Hey Randy,
You asked:
I read an article that said fish skin is bound to stick due to a chemical reaction of the stainless steel when heated, is there any truth to this?
No. Stainless is almost as non-reactive as glass.
You're much better using seasoned cast iron or seasoned carbon than stainless. In fact, the best stainless fish pans aren't stainless. Trust the stain.
The fish should be properly prepped. The skin should be very dry, and the fish should be temped (room temp) before going in.
Dry means dry, not almost dry. Pat the entire fish dry with a towel. Put a paper towel on a plate, put the fish on it
skin side up (not on the towel) and put the plate in the refrigerator, uncovered. Refrigerator air is very dry and it will dry the fish quickly. When you remove the fish to temp it, you can also use a hair dryer (with the heat off) or a small fan to further blow dry the fish. Just an RCH too OCD,
but you could.
The pan needs to be preheated to cooking temperature or slightly above before adding the oil.
You don't need much oil, just enough to coat the bottom of the pan. More oil than that and you're frying.
If you're going to butter baste -- different story. Add a little oil first, let it come to temp then add your butter. Use enough butter so that, with the pan tilted, you can easily fill a table spoon with it. When you add the butter, it will foam. Add the fish as soon as the foaming starts to subside.
Speed basting fish with butter (or evoo) is a game of beat the clock. You need to cook hot enough to crisp the skin, and fast enough to beat burning the butter solids or overcooking the oil bitter.
Back to regular oil: It should be at cooking temperature when the fish goes in.
Don't add oil (or butter) while the fish is sticking, knocking the temperature down with fresh oil will make things worse. If possible, don't add oil during the cooking process at all. Start with the right amount.
Flour
would hep the sticking problem in a couple of different ways, but it's a complete game changer. You didn't want it, you don't need to bread,
If the fish is cooked but still sticking, try shaking the heck out of the pan to get it to release. If that doesn't work, try bumping it with the side of your spat. Only pry it loose with your spat as a last resort. If it's sticking, chances are prying will leave skin on the pan.
Buy a good quality (thin) fish spat.
BDL
