I am one of those people who, when looking for something to cook for lunch, don't limit themselves to the big supermarkets or chain stores. I simply adore wandering round markets, unusual food shops and the little grocers tucked away in the most out-of-the-way corners of town. It is remarkable that this rummaging gives me, as a woman, far more pleasure than drifting round clothes or cosmetics shops, and I only realised it when I noticed that my wardrobe is considerably less crammed with clothes and shoes than my kitchen cupboard, which barely closes any more for all the unusual foods and ingredients in it. 😁 And so, pottering about as usual in yet another „back-street” shop, my eye caught on some skate wings, which I had never seen in any of the big supermarkets, so without a second thought I grabbed a few and went home to think about what interesting thing I could do with them. 🐡 I was surprised, because I found essentially no skate recipes on Lithuanian blogs, nor any information about them – and on the other hand I was delighted, because it means I get to share what I found out and tried. So… let's go! 👍
Skate is considered one of the cheapest fish on the market and, it is said, demand for it is not all that great. Fishermen often catch skate by accident while fishing for something else, so in that respect the fish becomes low-value, because it „gets tangled in the net by mistake”. But there is a place where skate is fished deliberately, a place where the price of this fish rises dramatically – Singapore and the whole Malaysian region. This region produces one of the most popular Singaporean/Malaysian seafood dishes –„Sambal stingray”, where the common stingray is wrapped in a banana leaf, cooked on a grill and served with hot sambal sauce. Coming back to skate's low price, I was surprised that, according to greenpeace.org, it is on the list of fish at risk of extinction – so why is skate so undervalued? I cannot answer that question, because this fish is not only devilishly good but made for people like me – people who hate fish full of bones and tiny bones that lodge in your tongue or throat. Simply a wonderful fish. 🤗
I always thought skate wasn't edible, since it belongs to the shark family, which, as we know, excretes its urine through the skin – but properly prepared, the wings of these fish are very much edible! I mention this only to warn you – if the skate wings you have give off an unpleasant smell of ammonia or urine, know that the fish was badly handled. One more tip – both fresh and frozen skate wings must be dried thoroughly and left in the fridge for at least a night. This firms up the flesh, so it won't fall apart into pieces as you cook it; believe me, skate has a tendency to fall apart if it is cooked completely fresh.
I hope I haven't frightened you off too much, because this fish really is excellent! 😁 little mess, no hidden bones, flesh that comes away beautifully, and it cooks very quickly 🍽 Below is my take on skate wings.⬇
