Real Scallops or Fake ?

[DirectDrive]

Sounds a lot like the way they make chiggin McNuggets…

Chigger McNuggets
Made from emulsified Chiggers ?
Thanks OSU for that one, too !

 

[DirectDrive]

Actually, what the western world now calls fake crab, has been a staple of the Asian world for centuries. They didn't need to call it fake crab, as they didn't need to pretend it was anything other than what it is...

Surimi...
fish (often pollock) that is minced to make a gelatinous paste that is then flavored, reformed into flakes, sticks, or other shapes, and colored. It is used as a crab substitute.
"Americans now eat more than 130 million pounds of surimi a year"

Personally, as I've said, I like the stuff. And being made from pollock, it is very mild, both in taste and odor.

I'm not eatin' any Polaks.
I grew up in a Polish neighborhood and I like those folks.

 

[malakajim]

Actually, what the western world now calls fake crab, has been a staple of the Asian world for centuries. They didn't need to call it fake crab, as they didn't need to pretend it was anything other than what it is...

Surimi...
fish (often pollock) that is minced to make a gelatinous paste that is then flavored, reformed into flakes, sticks, or other shapes, and colored. It is used as a crab substitute.
"Americans now eat more than 130 million pounds of surimi a year"

Personally, as I've said, I like the stuff. And being made from pollock, it is very mild, both in taste and odor.

Thanks for posting this. Earlier in the thread I was questioning myself that I thought imitation crab was made from pollock, but it doesn't look like it's ground up.

Either way, I like it too.

 

[sobo]

Chigger McNuggets
Made from emulsified Chiggers ?
Thanks OSU for that one, too !

No! From chiggin, not chiggers. You know, chiggins, like what lays eggs and stuff...

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

Fake Crab

There was a piece on OPB I think it was, many moons ago on how Fake Crab was made.
I think OSU developed the process.
They deep-trawl Hake and Pacific Whiting....creepy deep water fish.
Then they grind the fish flesh up into this slurry and add flavorings....I imagine it stinks to high heaven at this point.
Then it solidifies (I forget the step), they red dye it and then slice it.
Yummy !

Oh man! Good to know. So chicken nuggets of the sea?

 

[nwslopoke]

The really scary one is fake Calmari, it's not even seafood, it's most likely from the midwest and it is a hard to market part of an otherwise delicious animal. So beware cheap breaded calmari rings.

How is that any better than Jack n the Box ot Taco Bell $1menu? By the way, I don't even think french frys make that menu? Hmm.

 

[DirectDrive]

As I think about my R.L. experience the other day, they advertised Maine Lobster in the description of my order.
I grew up in the Northeast and I kinda know what cold water lobster looks like.
What I got was too narrow to be a Maine Lobster tail....more like Calamari.
They even had it butterflied to make it appear wider and the meat was sparse. Not a nice chunk of meat like the real thing.

Even a "Chicken Lobster" (1.5 - 2.0lb Maine Lobster) would have been much bigger than this.

 

[sobo]

Well, it appears that you've been had-docked!



Oh, I just couldn't help myself.

 

[CamoDeafie]

My wife loves seafood. We prefer to eat at the Coast in the small places where at least the food is closer to whats caught the Sea Hag is one place we like. Mo's have excellent NE style clam chowder and grilled cheese sandwiches with Tillamook cheese... have not yet tried the Depot in Albany, although prices seems a bit high for such a small place.

 

[DirectDrive]

Well, it appears that you've been had-docked!



Oh, I just couldn't help myself.

I was Haked, I tell ya !

 

[DirectDrive]

Couple of years ago the wife ordered salmon at Shari's....what could go wrong with that concept ? LOL
I wish I could remember what kind of cute name they used on the menu. Cedar Plank Salmon or something.
She flipped it over and there it was, the tell-tale stripe of a chum salmon !
I schitt you not.

Seafood Fraud is a thing, unfortunately.

 

[sobo]

Couple of years ago the wife ordered salmon at Shari's....what could go wrong with that concept ? LOL

My cabernet snotted out of my nose by the end of the first sentence...

 

[CamoDeafie]

Couple of years ago the wife ordered salmon at Shari's....what could go wrong with that concept ? LOL
I wish I could remember what kind of cute name they used on the menu. Cedar Plank Salmon or something.
She flipped it over and there it was, the tell-tale stripe of a chum salmon !
I schitt you not.

Seafood Fraud is a thing, unfortunately.

Well. From a quick google, it seems Chum/Dog/Keta (notketo ) salmon is among the most abundant/commonly caught of the 5 distinct US Pacific Salmon species... you've got Chinook, Coho, Chum/Keta, Sockeye, and Pink.. but there are two Asian Pacific salmon species; Masu and Amago.. likely what the Japanese steakhouses and sushi places are used to...

If Shari's doesn't say which Salmon species, its not quite "fraud" if its still a Salmon, as opposed to say.. a colored cod meat

 

[sobo]

If Shari's doesn't say which Salmon species, its not quite "fraud" if its still a Salmon, as opposed to say.. a colored cod meat

 

[SUPER X]

How is that any better than Jack n the Box ot Taco Bell $1menu? By the way, I don't even think french frys make that menu? Hmm.

My dog spit jack in the box taco out on the floor. I havent been back since.

 

[DirectDrive]

Well. From a quick google, it seems Chum/Dog/Keta (notketo ) salmon is among the most abundant/commonly caught of the 5 distinct US Pacific Salmon species... you've got Chinook, Coho, Chum/Keta, Sockeye, and Pink.. but there are two Asian Pacific salmon species; Masu and Amago.. likely what the Japanese steakhouses and sushi places are used to...

If Shari's doesn't say which Salmon species, its not quite "fraud" if its still a Salmon, as opposed to say.. a colored cod meat

Being among the most abundant/commonly caught doesn't make it great for human consumption.
It's used for pet food, bait etc.

Shari's menu writer concealed the fact that they were serving Chum.
When the manager brought the box out to show the wife, it said "Keta" on it.


Chum fun facts :
The Kilchis River in Oregon is the southernmost edge of the Chum Salmon range in the US.
There are strays that are sometimes found further south.
Chum have been in decline on this end of their range.

There are two virtually unknown populations of Chum Salmon that spawn in the Lower Columbia.
One is in Vancouver and the other location is unknown to me, but verified by a conservation worker.
"We want to keep that location secret to protect them from harassment." was the message.

 

[41mag]

I had long wondered what Chinese "subgum" was as listed on the menus. Here's what today's google-fu turned up: "
What Is Subgum Chow Mein? | Reference.com
https://www.reference.com/world-view/subgum-chow-mein-4bafcb5fa28bdccb
Subgum chow mein is a Chinese dish consisting of stir-fried vegetables and meat served over crunchy noodles. The key to a subgum dish is that it contains a wide variety of protein, such as chicken, beef, pork or shrimp. The vegetables used in a chow mein are usually celery, carrots and water chestnuts."

 

[WAYNO]

As I think about my R.L. experience the other day, they advertised Maine Lobster in the description of my order.
I grew up in the Northeast and I kinda know what cold water lobster looks like.
What I got was too narrow to be a Maine Lobster tail....more like Calamari.
They even had it butterflied to make it appear wider and the meat was sparse. Not a nice chunk of meat like the real thing.

Even a "Chicken Lobster" (1.5 - 2.0lb Maine Lobster) would have been much bigger than this.

Speaking of the Northeast, Lobster, and my experience...

I am a lobster connoisseur. I think it's possibly my all time favorite food. I was in Maine last fall. I had lobster rolls in two different towns. Tourists are supposed to eat lobster rolls while we're touring there. In both cases, the lobster was the blandest, most tasteless and washed out lobster I've ever eaten. Do the tourist traps not care or not know how to fix good lobster, but they only think they do? Maybe their tourist-grade lobster is out of a can.

And this was after we paid 60-bucks for Captain John's lobster presentation.

Lobster Talk with Captain John Nicolai | Maine Lobster Presentations

Captain John Nicolai specializes in interactive presentations about lobsters, lobstering and the iconic Maine lobster industry. Call 1-207-963-2341 FMI.

lobstertalk.com

 

[DirectDrive]

Speaking of the Northeast, Lobster, and my experience...

I am a lobster connoisseur. I think it's possibly my all time favorite food. I was in Maine last fall. I had lobster rolls in two different towns. Tourists are supposed to eat lobster rolls while we're touring there. In both cases, the lobster was the blandest, most tasteless and washed out lobster I've ever eaten. Do the tourist traps not care or not know how to fix good lobster, but they only think they do? Maybe their tourist-grade lobster is out of a can.

And this was after we paid 60-bucks for Captain John's lobster presentation.

Lobster Talk with Captain John Nicolai | Maine Lobster Presentations

Captain John Nicolai specializes in interactive presentations about lobsters, lobstering and the iconic Maine lobster industry. Call 1-207-963-2341 FMI.

lobstertalk.com

You may have had a lobster substitute in that lobster roll.
Here's a good link on Seafood Fraud with comments from people that know...

Signs You're At A Fake Seafood Restaurant - Mashed

Even the savviest of seafood fans can get scammed. Avoid getting shell-shocked with these surefire ways to know you're at a fake seafood restaurant.

www.mashed.com

Pro Tip...
Go to where the locals go.

 

[41mag]

Decades ago we were personal guests at a friends mothers seafood feast, literally a stones throw from the water line facing Martha's Vineyard off shore a bit. One of those little NE places (Mattapoisett?) with an actually used in the whaling era, widow's walk on the roof and a barn older than any state west of the Mississippi. All sorts of local seafood dishes I never had been exposed to growing up in my Famous Potato youth. The Lobster was divine. The meal en toto remains in the running for the absolute best/freshest/most extreme seafood I've ever had. At least now I know what such items can/should taste like.