Lianne Vosburgh

If you have ever pulled a frozen fillet out of the freezer and ended up with a pale, soft, slightly slimy piece of fish sitting in a puddle of cloudy liquid, the water was already gone before the pan ever got hot. Freezing ruptures the muscle cells, and thawing pushes that moisture out. Here is … Read more

Removing pin bones from a fish fillet takes three to five minutes, a pair of needle-nose pliers or kitchen tweezers, and no cutting at all. Lay the fillet skin-side down, run a fingertip along the flesh to feel each raised bone tip, grip the bone, and pull it forward toward the head and slightly upward. … Read more

Fillet a trout by cutting down to the backbone just behind the gill plate, then running a sharp, flexible knife flat along the spine toward the tail until the fillet lifts off. Repeat on the other side. A 1 to 2 pound trout takes about 10 minutes from board to tray. No, you do not … Read more

Salmon is done when the thickest part of the fillet reads 125 to 130°F (52 to 54°C) on an instant-read thermometer, or, without one, when the flesh turns from translucent dark pink to opaque light pink and a fork slides in and separates it into moist flakes. The USDA safe minimum for fish is 145°F … Read more

A dish that tastes fine in the pan often tastes flat at the table, and the fix takes about two minutes. To taste and adjust a dish before serving, take a small spoonful off the heat, work through salt, acid, fat, sweetness, heat and umami in that order, add the smallest dose of whichever one … Read more

How to clean a kitchen as you cook comes down to one habit: reset your workspace in short bursts while the food is doing the slow work. While onions soften, while pasta water boils, while a roast rests, you wipe the counter, rinse the knife, and scrape the board. Set up a station first, clean … Read more

To cook yellowfin tuna steaks on the stove, sear them 45 to 90 seconds per side in a preheated heavy skillet over high heat, then rest them 3 to 5 minutes before slicing. That short, hot contact gives you a golden crust and a rare, buttery center, and the whole thing takes under 15 minutes … Read more

Most foods want oil at 350°F to 375°F (175°C to 190°C) before they go in, and there are only three honest ways to know you are there: read a thermometer, read the surface, or test it. If you have a clip-on fry thermometer or instant-read probe, clip it to the pot and wait for that … Read more