minus their claws, tails, and innards) and turning them into lobster stock for use in sauces, soups, and other dishes.

Ingredients:
4 Lobster Body Shells (cleaned of innards) & Legs
1/3 cup Cognac
5 Carrots, peeled & roughly chopped
1/2 head of Celery, leaves removed, ribs roughly chopped
2 Onions, peeled & roughly chopped
1/2 bunch Fresh Thyme
1/2 bunch Fresh Fennel

Directions:
1. Tear or cut up the lobster bodies into large chunks and sauté them in a little oil over medium heat until their shells turn orange, stirring occasionally.

2. Move the toasted shells to a stock pot and crush them lightly with a wooden spoon.  Continue to brown.

3. Drizzle in the cognac, then add the carrots, celery & onions.

4. Sweat briefly to start the vegetables cooking down, then fill the pot with water.  Add the thyme & fennel.

5. Simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

6. Strain out the solids & discard them.  Use the stock in recipes or chill/freeze for later use.

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Culinary Techniques

Here’s the basic recipe for lobster poached in beurre monte/beurre fondue, an emulsified blend of butter and water.   See how to make beurre fondue for more process photographs and technique tips.

Once poached the lobster can be tossed with pasta, added to salads, added to finished soups or used in a range of other recipes…just be sure to add it at or near the end of the dish’s cooking process, so its heated through rather than further cooked.

Ingredients:
Peeled Lobster Meat, Cubed         (We used Lobster Tails)
1lb chilled Unsalted Butter, cubed
2tbsp Water

Directions:
1. Bring the water to a simmer.

2. Turn the heat down to medium low.  Whisk the butter into the water a few pieces at a time, whisking constantly.  Once the mixture is thick and creamy, add the lobster meat.

3. Poach the lobster for five to seven minutes, until cooked through.

4. Use the lobster in the recipe of your choice.

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Lobster Recipes

Directions:

1. Test your geoducks to make sure they’re still alive (how to test geoducks for freshness).

2. Bring a stock pot of water just to a boil on the stove.

3. Blanch the geoduck for 6-8 seconds.

4. Remove from the water & let the duck cool until you can handle it.

5. Use a paring knife to cut around the shell, releasing the body.

6. Remove & discard the geoduck’s internal organs.

7. Starting on the body end, pull the skin off of the siphon/neck. It should come off in one piece like a sock.

8. Return the geoduck to the hot water for just a second to rinse out the cavity.

9. Cut down the middle of the siphon to either halve it or butterfly it (either works), exposing the center of the siphon.

10. Wash out the sand and grit from the center of the siphon.

11. Use the geoduck meat in whatever manner your recipes call for.

The firmer, chewier siphon/neck meat is often thinly sliced and served raw as sashimi. The softer mantle/body meat is often fried, grilled, sautéed or used in soup.

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Clam Recipes
Culinary Techniques

Shape classification is useful for determining how a fish should be prepped for cooking.

Round Fish:  Round fish are the most common classification of fish, and what you generally think of when you imagine a fish shape.  They have a long, rounded shape and eyes on either side of their body.  Their meat can be separated into two fillets, cut from either side of the backbone & belly.

Examples include salmon, trout, & rockfish/red snapper.

Flatfish:  Flatfish are just that – flat.  They tend to have both of their eyes on one side (the top) of their body, and leathery inedible skin that must be removed prior to consuming.  Flatfish have four smaller fillets, two on either side of their spine on top, two on either side of the spine on bottom.  Examples include sole, & halibut.

Fat Content – Lean Fish vs. Fatty Fish

Fat content classification is useful for determining how a fish should be cooked, and how long it will take to cook.

Lean Fish: Lean fish can have as little as .5% fat.  They cook quickly and can dry out easily if roasted or baked.  They’re often served with sauces.

Examples include cod, sole, flounder, striped bass, mahi mahi, red snapper/rockfish, tilapia, perch, pike and halibut.

Recommended cooking techniques:

If broiling or baking lean fish, be sure to baste them frequently to keep them from drying out.

Fatty Fish: Fat fish have a higher oil/fat content (some as high as 20%) that gives them rich flavor and keeps them from drying out.

Examples include salmon, yellowfin tuna, rainbow trout, swordfish, sea bass, black cod (sablefish), Spanish mackerel, Arctic char, ono/wahoo, whitefish, bluefish, and sturgeon.

Recommended cooking techniques:

Some fat fish are better suited to sautéing than others depending on how oily they are.  In general, fat fish are not well suited to frying – many become too oily or greasy.

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1. With a towel in hand (to protect your hand from the oyster knife), hold the oyster cupped-side down, with the hinge toward you.

2. Wedge an oyster knife into the hinge.

3. Use short twisting and prying movements to loosen the top shell from the bottom shell.

4. Rotate the oyster knife so that it is perpendicular to you and slide it under the top shell. Remove top shell.

5. Now, run the knife under the oyster to separate it from the bottom shell.

6. It is now ready to enjoy. Dress with a mignonette or slurp away.

Now that you’ve got your oysters open, check out our collection of oyster recipes.

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Remove them from their wrappings and let them rest for a moment in a pan or on a dish. Then prod each of them. They should move (retract).

Here’s a video showing how a live geoduck responds:

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Clam Recipes
Culinary Techniques

Not for beginning shuckers, manually opening a clam requires more force than opening an oyster (how to open an oyster), but uses the same basic technique.  Clam knives are the professional’s tool of choice, but in a pinch you can use an oyster knife. 

1. Hold the clam in a towel with the hinge facing you.  

2. Insert your knife into the crack between the two shell halves at the hinge.  While the knife can be jammed directly into an oyster before twisting, clams require more of a wiggling/jimmying motion to insert the blade deep enough before turning to pop the shell open. 

3.  Once the point of the knife blade is completely inserted into the clam shell (up to the point where the blade widens), twist your wrist from side to side to lever the shell open.

4. Once the clam is open, run the point of the knife around all of the meat to separate the membrane (as opposed to an oyster when you only need to dislodge the foot). 

Note: Because of the amount of force involved, there’s a higher risk of shell fragments ending up in the clam meat, so take care to check each clam before cooking or serving.

5.  If serving on the half shell (usually baked): Unlike an oyster which has asymetrical sides, either side of a clam shell can be served on the bottom, so pick whichever side looks best.

Other Methods for Opening Clams

Two culinary minds that we respect tweeted improvements to this post. Here they are:

“Dip in boiling H20 10 seconds [a few seconds longer for thick/large clams]. Let set. Will open w liquor intact.” (liquor is a common term for shellfish’s flavorful inner juices)
- Chef Zimmerman of The Herb Farm

Or, for the more adventurous:
“Spray liquid nitrogen on the hinge and let it thaw. They will pop right open”
- Scott Heimendinger of Seattle Food Geek

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Clam Recipes & Techniques
Culinary Techniques