Quick thawing tuna in cold water: lose quality?

[jjdbike]

Hello friends,

I just got craving for tuna poke tonite. It's been a long time since I've eaten it. My tuna is vac packed and frozen. I know that if I thaw it in advance and store it in the fridge for a day or so wrapped in paper towels to absorb moisture, it firms up and the quality improves.

Would I lose significant quality if I quick thawed it in the fridge in cold water, then wrapped in paper towels to wick off some moisture? I kind of want poke tonite.

Thanks in advance!

JD

[Ace]

I've not done this with tuna but have done it with salmon. No issues... As always YMMV.

[Donw]

A large part of answering the question depends on two issues: How was it frozen? The quicker the freezing process the better. Slow freezing creates much larger ice crystals and more degradation of moisture retention when defrosted. Basically faster freezing is better than slower. The other question is how long was the fish frozen? Freezing fish is not a preservation method for protecting the quality of the meat. Freezer storage does not prevent degradation of the cellular structure and degradation starts at about one month in the freezer. That is why long termed frozen storage of fish, once defrosted, is often described as mushy. Some of the reasons where tuna caught worldwide for the Japanese market are never frozen and quickly air freighted to Japan.

Basically, you have a method that has worked best for you before and gave good results. I wouldn’t deviate from that method. Just my 2¢

[Michael_in_TX]

I don't think so. In fact, I do this all the time. I'll take a frozen vac-sealed tuna filet and put it in a bowl of water for twenty (thirty if it is quite thick) minutes, flipping once. I don't do longer as there is a harmful bacteria that grows on fish in an anaerobic enviornment.

It works well and I've done poke a few times as well as sushi, but I mostly sear my tuna.

(And of the bacteria thing, I've been doing this method for years and I am still here. The previous sentence is brought to you by selection bias lol.)

[barelfly]

All I really buy for fish is the individually vac sealed portions from Costco (land locked New Mexican - that’s what I can find) and this is how I thaw them when I cook. I use cold water in a container to cover and after about 20-30 minutes, they are ready to be cooked. I use a paper towel to dry and then I cook them up. I don’t buy tuna, it’s not something I’ve seen at Costco, but salmon, tilapia, cod, mahi - all seems to be excellent.

[Michael_in_TX]

My method basically right there.

[SheilaAnn]

What they said

[jfmorris]

What they said, but there is something I did not see anyone mention.

You are not ever supposed to thaw frozen fish in the vacuum sealed pack it was in. Something about anaerobic bacteria that can be in the fish that grow as it thaws. All prepackaged frozen salmon fillets instruct you to remove from the packaging and thaw in a separate container or bag. That exposure to oxygen kills off the dangerous bacteria that can cause food poisoning.

I always transfer to a ziplock, then thaw under running cold water if in a hurry, or the fridge if not in a hurry.

[Donw]

Yep. Specifically Clostridium botulinu.