Frozen seafood has always been considered second best to so-called "fresh" seafood, touted as superior quality and taste. The process of flash freezing is slowly changing the narrative as consumers realize the superiority of the product. Simply put, flash frozen is the new “fresh”.
Flash frozen seafood especially flash frozen at sea (FAS) is the unquestioned best and most efficient way to lock in and preserve the quality and freshness of seafood.
The process of flash freezing, is bringing the core temperature of the product down to very cold temperatures, very quickly. When fish freezes this quickly, ice crystals don’t form to negatively impact the tissue, preserving the fish naturally. Flash freezing has been proven to be the best way to preserve the shelf life and quality of seafood.
That said, flash frozen at sea yields even better quality and taste than flash frozen shore side. When done at sea - the product comes directly out of the water, is processed down, panned, organized and placed into a blast freezer. The blast freezer flash-freezes seafood products to negative temperatures within hours. After freezing is complete, the product is packaged into a box or bag and stored in the freezer hold at -18 degrees.
Not only does flash freezing make premium quality, it also kills any parasites that might be in the fish (when fish is "fresh" you don't know if any parasites are still in the flesh).
There is nothing more fresh than having your seafood come straight from the sea, processed and flash frozen all within 8 hours of being caught. When fish is not flash frozen after being caught, it begins to deteriorate and breaks down the flesh, even when chilled.
When seafood that is considered "fresh" and has never been flash frozen, it has already started to decay.
The fish you purchased “fresh” at a market might be 5 days or more from being caught. Flash freezing prevents this process stopping natural decay without the need to add preservatives.
To ensure premium quality when purchasing seafood, flash-frozen at sea should be your go-to choice and will provide you the most consistent product for your money. Buying "fresh" can be a gamble on quality, never knowing how old the fish really is, how it was handled, cared for or how far it traveled to get to the point of sale.
Flash-frozen at sea will guarantee you great color, texture and taste and you can feel comfortable knowing that your money won't be wasted on poor tasting seafood when purchasing flash-frozen products.
With the narrative slowly changing and the acceptance of flash-frozen seafood spreading, consumers are realizing the supreme taste and quality it provides. At Whidbey Seafoods, we like to say, flash-frozen is the new “fresh”.
