Fish with finesse

• Keep fishy smells at bay

Before preparing fresh fish, halve a lemon and rub both hands with the cut ends to help to keep your hands from absorbing the fishy odour. (If you didn’t know you had a tiny scratch or cut on your hand, you will now!) If frying is your cooking method of choice, wash the pan you used and pour in 1 cm white vinegar; the acetic acid should banish any lingering fish smell.

• Make scaling easier with vinegar

When scaling a fish, rub white vinegar onto the scales and let it sit for about 10 minutes. The scales will come off so easily that they may make more of a mess than usual, so put the fish in a plastic bag before you do this. Just scale the fish in the bag with one hand while holding it by the tail with your other hand.

• Keep poached fish firm

When poaching fish, squeeze fresh lemon juice into the poaching liquid to help the fish to cook evenly. For each 500g of fish, use the juice of half a lemon.

• Lock in moisture when baking

Low-fat fish such as whiting, snapper and flat-head can easily dry out as they bake. To seal in the moisture, wrap each fillet or whole fish in aluminium foil before putting it in the oven.

• Freezing fresh-caught fish

When you bring home more fish from a fishing trip than you can eat, here’s the best way to freeze them. Take an empty milk carton large enough to hold each fish, place the fish inside and fill the carton with water. Seal the opening with tape and place the carton in the freezer. When you thaw the fish, you won’t have to worry about scraping off ice crystals or pulling off some of the flesh with the wrapping.

• Cool down prawns

To ensure tender, well-textured meat, place prawns in the freezer for 10-15 minutes before you cook them. Just be sure not to overcook them because you think they need time to warm up in the boiling water — they don’t.

• Make shucking oysters easier

Soaking oysters in soda water for 5-10 minutes will make it easier for you to open the shells.

• Stop lobster squirting

When cracking and twisting the legs and claws off a whole lobster or crab, guard against the occasional squirt by putting a serviette between the crustacean and your hand. Any squirts will hit the serviette, not your clothes.

• Improve the taste of canned seafood

If you detect a slight metallic flavour to canned seafood, soak it as directed below, drain and then pat the seafood dry with paper towels.

1. Water-packed tuna Soak in a mixture of cold water and lemon juice for 15 minutes (2 parts water, 1 part juice).
2. Canned crab Soak the crabmeat in iced water for 5-10 minutes.
3. Canned prawns Soak the prawns in a mixture of 2 tablespoons vinegar and 1 teaspoon dry sherry for 15 minutes.

• Cut the salt in anchovies

If you like the taste of anchovies but wish they weren’t quite so salty, soak them in iced water for 10-15 minutes and then drain them well before tossing them in a Caesar salad or arranging them on top of a pizza.