Background
Previously, the Soviet Union had a powerful expeditionary fleet that was engaged in commercial fishing in all corners of our planet. Domestic seiners and trawlers operated in the ocean, floating sea bases were created capable of processing the catch, preserving it in fresh, frozen, canned and other forms.
Today, taking into account modern realities, our fishermen prefer to hunt close to the coast, since it is more convenient from a logistics and economic point of view. Therefore, many types of fish that were previously widely available have become delicacies and are rarely found in our stores.
Description
Prostipoma fish is a small table fish that belongs to the perch order. It has an elongated flattened body. The head is of medium size, a small mouth containing small multi-row teeth. The eyes are large. The dorsal fin is long, its anterior part consists of needle-like sharp rays.
The prostipoma is covered with dense small scales even on the gill covers, which is typical for all perciformes. Has a light color. The back is darker; there are individuals with an almost black upper part. The abdomen is white. The pectoral and pelvic fins are golden in color.
Prostipoma is a medium-sized representative of perciformes. The average size of individuals found in catches is about 15–17 cm. Large specimens from 27 to 35 cm are rarely found. The lifespan of the fish is about 15 years.
On store shelves there are mainly individuals with a length of 15 to 20 cm
The real name of the prostypoma is Pomadasys incisus, but it did not take root among Soviet marketers. Variants of the order Perciformes and the family Haemulidae also did not take root in our country. The English call this fish Bastard Grunt, which literally translates as “illegitimate grunt.”
As a result, the fish was named Prostipoma, which is translated from Greek as “shell with a saw.” In our country this word was transliterated and quickly took root among the population. For example, in Odessa there was a saying: “Peled, eelpout, and prostipoma will brighten up the table of any home.”
unusual fish: description, features, preparation
Few people are familiar with the fish with the unusual name “prostipoma”; some have never even heard of it. But people of the older generation know this name well. Prostipoma is a fish that could often be found on store shelves in the 60-70s of the last century. Although today it is often said that in those days fish of other species could have been sold under an unusual foreign name.
External signs
Prostipoma is a fish whose photo will be remembered for a long time. Take a good look at it, then in the store you can easily recognize a counterfeit. Its body is oblong, flattened laterally, and dark in color. There are dark spots on the edges of the gill covers. But there are no spots on the sides and back, the color is uniform.
Prostipoma is a fish whose description often mentions its sharp fins. Fishermen say that they can really easily get hurt. The fish itself is medium in size, not much larger than a herring. Its minimum length is 17 cm, and most fish caught reach 30 cm.
origin of name
It is noteworthy that prostipoma is a fish that is called differently in other languages. Soviet fishermen brought their catch home, but the Russian language simply did not have the right word. The scientific name of the fish, Pomadasys incisus, did not inspire Soviet marketers at all; they did not want to sell pomadasia or incisia to workers.
Therefore, the search for names for this product continued. All English and Latin variants were carefully examined. But nothing suitable was found either in the name of the order (Perciformes) or in the name of the family (Haemulidae). Persiforma? Hemulida? Perhaps we might know this fish by one of these names.
Things were even worse with English terminology. Bastard grunt - this is what the inhabitants of Foggy Albion call this fish. This name is translated into Russian quite poorly - it turns out something like “illegitimate grumbler.”
And then I remembered the long-forgotten old name - Pristipoma, which has its origins in Greek and literally means “shell with a saw.” This is what was chosen. Russian-speaking buyers quickly transformed it in their own way, turning it into a “simple” one. By the way, this outlandish word instantly gave rise to a whole wave of all sorts of funny sayings and jokes. For example, Odessa residents said: “Peled, eelpout, and prostipoma will brighten up the table of any home.”
Industrial value
Prostipoma is a fish that belongs to the order Perciformes. It is of great industrial value due to its tasty meat with a small amount of bones. Experts note that the population of this fish is rapidly declining, which is why even today on the shelves of many stores under this name one often comes across something other than a prostipom.
Where is this rare fish found? It is most often found in temperate or subtropical waters of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The coastal waters of West Africa are especially rich in this fish.
The largest part of the catch belongs to Japanese vessels. In the Land of the Rising Sun, prostipoma is highly valued. Most of the catch is not sent to store shelves, but immediately falls into the hands of the country's best fish chefs. Prostipoma is a fish, photos of which often adorn the menus of the most prestigious restaurants in Japan. Dishes made from it cost a lot.
How to prepare prostipoma?
A good cook knows that this fish is delicious fried, baked, and even boiled. But they salt and dry simply much less often.
The meat of this fish can have a fat content from 4 to 25%, it depends on the age, size and living conditions of the individual specimen. Along the sides of the fish there are stripes of dark muscles, like mackerel, tuna, and some sturgeon. When cut, the meat is very beautiful, with a delicate color and pleasant structure. Considering that prostipoma is often served in restaurants, the aesthetic side of the issue is extremely important.
The dense fiber structure makes this fish suitable for grilling. It is especially good with vegetables: eggplants, tomatoes, bell peppers.
And broth is prepared from the large head of the prostipoma. It has a harmonious hue, exquisite aroma and high transparency, making it well suited as a base for fish soup, fish soups, gravies, sauces, and jellied dishes.
Professionals do not recommend using excessive amounts of spices and seasonings when cooking, because prostipoma is a fish whose aroma itself is quite rich and expressive. Extra spices can simply drown it out.
Where is it found?
Red fish baked in the oven
Prostipoma is found in tropical and subtropical latitudes. It is caught in the waters of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Its population is quite large off the coast of West Africa, from Angola to the equator. It is mined in large quantities by Japanese fishermen. In the Land of the Rising Sun, this fish is so popular that the lion's share of the catch is immediately sent to famous restaurants, and only the remainder ends up on store shelves.
The fish leads a schooling lifestyle. It stays near the bottom or in the water column and does not go deeper than 50 meters. It is concentrated in numerous schools or groups that feed mainly on bottom invertebrates and plankton. Large individuals can attack the fry.
Prostipoma - general information
Prostipoma is a table fish that is found in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. You can find conflicting information about her. Some fishermen say that the fish that were sold on the shelves in the 79s have nothing to do with this type of fish. Under this name they could sell any kind of fish, but not to the common ones. This species belongs to the perciformes family.
It was caught in large quantities during expeditions in the ocean. It was first found near the Hawaiian Islands. Previously, this species was numerous, but after the start of active hunting for it, there were practically no prostypoma left. Today it can be very rarely found on the shelves.
The body of prostipoma is elongated and slightly flattened laterally. The color of its body is dark, there are several dark, almost black spots near the gills. There are dark stripes on the sides and back. The minimum length of fish that is allowed to be caught is 18 cm. The average catch size is approximately 30 cm.
Habitat
Prostipoma lives in the eastern part of the Atlantic. This species can often be found from the equator to the coast of Angola. Today it is mainly caught and sold in Japan, where it is highly valued for its taste and the presence of nutrients.
Catching fish of this species
Today, its fishing has been stopped due to the small number of individuals. Therefore, it is not caught on an industrial scale almost anywhere, only in Japan. To preserve the species, the minimum permitted size of caught fish was introduced - 18 cm.
Commercial value
Prostipoma is a valuable commercial species that is popular all over the world, especially Japan. However, in the last decade, due to uncontrolled and poaching, its reserves have decreased significantly. To preserve fish, quotas for its production were introduced, and in some regions its fishing was completely prohibited. In recreational fishing, the minimum permitted size is 18 cm. Individuals that do not reach the established length must be released, otherwise they face a significant fine and revocation of their license.
Beneficial features
Prostipoma meat is similar to mackerel or sturgeon. It has dark transverse layers, a soft structure, light color, rich and pleasant aroma. Fish is valued not only for its taste and variety of cooking options, but also for its small number of bones.
100 grams of prostipoma meat contains:
- proteins – about 20%;
- fat – no more than 4%;
- Omega 3 – 0.3%.
The fat content of a fish depends on its age, size and immediate habitat. The energy value of 100 grams of fish is 108 kcal.
Prostipoma is popular among foreign athletes. It is included in the diet of many strength athletes involved in powerlifting, crossfit, bodybuilding, weightlifting, shot throwing or hammer throwing and other sports where special attention is paid to the quality of nutrition.
Recipes
Simple ones are prepared in different ways. It can be baked, fried, smoked, steamed, boiled. The head of the fish produces a low-fat, transparent and unusually aromatic broth, on which you can prepare a wonderful fish soup with the addition of cilantro and lime.
Fried with tomatoes and zucchini
To prepare this dish we need half a kilo of prostipoma fillet, 1-2 young zucchini or zucchini, 200 grams of fresh tomatoes, 50 grams of cream, 50 grams of soft cheese. For spices, you can add pepper and oregano, salt to taste. We will fry in vegetable oil.
Fried prostipoma has incredibly tender meat
The recipe itself is as follows:
- We clean the fish, gut it, and rinse it under running water.
- Using a sharp fillet knife, separate the meat from the backbone and ribs.
- Divide the resulting fillet into large portions.
- Salt and pepper the prostipoma meat, roll in flour or breadcrumbs and fry in a frying pan on both sides until cooked and golden brown.
- Peel the zucchini from the skin and seeds, cut into slices.
- Mix tomatoes, cheese and cream until it forms a sauce.
- Dip the zucchini rings in the sauce, place on a baking sheet and bake until tender.
Fried fish and cooked side dish are served along with sprigs of parsley, cilantro, and dill. You can add fresh cherry tomatoes.
Prostipoma with cream sauce
To prepare a fairly tasty dish you will need:
- 0.5 kg of prostypoma meat.
- 100 grams of cream.
- Up to 50 grams of butter.
- One egg.
- Two onions.
- Rosemary.
- Ground pepper.
- Salt.
- Lemon and greens.
How to cook:
- The fish carcass is cut, cleaned, gutted and washed thoroughly. After this, you can salt and pepper it.
- Take a frying pan, put it on the fire, pour in a little vegetable oil, after which the carcass is fried on both sides until crispy.
- While the fish is cooking, it's time to start making the sauce. To do this, take one yolk, cream and a pinch of rosemary, after which everything is thoroughly beaten with the addition of salt.
- It is advisable to warm the sauce slightly in a water bath with systematic stirring.
- Take a piece of food foil and grease it with butter. Then you need to cut the onion into rings and place on foil, and the prepared fish is laid out on top. The prepared sauce is poured on top and the dish goes into the oven.
- Before the fish is fully cooked, it should be in the oven for no more than 15 minutes, because the fish was almost ready.
- The dish is served to the table with slices of lemon, garnished with greens on top.
