Recipe: Salmon Head Soup or Fish Head Soup

When people buy fish, they tend to cut off and discard the fish head and tail not knowing what to do with them and not considering them edible. Fish connoisseurs know that the fish's cheek meat is like the "oyster meat" on a chicken/turkey/duck... succulent and delicious.

Fish heads are inexpensive and you can get them at your fish monger or in Chinatown.
In Asia, nothing is wasted especially food and thus fish head soup is so popular in that region of the world.
High in gelatin, vitamins, minerals, and omega 3... this soup is great to strengthen bones, nails, and hair (and that's what Mom says too)!

Ingredients

• 3-4 salmon heads
• water
• 3" piece of fresh ginger sliced into planks
• 3-4 cloves of garlic (smashed)
• 3 green onions/scallions (roots removed and cut into 3" lengths)
• salt

Directions

1. Rinse the fish heads with water to remove blood and remove the gills with scissors (the gills will make the soup cloudy and bitter).
2. Place heads into a large pot and cover with water.
3. Add the slices of ginger and garlic and bring to a simmer for 30 minutes. Do not allow the soup to boil or the heads will disintegrate into the soup!
4. After 30 minutes, carefully remove the fish heads with spoons and set aside on a plate to cool so that you can handle them. Strain the soup to remove any errant bones.
5. Remove and reserve fish meat from the cheeks and about the neck, collar, and head of the fish. I find that a fork makes this easy work.
6. Discard bones, skull, fins, and any other hard cartilage (or you can bury them in the garden to enrich the soil -perfect for roses).
7. Bring soup back to a simmer and add green onions and fish meat. Add salt to taste. Allow to simmer for about 3-5 minutes more or until onions have wilted.
8. Serve.

Recipe: Carrot Ginger Dressing

This recipe makes a salad dressing similar to those found in Japanese restaurants. I had this along with a salad recipe in an older posting but decided to post it again separately so that it can be found more easily.

• 3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
• 2-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped finely
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

In a blender, combine all the ingredients except the oil. Pulse blender until the mixture is mostly smooth, then add the oil and puree for 15 seconds. (Blending oil for too long emulsifies it, giving it a mayonnaise flavor you don't want in this dressing.)

*Tip: Use a spoon to scrape the skin off the ginger. It makes peeling quickly without waste.
Use a neutral flavored oil like corn or canola, not extra virgin olive oil which will affect the taste.