Product Description

Divided into three sections: techniques, recipes and food information. Techniques covers all main preparation and cooking methods for each type of fish. There are 200 tried and tested recipes including all essential basics. The A-Z encyclopedia of fish and seafood covers Australian, US and European fish.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8853 in Books
• Published on: 2001-10-25
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 264 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Hitherto, the contents of Rick Stein's Seafood have been accessible only to students of the Padstow Seafood School, as course notes in a loose-leaf binder. Now the teachings of this remarkable establishment are made available to a wider public, in amply illustrated form at once lucid and sumptuous. This is both a technical manual and an extraordinarily comprehensive collection of recipes; and the tone throughout is correspondingly sober and professional. The first hundred pages cover technique--not just cooking seafood, but buying and preparing it, too--in great thoroughness, from scaling and gutting fish, skinning eels (requiring a butcher's hook and a pair of pliers, if you can face it), through deep-frying, poaching, steaming, grilling, to opening oysters and tenderising octopus (not, as you might suppose, by bashing it repeatedly against a rock, but in the oven).

The recipes group fish not just by species, but by shape: large fleshy fish, flat fish, small round fish, crustaceans and so on--a sensible approach, since within these categories the fish are to an extent interchangeable. Austerely, the recipes are neither prefaced with an introductory blurb nor sourced, but they are of the most distinguished provenance. Salmon en Croute with Currants and Ginger, for example is a famous George Perry-Smith recipe; the neighbouring Escalopes of Salmon with Sorrel Sauce derives from the Triosgros brother; while the interestingly strange Pernod and olive oil dressing with which Stein anoints grilled Dublin Bay prawns comes from Alexandre Dumas by way of Elizabeth David (it also includes mustard, soy sauce and tarragon). This is not to accuse Stein of plagiarism: he has simply collected the very finest seafood recipes and filtered everything through his characteristic simplicity and emphasis on freshness, quality and flavour. The result is a book of quite exceptional quality and usefulness. One hesitates to use the word bible, but if seafood can have one, this may be it. --Robin Davidson

Customer Reviews

A wonderful and comprehensive book!
Comprehensively the best book on fish EVER!

This is an absolute must-have for any one who cooks, wants to cook, or
simply enjoys eating sea-food. The book contains a whole section focussing
on technique, with detailed photos and step-by-step instructions on how to
choose, prepare and cook every type of seafood you've ever heard of (and a
few you haven't!). This ranges from filleting a sole or a salmon, shelling
and de-veining prawns, shucking oysters, and dressing crabs to how to

choose (and subsequently despatch) live lobsters and even how to prepare
sea-urchins (for the braver readers).

The book then deals with basic preparation techniques including grilling,
poaching, frying and smoking fish and explains which methods are suited to
which kind of fish. Again, there are loads of step-by-step photos so it's
easy to follow. All this is followed by a huge collection of recipes,
ranging from the very simple to the rather complicated. As well as many
original and unusual recipes, there are instructions on how to prepare
gravadlax, salmon en croute, moules mariniere and all the other classic
seafood dishes you can think of.

The book suggests alternative types of fish that can be used in most of the
recipes, to encourage the reader to buy whatever fish looks freshest and
best, rather than rigidly buying the one used in the recipe!

Finally, the book contains a section on identifying fish - it looks
interesting I have been so engrossed in the rest that I haven't even
read this section yet! This is a great book that any cook will enjoy!

Currently Britain's best fish writer
This book is always my first stop when returning from the fishmonger - I own several of Rick's other books including the excellent English Seafood Cookery, but this is definitely the best when you are looking for inspiration - the clear pictures make sure of that.

It is a great book for people wanting to get interested in fish cookery. The comprehensive guide to preparing fish makes gutting and filleting less of a chore and the book contains recipes from quick supper dishes to elegant dinner party dishes including alternative choices of fish - useful for the landlocked like me who have access to a limited range of good fresh fish.

Rick Stein is especially strong on curries - better than most specialist Indian cookery books in my opinion.

Best Fish Bible
If you plan to buy only one book on seafood, make it this one. It is by far THE BEST book around. Rick Stein cooks simple, clean yet unbelievably flavoursome seafood ever.

There are 3 parts to this book - Techniques, Recipes and Information. In part one, Rick's clear explanations supported by good close up shots of how to prepare various seafood from skate to scallops is simply indispensable.

The second part is all about recipes - mothwatering stuff here, be warned. There are traditional dishes, with or without a modern twist as well as exotic consoctions from Asia and Africa. No fish is spared the Stein treatment: he works his magic on skate, cod, eel, sardine, monkfish, bass, herring, smelt,mullet, mussels, oysters, scallops, squids etc etc etc.

And finally, part three has enough info on seafood that will allow you to impress a marine biologist at the dinner table. And for the rest of us, Rick has included some basic recipes such as home-made mayo, italian salsa verde, lemobgrass butter etc.

This is a good honest book. Buy it.