Rockfish liver?

[Big Mike]

Hey, it's winter and I spend my time dreaming of fishing and ways to cook them. At sushi bars I've enjoyed monkfish livers and I've read that many fish livers can be eaten. Curious if anyone has tried rockfish liver and how you prepared it if you have. Monkfish is soaked in sake and then wrapped into a roll and steamed. I'm guessing I could do the same with rockfish.

[hookmeup]

He likes it! Hey Mikey! Let us know what you learn.

[Night Nurse33]

You'll be the FIRST to know.

Try it and report back.

Capt. TED

[jhoss]

I'd avoid the liver of just about anything these days as it is the organ that filters the toxins out of the body....I grew up eating em' and yes they are tasty. But with pollution levels where they are I'd hold off.

[Big Mike]

I understand on the toxins, but the number of times I'll eat this in a year shouldn't make much of a difference. For all I know it may be only once, but I think they will be tasty.

[sparky1423]

Now I'm craving the Sakura chicken liver appetizer!

[kevinfry]

My taste for liver is very narrow and extreme.
Love chicken and turkey liver.....chicken livers with eggs over easy and HB is just about my favorite meal. Yet i cannot gag down mammal liver...beef, calf, venison all are on my "never again" list.

Monkfish are incredibly unique critters. Just look at them


it's liver does not look at all like most fish's livers either.....I would not make the leap to assuming other fish livers are yummy

[fishinggod]

Mike, when the season starts again ill try it out for sure. you got my interest so i must try it. might go great as a side to my ceviche !!!

[Big Mike]

Mike, when the season starts again ill try it out for sure. you got my interest so i must try it. might go great as a side to my ceviche !!!

Game on. The thought of your ceviche makes me hungry for its citrusy goodness to stave off the "biggest snow storm in the history of man".

[Yak67]

Thanks a lot you two, now my stomach is growling! Bring on the ceviche

Yak67
2015 Hobie PA-14
2016 Hobie Outback LE

[toadfinger]

Don't want to be a wet blanket but Mycobacterium shottsiii, the principal cause of mycobacteriosis that is epidemic among bay rockfish, typically establishes its infections in the internal organs of these fish, including the liver. Where you observe skin lesions you are often witnessing an advanced infection. I've noticed that when catching what appear to be plump, healthy fish in the late fall, but which show signs of healed of skin injuries, these fish often have enlarged and pallid livers, which likely means that these individuals still support internal infections. While there's no evidence that eating properly cooked myco-infected rockfish meat poses any risk to humans (excluding the ick factor, however), contact with infected raw fish carries a finite risk of infection. Having struggled with a myco infection through a daily course of 1 gram of erythromycin daily for over 4 months and still with permanent swelling in the joints of my pointer finger of my right hand 16 months out from contact, its no laughing matter. And my doc said I was fortunate, even though I continue to struggle to produce legible cursive writing. Just think if you were eating sushi and you were infected via your mouth around your gum line, exposing your, teeth, jaw or other cranial bones to a deep infection. Definitely not worth the risk.

As much as I love catching rockfish and other bay fish species, foremost in my mind when I'm catching and keeping is how I handle these fish to minimize my contact with them. Mucking through the entrails of infected fish for a potentially granuloma-laden liver seems like a risky bet. And I certainly wouldn't offer it to anyone that is unaware of the risks. Again, as a sushi lover myself, my apologies if this comes off as a buzz-kill. Eating any uncooked food involves some risks, but given the high incidence of mycobacteriosis in our resident rockfish stocks, prudence would seem to be the best course.

[Big Mike]

No buzz kill and sorry to hear of your infection. The liver will be cooked before being eaten. Not everything at a sushi bar is raw, and monkfish liver is one of the cooked items. I couldn't contemplate eating raw liver.

[kevinfry]

Toadfinger....I heard about this "CURSIVE WRITING"....think I read about it in some ancient history book....

Sent from my SM-G360V using Tapatalk

[toadfinger]

Big Mike, apologies if I didn't read your post with sufficient care. Glad you're not eating those livers raw. I still eat raw oysters in the winter but not with as much gusto or in the quantities I used to.

Kevin, Yes, "cursive" still essential when signing checks (certainly now an archaic form of monetary transfer) and signing off on legally binding documents but not for much else. I am definitely fortunate in that computers are the principal portal to e-communications. Definitely takes much less dexterity to hammer a keyboard.

enjoy snowzilla!IMG_9566.jpg

[kevinfry]

Actually we still teach cursive in our school, though some young parents wonder why.
I talked woth a group of freshmen ball players the other day about my high school experience in the 70's. You shpuld have seen the look ontheir faces when O told them I had to take a class on HS where we learned to type with ALL our fingers.....on of them even asked, '"What for?"