I LOVE Mero!

cobraboy

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We eat it often, and no matter where we buy Mero, La Sirena, Nacional or PriceMart it's always packaged exactly the same: whole frozen filets.

But I've always noticed "shrinkage" (not referring to you Polar Bear aficionados ;)), unfrozen is smaller than frozen.

So last night I did some quantitative research and analysis. I took an exact 1lb./16oz. frozen portion, put it in a sealed plastic bag and defrosted it. I then weighed/measured the water and the fish.

To my quasi-semi-surprise, one pound of frozen Mero=11.0 oz. of fish and 5.0 oz. of water. So the price per pound of fish is actually over 30% higher than you think.

:tired:

So now you know.

Caveat Emptor
 

ExtremeR

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Good info CB, thanks! I'll know call my mother as my father is an all-timer Mero lover.
 

pedrochemical

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There was once a scandal about supermarkets selling frozen christmas turkeys by the pound that had been injected with water before they were frozen.

Same thing I guess..
 

Acira

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There was once a scandal about supermarkets selling frozen christmas turkeys by the pound that had been injected with water before they were frozen.

Same thing I guess..


No, not the same thing. Frozen food alway's contains up till 30% of water, even a high school student knows that.

The turkey's and also chickens you speak of are deliberately injected with water and butter, they call them "ploff chickens", was a scandal in Holland a few years ago.
 

pedrochemical

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No, not the same thing. Frozen food alway's contains up till 30% of water, even a high school student knows that.

The turkey's and also chickens you speak of are deliberately injected with water and butter, they call them "ploff chickens", was a scandal in Holland a few years ago.


Not so.

A lot of supermarket frozen foods are vacuum bagged then frozen.

If you take something, seal it in a plastic bag then freeze it, it will not suddenly acquire 30% of its own mass in water!

I knew that in elementary school...:cool:

The turkeys were just a scam by Christmas turkey rangers.
 

Acira

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Not so.

A lot of supermarket frozen foods are vacuum bagged then frozen.

If you take something, seal it in a plastic bag then freeze it, it will not suddenly acquire 30% of its own mass in water!

I knew that in elementary school...:cool:

The turkeys were just a scam by Christmas turkey rangers.

LOL

Most foods already contain 30% water so seal them, freeze them, whatever edit except if you use Dehydration technique on it, they still contain that amount.
 
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pedrochemical

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So food contains 30% water - fair enough for some foods frozen or not.

Anyway, the Mero should not suddenly dry up and lose 30% of its weight - or mass for that matter - unless it had extra water added.

Once it is cooked, it is a different matter.

Cobraboy was correct to be surprised.
 

AlterEgo

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Last Sunday I roasted a [previously frozen] 20 pound turkey on a stainless steel rack. I was pretty surprised when I checked on it a couple of hours later and the baking pan was almost overflowing from all the fluid that came out of the bird. I had to remove the 'juice' to an empty pot with a turkey baster. It was close to 3 quarts! I checked the turkey's wrappings and it was 'injected with chicken broth for flavor and moistness'. Yeah, right.

Must have been the same people who froze CB's fish.

AE
 

Acira

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30% water in most foods, freeze it in a normal way and its not rocket science to know that the frozen molecules break down when you defrost and release their water.

Anyway...I do not eat frozen fish, prefer the fresh one ;)
 

Robert

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No, not the same thing. Frozen food alway's contains up till 30% of water, even a high school student knows that.

Enough of the childish digs.

Haven't we had this conversation before?

yawn.jpg
 
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pedrochemical

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It is an interesting point - the fish thing though.

And simple physics often throws up counter-intuitive phenomenon. Like water expanding when it is frozen - by 9% - there are not many liquids that do that. Good job as well or the fish pond would freeze from the bottom up and all the coy carp would die before Gazza could catch them....

Didn't mean to be childish.....:cheeky:
 

cobraboy

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The frozen Mero is *encased* in ice. That is the water I measured. The frozen filets look large but have a thick coating of ice.
 

DavidZ

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CB beat me to the post with the above. but I was going to point out that the ice coating on the fish isn't all bad...it protects the fish from the "processing plant" to the store...then in the store's open freezer...then the drive to your house, then while in your freezer until you're ready to cook it...

I've cooked a lot of frozen mero / basa and have never had even the slightest problem with the fish tasting...or smelling "off"... even after a few months in the freezer...
 
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cobraboy

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CB beat me to the post with the above. but I was going to point out that the ice coating on the fish isn't all bad...it protects the fish from the "processing plant" to the store...then in the store's open freezer...then the drive to your house, then while in your freezer until you're ready to cook it...

I've cooked a lot of frozen mero / basa and have never had even the slightest problem with the fish tasting...or smelling "off"... even after a few months in the freezer...
I have no problem with the ice, other than having to pay for water instead of fish.

It's just disappointing to see how small the fish is after the ice has melted and to know that's some expensive water...
 

johnny

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I have no problem with the ice, other than having to pay for water instead of fish.

It's just disappointing to see how small the fish is after the ice has melted and to know that's some expensive water...

thats because is so cheap. 59-79pesos a pound.
Nothing like fresh Mero Criollo, 3 times more expensive, but taste 10 times better.
 

pedrochemical

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My uncle used to work for Bird's Eye as a chemist - he says that deeply frozen fish stays in good condition for 2.5 years.
Apparently the cell damage that strawberries, for example, suffer does not occur with fish.

Erm, birds, eyes- err.yeah that is Dominican related - there are lots of birds with nice eyes in the D.R.