Fish and Shellfish

Clarissa Writes: Surrounded as we are by water, we are terribly served for fish. My sister once lived in the centre of Spain, and the fish lorries came up from the coast three times a week with live fish. Here, the average fishmonger in large towns, when you can find one, offers a limited choice, and the fish is not always in its first flush of freshness. Supermarket fish is usually a disgrace and a victim of some central buying nkand distribution policy, which means it has travelled the country more times than Jennifer and I have in this series! The most useful tool in judging the freshness of fish is the nose, quickly followed by the eyes. The chances of your being allowed to smell an individual fish in a supermarket are slight, but you can challenge your fishmonger who will usually permit you. Of course, if you make a friend of him you won’t need to check.