From Fish Carcasses to Flavour: How We Make Our Fish Stock

Have you ever wondered what happens to all the fish carcasses left behind after we fillet your fish?

At Ocean Jewels, we have always believed in making the most of every fish that comes through our kitchen. Sustainability is not only about choosing the right species and knowing where your seafood comes from, it is also about respecting what we have sourced and finding ways to use as much of it as possible. When we fillet whole fish there are carcasses left behind, but as far as we are concerned, those still have plenty to offer.

A portion of our fish carcasses stay right here in the Ocean Jewels kitchen, where we turn them into our homemade fish stock. It is one of those behind-the-scenes products that may not get as much attention as a beautiful piece of fresh fish, but it is something we use all the time and a great example of how we can turn what might otherwise be waste into something delicious.

How we make our fish stock

A good fish stock starts, of course, with good fish. Because we are filleting fresh fish in our kitchen throughout the week, we have access to lovely fresh carcasses that still contain loads of flavour. Rather than throwing these away, we pop them into our stock pot along with fresh vegetables and a selection of herbs.

We also add Japanese dashi to our stock. Dashi is traditionally used in Japanese cooking to add a lovely savoury, umami flavour to dishes, and we love the extra depth it brings to our fish stock. Everything is then gently cooked for couple hours, allowing the flavours from the fish carcasses, vegetables and herbs to come together and create a rich, flavourful stock.

Once it is ready, the stock is carefully strained to remove the carcasses, vegetables and herbs. We then cool it down and pack it into convenient 750ml packs, ready to pop into your freezer until you need it.

A freezer staple worth having

If you enjoy cooking seafood at home, having a pack of good fish stock tucked away in your freezer can be incredibly handy. It gives you a head start when making seafood soups and chowders, risottos, curries, sauces or a seafood pasta. It is also perfect for paella, where the stock forms such an important part of the flavour of the finished dish.

You can use it as it is or build on it depending on what you are cooking. Add tomatoes, garlic and herbs for a Mediterranean-style seafood stew, coconut milk and curry paste for something with an Asian influence, or use it to cook your risotto rice before finishing it with fresh fish, prawns or mussels. A good stock does much of the hard work for you and adds layers of flavour without needing a long list of extra ingredients.

You may already have tasted it

Even if you haven’t bought a pack of our fish stock on its own, there is a good chance you have already tasted it. We use our homemade stock in a number of our Ocean Jewels meal kits, including our Coconut Seafood Soup, Thai Curry and Paella kits. It is also an important ingredient in the creamy sauce we make for both our Classic and Deluxe Fish Pies, adding that extra depth of seafood flavour to the filling.

For us, making the stock in-house means we know exactly what is going into the dishes we send out. It also allows us to make use of an ingredient we already have in abundance rather than buying in a ready-made stock. It takes a little more time, but we think the flavour makes it well worth the effort.

But what happens to the rest of the Carcasses?

We don’t manage to use every single fish carcasses ourselves, and this is where our friends at Happy Hounds come in.

You can find out more about Happy Hounds, their fresh dog food and their range of treats and toppers on their website

Making the most of every fish

Reducing waste doesn’t always have to involve huge changes. Sometimes it is simply about looking at what you already have and asking what else you can do with it. For us, fish carcasses are a perfect example. They can create a beautiful stock for our customers, become an important ingredient in our meal kits and even find their way into something tasty for our four-legged friends.

From the whole fish arriving in our kitchen, to the fillets on your dinner table, the stock bubbling away in our pots and the carcasses finding another life at Happy Hounds, we are always looking for ways to make better use of what we source.

And we think that’s exactly how good seafood should be treated.