by Janet Farricelli CPDT-KA

Created on: July 27, 2009

If you are craving a nice dish of spaghetti with scampi or are thinking about cooking a lobster tail for a special event, in order to grant success and keep everybody safe from food poisoning, you must know how to buy fresh seafood and recognize potential problems. While the seafood section of your local supermarket may appear quite inviting and still emanate salty scents from the ocean, there are some vital details that as a cook and food provider, you do not want to miss.

Following are some tips and guidelines that may help you select the freshest cuts and ensure that you and your family enjoy a tasty dish that tastes just as fresh as the ocean.

-Look for Ice

Sea food is highly perishable so in order to ensure its freshness, supermarkets and retailers in general, must sell it on a bed of crushed ice.

-Give it a Sniff

Fresh seafood should not smell fishy, rather its smell should be fresh with a bit of clean, ocean smell. Discard anything that smells like ammonia.

-Check for signs of liveliness

If you live near the coast, many types of seafood should still be alive upon being sold. Oysters, clams, muscles, crabs and lobsters are usually still alive. In order to select a live lobster, pick it up by the head: its tail should curl under and it should feel petty heavy. Crabs should show some leg movement. For those fortunate enough to buy fresh shrimp, it must be still moving, with translucent flesh. Clams, oysters and mussles should have their shells tightly closed. If the shell appears slightly open, upon tapping on it, it should close.

-Ask Management

If you do not live in an area where fresh seafood is common, ask management about when the seafood is shipped and where it comes from. If your town is not on the ocean front, then very likely the shrimp were originally frozen and then sold thawed.

-Go to the Frozen Aisle

Sometimes, rather than risking to purchase days old seafood, or seafood that has been previously frozen and then thawed, it is safer and easier to simply purchase it frozen. A frozen lobster is a much better choice than a live one living in a tank for weeks with little flavor and meat to offer.

Seafood ultimately, not only has the potential for a great tasting meal, but it also provides lots of healthy nutrients. In order to preserve its freshest taste and enjoy its flavor to its full potential, make sure to cook it and savour it the same day. If you purchase it frozen, of course you have flexibility and you may cook it and enjoy it at any time.

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