Better fresh fish types to eat

[Agusts]

Just wonder what is the opinion about the type of (fresh) fish on offer in Phuket restaurant to eat.

 

I personally like the one they call Sea Bass here, but of course it is a farmed fish (not from sea), the price is reasonable and taste good, no bones as such. But then they say Thais feed them any old rubbish and various medicine/drugs that could be harmful.

 

Then Mackerel is my other favourite, I think this is caught from the sea as it can not be farmed, or can it... !? So I am hoping it is better than the above and hopefully not from polluted sea waters.

 

Now I read Tilapia is not a good one to eat - cheap as it comes, but a Google search throws a lot of bad reviews.

 

Red Snapper I heard is a good one, not sure if it can be farmed or not (some places say it can be !?), it also tastes good and has a lot of meat, but more expensive than other fish here. Be ware, they say they have types of Tilapia that looks just like a Red Snapper, so they can bring it on the plate and you never know !!!

 

I am sure they are many others but I am not interested in frozen fish from abroad or other very expensive imports in supermarkets, just those on offer here locally put on ice in various places and offered to tourists and expats - though perhaps Thais can speak the lingo and get better offers and explanation of what is available....

 

 

 

[schlog]

I eat only fresh ocean fish. Will name you 3 of my favorites.

Tuna, Blue Marlin and shark peferable as steak cause i hate fishbones.

[sirineou]

Farmed fish is not good. I wish it was because it is sustainable, but being a business and being in a poorly regulated environment, you really don't know what you are eating. I would eat red snapper before I eat the pelagics because being apex predators pelagics contain  much more mercury.

I don't know about Thailand but in other parts of the world what is sold as Red snapper is really Vermilion snapper. Both taste  good  though Red snapper is more meaty and tastes better. 

Red snapper is not Farmed. 

 of course if you eat it filet you would not be able to tell.

IMO salt water fish taste better.   

[ChasingTheSun]

I usually buy mackerel, pomphret, or tuna.

 

mackerel seems to be the best deal at 10 or 15 baht per whole fish.

 

 

 

 

[JHolmesJr]

Pomfret (white) is great but expensive...mackerel (kingfish) is good but there are always 

the stories about the mercury content in them.

[Old Croc]

18 hours ago, schlog said:

I eat only fresh ocean fish. Will name you 3 of my favorites.

Tuna, Blue Marlin and shark peferable as steak cause i hate fishbones.

Three species high in mercury. Don't eat them too often.

 

[seajae]

I only eat fish in Thailand when we can get it from the muslim fishers fresh and it is from open waters, anything from the gulf is tainted from all the <deleted> thais put in the water, you can taste it. Fresh seafood has to be from open water here or its simply not all that good especially when you have come from a country with very clean oceans/waterways

[LeungKen]

Off topic post removed

[beechbum]

3 hours ago, seajae said:

I only eat fish in Thailand when we can get it from the muslim fishers fresh and it is from open waters, anything from the gulf is tainted from all the <deleted> thais put in the water, you can taste it. Fresh seafood has to be from open water here or its simply not all that good especially when you have come from a country with very clean oceans/waterways

????????

Edited January 6, 2020 by beechbum

[eezergood]

7 hours ago, Old Croc said:

Three species high in mercury. Don't eat them too often.

 

exactly - just dont eat so often, but no need to cut out entirely 

[Number 6]

My faves in order

Grouper

Tuna

Swordfish

Snapper

Mahi

Pomfret

Sea Bass*

Cod

Thresher shark

Monkfish

Salmon

Mackerel only good if super fresh. Not a big fan.

 

Nothing wrong with flash frozen fish. It's often better than *fresh* that's been on the boat who knows how long. Especially trawl.

 

I don't eat freshwater fish. Especially tilapia and catfish.

 

Thailand really doesn't have any fish left. Most of it comes from neighboring countries. Pretty much all. Just squid.

Edited January 6, 2020 by Number 6

[Number 6]

7 hours ago, seajae said:

I only eat fish in Thailand when we can get it from the muslim fishers fresh and it is from open waters, anything from the gulf is tainted from all the <deleted> thais put in the water, you can taste it. Fresh seafood has to be from open water here or its simply not all that good especially when you have come from a country with very clean oceans/waterways

Lol. Open water caught in a trawl net dragged behind old boat spewing diesel.

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

28 minutes ago, eezergood said:

exactly - just dont eat so often, but no need to cut out entirely 

 

I don't think there's any especially GOOD level of mercury pollutant for a person to be consuming in their food....

Edited January 6, 2020 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

--I don't trust the Thai food/fisheries industry to correctly label the type of fish or the origin of fish they're selling.

 

--I don't trust the Thai food/fisheries industry to raise farmed fish in a manner that's free of unhealthy substances for the humans who may consume it.

 

--I don't trust the regulatory arms of the Thai govt., such as they are, to either enforce the first issue or to prevent the second issue.

 

Recall the past news reports of restaurants adding red dye to tuna to make it look better, or farmed fish being fed the grossest c**p around and doused in all kinds of antibiotics and other chemicals.

 

[ChasingTheSun]

Somebody else mentioned squid.

 

Ocean caught, fresh and cheap in Thailand.

[Agusts]

Thanks for the replies, as always there is a plus and minus to every type, either farmed and fed all the <deleted> and antibiotics fish, or from sea with polluted waters and of course the mecury....!

 

I eat a fried (farmed) sea bass in sweet and sour sauce, a grilled/BBQ mackerel and a can of tuna once a week, every week. I have been doing that for years, I just hope it won't kill me any time soon... ! lol, enjoy your fish....

 

P.S. I checked Pomphret, looks like a good local option for steaming, maybe I should add that to my list...thanks.

[eezergood]

5 minutes ago, Agusts said:

Thanks for the replies, as always there is a plus and minus to every type, either farmed and fed all the <deleted> and antibiotics fish, or from sea with polluted waters and of course the mecury....!

 

I eat a fried (farmed) sea bass in sweet and sour sauce, a grilled/BBQ mackerel and a can of tuna once a week, every week. I have been doing that for years, I just hope it won't kill me any time soon... ! lol, enjoy your fish....

 

P.S. I checked Pomphret, looks like a good local option for steaming, maybe I should add that to my list...thanks.

Dont steam Pomphret - only fry it buddy 

[Agusts]

2 minutes ago, eezergood said:

Dont steam Pomphret - only fry it buddy 

Thanks for the tip, will ask them for that too, I don't cook myself...

Although most recipes I saw on the net for that fish is for steaming...

[eezergood]

3 hours ago, Agusts said:

Thanks for the tip, will ask them for that too, I don't cook myself...

Although most recipes I saw on the net for that fish is for steaming...

Fried all the way, i was a chef for over 20 yrs & yes here also.