[isaac]

hello all. my butcher just got a fish in called basa. he says its a fish that is caught in thialand. i cant seem to find any info on it. can anyone help?????

 

[monpetitchoux]

Boy can I help. Basa is a newly hybridized fish (they did it by themselves) caught in the Mekong delta. The restaurant where I worked had it flown in as frozen filets. All they had to do was lay it out in one sheet on the fast rack and allowed to thaw. Very little to trim away and so very cost effective. It's just like a filet of sole except it tastes lightly of catfish. Afterall, it is a fresh water fish. It is bigger than a filet of sole, though. It's a nice fish to cook as it doesn't ever seem to dry up, particularly when it's cooked in a saucy environment but it's not an oily fish at all. It takes nicely to any kind of seasoning. I've cooked it in a tomatoey base, simply seasoned, floured and fried, blackened. It's like a chameleon. Except for the sauce that the chef decided to use on it, I can't seem to mess up with this one. I usually buy it in Chinatown for about $1.99/lb for my own consumption. Although I don't know exactly what the fish looks like whole, I think it can be marketed as Mekong Sole to fetch a nice price.