*NEW: Seafood-origin labels mandatory

Retailers must say if products are farm raised or caught in wild

Other great info from the North Carolina Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services: NC Seafood Cookbook

Selecting the Best

Spotting a Safe Seafood Seller: ALWAYS purchase fish from a certified dealer that maintains high quality. Based on FDA’s Food Code, here are some ways of spotting a safe fish dealer:

• Employees should be in clean clothing and wearing hair coverings.
• They should not be smoking, eating or playing with their hair.
• They should not be sick or have any open wounds.
• Employees should be wearing disposable gloves when handling food and change gloves after doing nonfood tasks and after handling raw fish.
• Fish should be displayed on a thick bed of fresh — not melting — ice, preferably in a case or under some type of cover. Fish should be arranged with the bellies down so that the melting ice drains away from the fish, thus reducing the chances of spoilage.

Shrimp: The shell or meat is not slippery, and there are no black spots, or patches on the shell or meat. The shell of raw shrimp may be grayish-green, pinkish-tan, or light pink. When cooked, the shell turns red and the meat takes on a reddish tint. Cooked shrimp have firm meat and a mild smell.

Crabs, Lobsters and Crayfish: Live crabs, lobsters, spiny lobsters and crayfish move their legs. The “tail” of a live lobster curls under the body and does not hang down when you pick it up. Frozen spiny or rock lobster tails have clear white meat, no odor and are hard-frozen. Cooked crabs, lobsters and crayfish have bright orange to red shells and are free of any disagreeable odor.

Clams, Oysters and Mussels: Purchase raw shellfish carefully. Buy raw clams, oysters and mussels only from reputable markets. If in doubt, ask the seafood market personnel to show you the certified shipper’s tag that accompanies “shell on” products or check the shipper number on shucked oyster containers. Clams, oysters and mussels in the shell are alive, and the shells close tightly when tapped. Gaping shells indicate that the shellfish are dead and not edible. Shucked oysters are plump, and have a mild odor, a natural creamy color, and clear liquid or nectar.

Scallops: Fresh scallops have a sweetish odor and are free of excess liquid when packaged. The meat of the large sea scallop is white, orange or pink. Smaller bay and calico scallops are white, light tan or pinkish.

Frozen Seafood: Flesh is solid, and there is no discoloration or drying (freezer burn) on the surface. Odor is not evident or is fresh and mild. Wrapping material is moisture- and vapor-proof, fits closely around the product and is undamaged. Packaging materials do not contain ice crystals or have water stains or other indications that the product had thawed at any point. Packaged breaded and unbreaded products have a clean and uniform appearance. Individual pieces separate easily. Breading is intact. Packaged frozen seafood may have an expiration date stamped on the label. Use the seafood before the expiration date.

Storage

Safe Handling after Purchase: Whether you’ve purchased seafood that is fresh or frozen, always keep it cold. Never leave perishable items in a hot car unless packed in ice or in a cooler; seafood products must be kept cold to ensure peak quality. It’s always a good idea to keep your refrigerator temperature between 32 and 38 °F, and your freezer at 0 °F or colder. Plan to use your seafood purchases within one to two days, or freeze them.

Refrigeration: Place seafood immediately in the refrigerator when you get home from the seafood market. Wrap fresh seafood in cling wrap or store in airtight containers. Store fresh, pasteurized or smoked seafood products at 32 to 38 °F. Refrigerate live clams, oysters, mussels, crabs, lobsters and crayfish in well-ventilated containers. Cover the container with a damp cloth or paper towel. Do not store live shellfish in airtight bags or containers. Storing live shellfish in salt water shortens their shelf life. Storing them in fresh water kills them. Keep live shellfish alive.

Do not cook or eat shellfish that have died during storage. Live clams, oysters and mussels have tightly closed shells, or the shells will close when tapped. Live crabs, lobsters and crayfish move their legs. Dead shellfish spoil rapidly and develop off-flavor and off-odors. For a more detailed summary of cold storage times for seafood, refer to the table at the end of this fact sheet.

Freezing Seafood At Home

Freeze seafood as soon as possible after your catch or purchase. Clean and chill fish immediately when fishing. Chill fish in ice or in the refrigerator until you are ready to freeze them. Keep crabs alive until you are ready to cook and freeze them.

Thawing Frozen Seafood

Thaw frozen seafood in the refrigerator (about 18 hours for a 1-inch thick package) or under cold running water (about 1 hour for a 1- inch thick package). Do not thaw frozen seafood at room tempera ture or under warm running water. Thinner parts of the seafood thaw faster than thicker parts, and the outer edges may start to spoil before the center has thawed.

Storing Frozen Seafood

Store frozen fish at 0øF or colder. The storage life of frozen seafood is longer at lower temperatures. Store frozen shellfish, fatty fish such as salmon, and smoked fish no longer than 3-4 months for best quality. Store frozen lean fish such as rockfish, sole and flounder no longer then 6-9 months.

Safe Defrosting

Never defrost foods in a garage, basement, car, plastic garbage bag, out on the kitchen counter, outdoors or on the porch. These methods can leave your foods unsafe to eat. There are three safe ways to defrost food: in the refrigerator, in cold water or in the microwave. It’s best to plan ahead for slow, safe thawing in the refrigerator. Small items may defrost overnight; most foods require a day or two. For large items like turkeys allow one day for each 5 pounds of weight.

For faster defrosting, place food in a leak-proof plastic bag and immerse it in cold water. (If the bag leaks, bacteria from the air or surrounding environment could be introduced into the food. Tissues can also absorb water like a sponge, resulting in a watery product.) Check the water frequently to be sure it stays cold. Change the water every 30 minutes. After thawing, refrigerate the food until ready to use.

When microwave-defrosting food, plan to cook it immediately after thawing because some areas of the food may become warm and begin to cook during microwaving. Holding partially cooked food is not recommended because any bacteria present wouldn’t have been destroyed.

Refreezing

Once food is thawed in the refrigerator, it is safe to refreeze it without cooking, although there may be a loss of quality due to the moisture lost through defrosting. After cooking raw foods that were previously frozen, it is safe to freeze the cooked foods. And if previously cooked foods are thawed in the refrigerator, you may refreeze the unused portion. If you purchase previously frozen meat, poultry or fish at a retail store, you can refreeze if it has been handled properly.

Cooking

Marinating: Marinate seafood in the refrigerator, not on the counter. Discard the marinade after use because it contains raw juices, which may harbor bacteria. If you want to use the marinade as a dip or sauce, reserve a portion before adding raw food.

Basic Cooking Tips for Shellfish: Shrimp, crabs, scallops, clams, mussels, oysters or lobster become tough and dry when overcooked. To cook raw shellfish, shucked or in the shell, follow these basic guidelines:

• Raw shrimp turn pink and firm when cooked. Depending on the size, it takes from 3 to 5 minutes to boil or steam 1 pound of medium-sized shrimp in the shell.
• Shucked shellfish (clams, mussels and oysters without shells) become plump and opaque when cooked thoroughly and the edges of the oysters start to curl. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) suggests boiling shucked oysters for 3 minutes, frying them in oil at 375 °F for 10 minutes or baking them for 10 minutes at 450 °F.
• Clams, mussels and oysters in the shell will open when cooked. The FDA suggests steaming oysters for 4 to 9 minutes or boiling them for 3 to 5 minutes after they open.
• Scallops turn milky white or opaque and firm. Depending on size, scallops take 3 to 4 minutes to cook thoroughly.
• Place lobster in a pan of boiling water to cover, and return water to boil. Boil a 1-pound lobster for 10 minutes, and allow an extra 3 minutes for each additional pound. If steaming, allow 15 to 18 minutes for a 1½- to 2-pound lobster.

Serving

Basic Tips: Wash hands with soap and water before serving or eating food. Serve cooked products on clean plates with clean utensils and clean hands. Never put cooked foods on a dish that has held raw products unless the dish is washed with soap and hot water. Hold hot foods above 140 ?F and cold foods below 40 ?F. Never leave foods, raw or cooked, at room temperature longer than two hours. On a hot day with temperatures at 90 ?F or warmer, this decreases to one hour.

Leftovers

Basic tips: Always use clean utensils and storage containers for safe storage. Divide large amounts of leftovers into small, shallow containers for quick cooling in the refrigerator. For frozen storage, wrap seafood in heavy foil, freezer wrap or place in freezer container. For optimum taste, use seafood within a month. When reheating leftovers, make sure that they have been cooked to 165 °F. If you may have kept the food refrigerated for too long, throw it out. Never taste food that looks or smells strange to see if you can still use it.

Some of the information above was obtained with permission from:
http://seafood.ucdavis.edu/pubs/freezing.htm and http://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheets/HGIC3482.htm