In response to another post about bleeding and cleaning fish for table fare, I just watched something very interesting last night which gives quite a bit of scientific and historical creedence to the technique.
“Mind of a Chef,” is a great cooking show which follows Chef David Chang around the world, looking at really obscure cooking techniques and principles used in the globes greatest kitchens. The episode from last night included information on a Japanese fish-killing technique called “Ike Jime.” Japan is home to some of the greatest fish markets in the world, and its sushi and sashimi-grading processes have Ike Jime playing a vital role.
They demonstrated the technique, where they:
-Brain-killed the fish via a spike to kill quickly and relax
-Severed the spinal cord via the underside of the gills (similar to bleeding a walleye)
-Cut the tail portion of the fish almost completely off and insert a long, thin wire up the spinal cord to kill all nerve endings still sending messages (twitches)
-Put the fish in an ice water slurry to bleed out
Food science experts have proven in the tasting and physical labs that this:
-Removes blood more effectively from a fillet – with blood being a nutrient rich source of food for bacterial growth
-More humanely kills the fish
-Kills the nervous system quickly, delaying the onset and amount of rigor mortis
-Leads to firmer, better textured fish which also tastes better
It’s one of the reasons that the same fish caught in many oceans around the world never make sushi-grade. Most of the fish markets over there keep the fish alive and swimming, where Ike Jime is practiced just before presenting to sell. When cooked same-day, it apparently leads to the optimal timing for the best tasting fish.
Super interesting, and though I’m guessing I won’t be sticking a wire up a fishes spinal cord anytime soon, it gives alot of weight to the bleeding/icing regiment that lots of folks here weighed-in on.
Joel
