Beyond major cities and coastal locations, reliable seafood counters at grocery stores and dedicated fish markets may be hard to come by. Thankfully, the online world provides access to numerous high-quality fishmongers who supply fresh and frozen seafood directly to home chefs.

But how do you choose the right online fishmonger, and ensure your selection arrives fresh at home? To help, we conducted tests with various online fishmongers by ordering and cooking their products to see which delivered. Here’s what we found.

Ask Your Fishmonger To Look, Smell and Taste

Don’t be intimidated into asking your fishmonger for assistance when selecting a fresh seafood selection – ask them to examine and smell your selected selection (though they might not appreciate that!). A freshly caught fish should smell of sea water with bright, glossy skin – anything dry and dull should probably have seen better days; eyes that appear sunken or clouded would indicate the fish has endured an ordeal that needs further examination.

Are You Wondering If the Fish Is Wild or Farmed?

To increase sustainability when purchasing seafood, ask your fishmonger if the fish is wild or farmed and look for certifications such as Ocean Wise and Aquaculture Stewardship Council that prove that it was raised according to certain standards – particularly crucial when purchasing farmed species as different countries have various regulations on how and what type of feed to give their stock.

Ask Your Fishmonger to Gill, Gut and Scale For You

Many fishmongers offer to clean the whole fish for you – saving both time and money by eliminating unnecessary shop visits to repair it yourself. Cleaning also allows you to freeze any leftovers safely for later consumption! When filleting it yourself always insist on doing it dry – submersion in water strips away essential oils that increase shelf-life; ask them also to package their fillets tightly in muslin or freezer film to protect their cold storage in case the filleter offers to fillet it dry to extend shelf-life by protecting the fridge!

Many fishmongers provide instructions and recipes on how to prepare and store your purchase – this can be particularly helpful when buying raw or partially cooked seafood such as ceviche or tartare.