10 FISH BRAAI FACTS AND TIPS
If your fresh fish has a strong fishy or ammonia smell, the last thing you should do is rinse it with water. Use lemon juice or vinegar instead.
To prevent fish skin from sticking to the grid, first refrigerate the fish uncovered, on a rack on a a tray, for 2 hours before you braai it.
The practice of braaiing fish in wet newspaper originates from the age-old Cape tradition of covering fish in wet seaweed and baking it under hot sand.
The world record for the longest braai ever was set in 2014 at the Lamangsi “Fishtival” in the Philippines as part of the celebration of the city Bayambang’s 400th year of existence. The organisers connected 8 000 grids to achieve this record.
Three billion people – 40% of the world population, from the Arctic to the Caribbean Islands – rely on fish and seafood as their primary source of protein.
Once fish is cooked, it should be easy to flake. Test it by pulling a piece from the side using your fingers or a fork. It should come apart easily and the flesh should be white and flaky, not wet or translucent.
According to seasoned snoek-braai masters, your coals shouldn’t be too hot, and the grid should be 15 cm above the coals. The experts won’t give away all their secrets – but if you watch an old hand, you’ll notice that they rest the folding grid lightly on the fish, as opposed to “locking” it.
Worcester sauce owes its characteristic flavour in part to anchovies soaked in vinegar until they dissolve.
Scale-to-tail is the new noseto-tail food movement that encourages people to utilise every morsel of seafood. On TikTok, the Australian chef Josh Niland demonstrates how to turn fish scales into deepfried “crisps”. He also makes crackling from fish fat and has revived the umami-rich ancient garum sauce, made of fish entrails.
There’s a rhythm to braaiing fish: Initially you turn the grid very often, about every 5 seconds (this keeps the fish from sticking to the grid). After a couple of minutes, you can slow down and braai it patiently on each side.