Freezing and Defrosting Salmon: What You Should Consider

Salmon is a very popular edible fish that you can use in many different dishes. Salmon is easy to freeze if you keep a few things in mind. Then you can easily reuse it at a later time.

Freeze salmon – you should pay attention to this

If you bought salmon in bulk, it makes sense to freeze it. However, you should note a few things here.

• If you buy salmon to freeze, it should be as fresh as possible, as salmon should only be frozen once.
• However, with salmon from the supermarket or many fishmongers, the fish for sale is thawed after it has been transported frozen.
• To avoid this problem, be sure to check with the seller to see if the fish has ever been frozen. Alternatively, already frozen salmon makes sense, which you can also transport in this condition.
• So that you always have exactly the portion ready for defrosting that you want to eat, you should portion the salmon appropriately before freezing.
• A special case is smoked salmon. This is already shrink-wrapped and thus made durable through the smoking process. You can freeze it without hesitation as long as the packaging has not yet been opened. If you do, you should process the fish quickly. Frozen smoked salmon is less suitable for raw consumption due to the changed surface, but you can still use it in warm dishes without any problems.

Defrost salmon – Here’s how

Frozen salmon should be thawed gently to ensure it remains edible.

• Thawing in the refrigerator is particularly suitable for larger quantities of frozen salmon. To do this, place the fish in the fridge for about 12 hours before preparing it. Before that, take it out of the packaging and put it in a bowl. In the refrigerator, it should be at a certain distance from other foods so that the taste does not transfer. After you get the salmon out of the fridge, you should process it immediately.
• You can also defrost salmon in the microwave. To do this, take it out of the freezer and remove the packaging. Place the fish on a plate, covered with kitchen paper from top and bottom so that the thinnest part of the fish is in the middle. It needs 4-5 minutes in the microwave for every 450g of fish. It works best with the defrost function. Then let the fish thaw a bit in the kitchen before preparing the salmon.
• Another option is to let the salmon thaw in the sink. This takes about 30 minutes for 500g of fish. Place the fish in a waterproof bag to prevent bacteria from multiplying. The salmon must be completely covered with cold water in the sink, which you should change every half hour. Again, you should prepare the fish right away.