mazbook1
Oct 18, 2010, 7:41 PM
Post #7 of 8
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Re: [MazDee] Recipes using marlin or atun ahumado?
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Dee and Anonimo, At least here in Mazatlán where Dee and I live, LOTS of what was and is sold as marlin is really atún. BUT there is a way to tell the difference, at least most of the time.
Atún is a much faster growing fish than marlin (and, I would guess, a less active fish also), therefore the "growth rings", you know, those layers of the flesh in the "meat" (wish I knew the technical name, but don't have a clue) are almost always quite thick in atún, anywhere from 1/8" (not often this thin) to as much as 5/16" or even thicker. In Marlin they are much thinner. I don't believe I've ever seen them over 1/8" thick and usually thinner than that. Generally, the color of the smoked atún is lighter/brighter also, but that isn't a given.
I learned this many, many years back when trying to figure out why some of my smoked "marlin" was so mild and soft. A vendor at the Central Market here explained it to me and was able to show me the difference (quite obvious once you know). He was one of the good guys. He kept the marlin quite separate from the atún and charged quite a bit less for the atún, but that was a long time ago (15 yrs.?) and the atún may be the most common here in Mazatlán now, although there are several varieties of marlin and surely they aren't all protected (as there is only a couple the sport fisherman are interested in).
Incidentally, my wife was in class and study group Sunday, so I wandered up to the corner abarrotes y carnecería and bought 2/3 of a kilo of smoked atún, which the boss halfheartedly tried to foist off on me as marlin until he realized that I DID know the difference (somewhat of a surprise to me, as I've been doing business with him for over 12 years) and actually WANTED the atún. Bet he catches a lot of the locals that way though, (LOL) a couple of bags of crema and 3 bags of pasta para sopa (seca) and made that creamed atún with a touch of chipotle and the family scarfed it down. They loved it. My wife even had it cold for desayuno this morning!
The recipe is to lightly saute a heaping tblspn of cebolla picada fina in 3 tblspns of olive oil, then add a roux (from the licuadora) of a very skimpy 1/2 cup of flour and a liter of whole milk. Slowly bring to a boil (lots of stirring), the add two bags (125 gm each – creo) of crema and simmer for 3 minutes (lots of stirring or the bottom will burn). Add 3 or 4 finely chopped chipotles en adobo and stir well. Continue to simmer while you chop the smoked atún coarsely and add the atún. Add salt to taste. Bring back to a simmer (slowly), then add to the 3 bags of cooked, drained pasta. Stir well and serve.
TIPS: If you're at Chapala or higher altitude, that first time for simmering should probably be 5 minutes or even more until the "floury" taste goes away. The lower boiling point makes everything cook slower. Also, when I cook the pasta, I put a steamer basket in the top of the pot filled with the veggies of the day and let them steam as the pasta cooks. At least for most veggies, they come out just about right (cooked but still a bit crisp) at the same time it takes to cook the pasta "al dente", regardless of altitude.
(This post was edited by mazbook1 on Oct 18, 2010, 8:04 PM)
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