Try Tom Kerridge's Monkfish Curry (2024)

FAQs

What is the best season for monkfish? ›

Monkfish is generally available all year round. Monkfish can grow large, to over 12kg in size, with the head normally being over 50% of the total weight. The head provides Monkfish cheeks which is deemed as a delicacy across most of Europe.

If you're preparing your own, here's a little summary of how to prepare it! Wash the fresh tails in cold water before prepping. Start from the top and insert a sharp knife between the meat and the skin, carefully work the knife around until the skin is released, and you can remove it entirely.

Monkfish can excrete a milky-looking fluid when cooked; this is fine if it's being cooked in liquid but not so great on the grill. Salting the flesh or soaking it in brine for an hour then patting it dry before cooking will help.

A sign of fresh monkfish is visible fresh blood on the fillets, as you can see in the picture below. The fillets should smell fresh like the sea, not fishy. Monkfish actually has a flavor and texture very similiar to lobster – in fact, it is often called the poor man's lobster.

Monkfish can be expensive because it's a deep-sea fish that's difficult to catch. It's also a popular ingredient in gourmet restaurants, which can drive up the price.

Monkfish meat is a healthy option, especially if you are trying to manage your weight. That's because monkfish has low levels of sodium and calories. A serving of 6 ounces of cooked monkfish only has 110 calories. However, despite being low in calories, this meat contains high cholesterol levels.

Your monkfish may be chewy or rubbery due to overcooking. The coveted meaty texture of this fish is specifically a bit more fickle to deal with than other fish. Much like an overcooked steak, this fish can become texturally unfavorable as it cooks for longer than required.

This is not only because its veiny appearance is unappetizing to the eyes, but because these membranes will shrink around your fish. It will curl up and turn rubbery, making it hard to cook. And as lean meat, monkfish would dry out if overcooked in heat.

This versatile fish can be prepared using almost any cooking method, including pan-frying, grilling, baking and poaching in soups and stews. Its lean flesh tends to dry out if overcooked, so make sure you're mindful of this.

For a delicious and healthy meal, try making monkfish with roasted vegetables. Start by seasoning the monkfish with salt and pepper and then grilling for five minutes on each side. While the fish is grilling, prepare the vegetables such as bell peppers, onions, and mushrooms.

How do you know when monkfish is cooked? ›

Monkfish is firm when cooked, but it can easily stick, so it needs careful handling. Gently press the thickest part of the fillet with a knife and see if the flesh will break into flakes. You can cut it carefully and check if it is opaque throughout, too.

The meat, skin, water bag (stomach), kimo (liver), and nuno (ovaries, gills, and tomo (fins) are the edible parts of monkfish, called the "seven tools of monkfish," and all but the bones, jaw, and eyeball are eaten.

Symptoms begin within 2 minutes to several hours after eating the fish. The most common symptoms are tingling and burning sensations around the mouth, facial flushing, sweating, nausea, vomiting, headache, palpitations, dizziness, and rash. Sometimes people report that the fish has a peppery or metallic taste.

Studies have shown that the growth of mercury in a fish's system is directly linked with its age - meaning the older the fish, the higher the mercury content. Since monkfish can live for more than a decade, the buildup of mercury may become significant.

Like foie gras, monkfish liver is also a controversial ingredient because of how it is harvested. Monkfish are harvested using trawlers, a commercial fishing method deployed for fish and other creatures living on the seafloor.

Monkfish are found in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean from the Grand Banks and northern Gulf of St. Lawrence south to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. They can tolerate a wide range of temperatures and depths, from inshore waters down to nearly 3,000 feet.

Fishing can come alive in the dead of winter on a mild afternoon, but spring and fall usually present the best action. Generally, I try to avoid extremes of heat and cold and times when the water temperature falls rapidly.

Monkfish can be fished in the Piscatoris Fishing Colony (code AKQ) with a small fishing net by players who have a Fishing level of 62 or higher, and have completed the Swan Song quest.