By
Adam Baratz
Take a deep breath and try to have an open mind – today we are eating a fish head. And no, it isn’t soup, it’s head and only head. Come on who isn’t a fan of good head, of a fish. Alright, I’m done with innuendos, maybe. But seriously, if you’re not eating the head of your fish, you’re missing out. As a favor I put a cute little grape tomato where the eye is, you’re welcome. Once you take away the eye it’s just a piece of fish, amiright?
The reason why fish heads are so delicious, is because of all the collagen and bones. When you cook the head the collagen breaks down and bastes the fish. This produces an uber moist, melt in your mouth, best piece of fish in your life. It takes some work to eat it but is well worth it, plus most of the bones are large enough that it’s easy to eat and avoid skewering yourself.
Maybe you catch your own fish, or buy large fish from your local monger, or have just seen fish heads for sale and never had the nerve to give it a shot. The fish’s head is a thought of as a throw away, trash item, or as something that could only be good for making stock. Not only is it one of the best parts of the fish, it is also cheap as hell. For instance they may sell striped bass fillets for upwards of $20 per lb but a head that could feed two for 7 bucks. I’m no mathematician but that seems pretty damn cheap to me.
Why is it so cheap? Can it only be used to make fish stock? Do I have to eat the eyes? It’s cheap because nobody wants to try it, you could make stock but try roasting it and maybe eat the eyes, I hate hate hate hate them. Think fish jell-o. And if the latest Bill Cosby going-ons have taught us anything, there is NEVER under ANY circumstances room for J-E-L-L-O.
Couple things of this recipe to note….. Do anything in your power to get the yuzu juice, it is a kabillion times better than any citrus fruit you’re used to, in a bottle is fine, that’s what I did. Also, it’s expensive, just buy it, if you hate it I will paypal you the money back (I won’t). That’s actually the only thing to note, so yeah, do it.
Serving sizeis 1 head per two people. This fish went about 12 pounds and I ate the entire head, but it was a lot of meat. Buy two heads they are cheap!
So you have a fish head, you have marinated it, roasted it up, and it’s staring at you; you’re thinking to yourself how the hell do I eat it? The areas with the most meat are going to be by the cheeks and at the back of the head. Eating a fish head is messy, get some napkins and don’t be afraid to skip the fork and just dig in with your hands. I usually start with a fork and then go hands the rest of the way. There are a good deal of bones so be careful as you pick the meat out and look at the bones, as they will often have a few morsels stuck to them.
The perfect side dish to go with this dish is cold soba noodles. Here are two recipes to get you started:
http://foodefile.com/2015/05/sesame-soba-noodles/
http://foodefile.com/2014/11/cold-soba-noodles/
Oh by the way, I caught this fish. I will do a full post on my fishing trip but for now I’m giving this head post as a tease. See what I did there? Go out of your comfort zone, give this roasted fish head recipe a try, it is sure to be a regular guest at your dinner table.
Ingredients
- 1-2 Fish Heads
- 2 tbs Yuzu
- 2 tbs Mirin
- 2 tbs Low Sodium Soy Sauce
- 1 tbs Sambal Chile Sauce (optional)
- 3-4 Scallions Jullienned plus more for garnish
- 3 Cloves of Garlic Minced
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients and marinate for 12-24 hours
- Roast fish head in a pre-heated 450 degree oven for 15 minutes per side
- Serve with scallions and sriracha sauce
Haha, I don’t know if I’m bold enough to actually try this out but you do a good job of selling it, the flavor sounds very good!
Come on get a grape tomato and you will be fine.
I actually enjoy fish heads… I will be honest, it took me a hot minute and bravery to originially give it a try. But, you are sooo right. They are absolutely delicious, and I like to think of them as a hidden little secret… that now you totally let out of the bag. Thanks for that. lol. Love the flavors you used for these. Sounds scrumptious! Yum-Yum. P.S. the cherry tomato was a nice touch!
For the longest time I would throw out the collar and head of all fish I caught. But my fish monger got me into eating them and now I always save those two pieces. Not to mention with a good sized fish if you eat that then you have 2-3 more portions! Plus if you’re really feeling motivating you can pick the rack. Which I do, but honestly I usually am so fished out that I toss it or make stock:) P.S. Thanks!