It's a really nice Viet dish. Depending how avid of an eater you are, you can oodles of time at the table picking through the cartilage. That's what my dad and uncles like to do...
Or kedgeree. That meat is luscious, very likely the best-tasting of the entire fish. I'd lightly poach, just to cook the flesh, which I'd remove and use in a kedgeree. Then I'd use the bones, etc. to make a stock. What a luxury. ;o) P.S. Halfpint's suggestion is intriguing!
Id use them to make salmon mousse. When I was catering, I had a wonderful fishmonger who would save me the heads and tails of the salmon he butchered. It allowed me to make salmon mousse for my clients at a really reasonable price. And the meat from that part of the fish is extra sweet.
Salmon heads are delicious and most of it is edible. There is lots of meat there, very little of any sharp bones. About 95% of the head, other than the flesh, is cartilage which is totally edible and texturally (sp?) fun to eat. The only thing not edible would be the jaw and teeth.
My mother always made Vietnamese hot & sour soup with salmon heads. Here's a good recipe,
http://wanderingchopsticks.blogspot.com/2007/08/canh-chua-ca-vietnamese-sour-fish-soup.html
19 Comments
Voted the Best Reply!
My mother always made Vietnamese hot & sour soup with salmon heads. Here's a good recipe,
http://wanderingchopsticks.blogspot.com/2007/08/canh-chua-ca-vietnamese-sour-fish-soup.html
Salmon's not an obvious choice (northern fish, more tropical recipe), but I've used it in Singapore fish head curry.