Last week someone offered me some free fish, which I readily accepted. He said something about some heads, so I thought he meant the fish had heads or some heads were included.
Well, I got home and to my dismay (initially), the entire bag was salmon heads. My first thought was that I had no time or inclination to deal with them, and to give them to the stray cats. Then my frugal-try-something-new-and-see-how-it-goes instinct kicked in. I did a quick internet search for what to do with fish heads, and was interested to learn that in some cultures the head of the fish is the favored part due to being the most nutritious.
I didn’t like the looks of any recipes that I found – too labor intensive. But I decided it would be a shame to feed the outdoor cats before seeing if any of the fish would benefit my family! The fish heads were all from salmon, and were large. We put about eight into a pot with some water, brought them to a boil, then let them simmer for a long time.
My plan was to debone them and use the salmon meat for some kind of fish dish. My first thought on opening the pot was that the cooking liquid looked just like the liquid in canned salmon. And my second thought when I began deboning the fish, was that minus the tip of the head, it looked exactly like the canned salmon I used to buy! The same skin, bones, and the way the chunks of fish were – same physiology. It makes economic sense that the filets are sold at a higher price, then the leftover heads are canned and sold for less. Realizing this definitely shifted my perspective on using the salmon heads from viewing it as a less desirable leftover to a lucky find!
However, the taste is what the biggest ‘wow’ was. It was tender, flavorful and delicious! I made two 9×13 pans of salmon loaf using the meat from these heads and when we had them for lunch, my kids were like, “Yum, this is sooooo good!” The flavor was much richer than canned salmon, really tasty. And to think that at first I almost gave it to the stray cats!
Avivah
So now I need to know how to make a salmon loaf? Is it like a meat loaf with egg and breadcrumbs?
You have the basic idea, Susan! I was going to make salmon patties but it was easier to bake it all together.
Many years ago a friend made me “fish head soup” – I would never have thought of making soup from them, but it was delicious. I hope you didn’t throw away the fish stock you made while cooking the heads…
We did throw away the stock, though I was tempted to keep it because it looked so rich and delicious, but my fridge and freezer were totally full and I unfortunately (fortunately, because we had so much food?) had not an extra bit of space to put it. I put some of the fish heads in the freezer so next time I’ll be able to experiment with soup.
It’s nice to know you’re here, Kelly!
I’m glad the mention of Video Text was helpful; I’ll post a bit more about free math resources that you can check out without any financial commitment.
I know this post is from awhile back, but I wanted to mention that sometimes there can be bugs or lice in the fish heads…. I have heard about this problem Rosh Hashana time when it’s customary to eat fish heads. Might want to ask someone knowledgeable if it’s an issue where you live.
Thank you for bringing this to my attention, as unappetizing as it is!
you’re welcome! i hope isn’t an issue in your area, but in case it is you def need to know about it.
hi, i love to eat fish head , i normally cooked in a simple way, marinate with lemon , salt and black paper for 20 minutes ,preheated oven and backed 15 minutes , i love this salmon fish head , its one of my favorite food.
Sounds delicious, Nadia!
I do love salmon head also, I boil it . first, I boil the tomatoes, garlic, onions and ginger for 20 min. add seasoning if desired like salt and simmer for 5 mins and then add the chopped fish head. if desired, you can also add sweet potato leaves at the end. do not overcooked the leaves. enjoy!
Sounds yummy, thanks for the idea!
I love salmon heads. I also eat the fish bone