Skate wing smells of ammonia

Yesterday I bought a skake wing fish at a Vietnamese market on Broadway.

Tonight I boiled it briefly (Traditional cooking method) and when I pulled it out it strongly stank of ammonia. Really bad. Like a cat litter that had gone for a week w/o being cleaned.

Has anyone ever heard of this? Are some fish treated with some ammonia based chemicals?

Skate is notorious for going bad pretty quickly.

marcwitham wrote:Has anyone ever heard of this?

Yes.

marcwitham wrote:Are some fish treated with some ammonia based chemicals?

No. Fish sometimes smells of ammonia when it has spoiled.

Animals have evolved different strategies for handling the nitrogen which is a byproduct of protein metabolism. We eliminate it in our urine. Elasmobranchs (sharks, rays, & skates) store urea in their cells rather than eliminate it. This aids in their buoyancy - they lack the air bladder found in fishes.

The piece you purchased may or may not be spoiled, but the ammonia smell could be from the urea. I alway soak skate and shark in milk which is a powerful neutralizer. Milk also reduces the odors from rotting so soaking fish in milk is an old trick used by restaurants to avoid having to throw out fish past its prime.

LTH,

Isaccson and Stein brings in some of the freshest and most beautiful skate wings that you'll ever see. They don't have it every day, but do carry it often.

Absolutely pristine. No soaking necessary. Whole wings from about 12 oz to pound and a half in size.

Last week, I cut each wing in half, seasoned with Old Bay, buttermilk dipped, and then dredged in a mix of flour and cornmeal, before pan frying in peanut oil seasoned with bacon fat. Remoulade sauce included dill pickle, capers, and whole grain mustard.

I love the crunchy cartilage.

We've also bought skate at Fox & Obel and it was very good.

I have purchased skate wing several times at Fresh Farms in Niles,
and it has always been fresh, with no odor.
In fact, I often ask to smell all fish before I purchase it,
having thrown out too much fish in the past.
The will also filet the skate off the cartilage for you if asked,
although they occasionally look at me funny when I ask...

I usually dredge it in seasoned flour and saute in a combo of butter/EVOO
It's one fish thet even the picky eaters at home will eat.
Just delish...

Worst case, you can mop the floor with it.