Cooking fish on an electric grill is very different from cooking it stove-top or in a oven. There are some things that you must be careful of, however!
When cooking seafood on an electric grill, two things can become issues: undercooking and overcooking. Both occur when food is cooked for too short or long a time, so it is important to have a way to check if your meat is done.
There are several types of grills that have temperature gauges. These work by detecting heat coming off of the grill through contact with a probe. By comparing the temperatures against a chart, then switching into warmer or cooler settings, you get an accurate prediction of how hot the grill will remain.
This article will talk about one type of grill: direct fire grilling. It has its advantages and disadvantages, but overall, they’re good! Read on to learn more about them.
Brush pan with oil
When cooking fish on an electric grill, brushing the pan in which you cook the fish with olive or vegetable oil is your next step. This helps create a crispy golden-brown crust for the meat!
The reason why this is important is because if there is no brown color on the cooked meat, then taste becomes more of the raw food than it does of cooked. This can sometimes be difficult to detect, but still very possible!
By using the right amount of oil when basting the meat, this effect will not occur. Make sure to pour just enough oil to coat the pan, without overdoing it!
Once the meat is finished baking, let it rest for 5 minutes before serving so that all the fat can redistribute itself and remain as part of the meal texture and flavor.
Let the fish sit and get slightly warm
When cooking any kind of meat or fish on an electric grill, how hot your grill gets will determine how well it cooks and what temperature it reaches! The grill temperature can play a big part in whether your meal is success or fail.
If the grill is warmer than needed, then the raw food you are preparing will stick or burn when cooked due to there being not enough heat to properly cook the meat. This could very easily turn into a hungry person!
So, how do you ensure that your grill is at the right temperature? There’s a way to check this!
By placing a piece of white bread directly onto the hottest zone of the grill, it must brown within one minute! If it takes longer than a minute, then the grill is too hot and needs to be cooled off. After doing so, test again by putting a few drops of water on the top rack and if it hisses and sputters, then the grill is cool enough.
Cook the fish
When cooking thicker white meat like salmon or flounder, there is an easy way to cook it without needing special equipment. You can grill the fish directly onto the electric grill! This works because the grill has very hot surfaces that regulate themselves.
To do this, first season the surface of your grill with non-stick spray or olive oil. Then place the grilled side up on the grill and put the cooked side down. As the cold plate touches the hot side, the colder side will begin to warm up, allowing you to start broiling the second half of the fish.
Once both sides are browned and the fish is fully heated through, take it off and enjoy! If needed, repeat these steps for cleanliness.
Check for doneness
The best way to check if fish is cooked all the way through and taste good is to use an inserted piece of bread. If the butter or olive oil mixture does not stick to the bread, then the fish is probably raw or overcooked.
Thicker fillets can take slightly longer to cook due to their thickness, but remember that as they bake, it takes time for heat to penetrate the whole fish. So, keep an eye on your grill until just the right color comes up and you know how much burn you like in oven-cooked foods!
Remember also that there are two types of grilled meat: seared and roasted. With searing, very high temperatures are used to quickly toast the surface of the food, which some people prefer over roasting where the food browns more slowly.
Let cool slightly
After washing your fish, let it sit in either of these recipes’s batter for a few minutes before cooking it on the grill. This will help keep the skin on!
When baking or broiling, make sure to check your meat once every 10-15 minutes depending on the thickness. Make sure that it has enough heat source and if necessary, add more butter or olive oil.
Remember, when roasting foods on an electric grill, there should be at least two good quality oven size rings used while toasting. These have to be heated up first before being placed over the food!
These tips work for any kind of cooked fish, white (salmon) or oily (herring).
Add sauce
When cooking fish on an electric grill, one of the most important things is having the right amount of butter or olive oil in your pan as well as adding flavorful toppings like tomato, pepper, and/or garlic.
To make sure your meat is cooked all the way through, keep a close eye it while it cooks! Skim off any extra liquid that may have gathered in the oven before moving onto the next step.
Once done, stir in some of the leftover juices and season with salt and pepper to taste. If you would prefer more tangy flavors, add some of the melted butter from the skillet at this stage too.