Should You Buy Fresh Fish or Frozen Fish?

The right answer isn't always "fresh fish." Near the coast, where fish reaches the counter within hours of being caught, fresh genuinely wins; but in a city supermarket, fish labelled "fresh" that has sat on ice for two days is often behind a well-handled frozen fillet. What really matters isn't fresh versus frozen, but how quickly and at what temperature the fish was handled after being caught.

Fish flash-frozen at -18°C right on the boat keeps its texture and moisture better than fish left waiting on a counter. So a "fresh" label alone is no guarantee of quality; the real question is how long the fish sat and at which stage. This guide walks through what to check when choosing between fresh and frozen fish or other seafood.

How can you tell the real age of counter fish?

A "fresh" label doesn't tell you how many days the fish has been on display. Bright, full eyes, dark red gills, and flesh that springs back quickly when pressed are signs the fish truly just arrived. If the ice on the counter has melted, turned watery, or the fish is sitting beside the ice rather than on it, that fish has spent time outside the cold chain. Loose scales or dull-looking skin are a similar warning sign.

Smell is also a reliable test: fresh fish has a mild sea scent, while a sharp, ammonia-like odour signals fish that has been sitting too long. Checking all three — eyes, gills and smell — together is more reliable than trusting any single one on its own.

What's the advantage of frozen fish?

On commercial vessels, fish is flash-frozen the moment it's caught, and this damages the cell structure far less than hours of road transport for "fresh" fish. Because the ice crystals formed during flash-freezing stay tiny, the muscle fibres stay intact — properly thawed frozen fish can end up juicier than "fresh" fish that spent three days on ice. Slowly frozen fish, by contrast, forms larger crystals that release most of the fish's moisture on thawing, which is why the flash-freeze method is worth checking for on the packaging.

Frozen fish also offers price stability: while fresh fish prices climb out of season, frozen product of the same quality often stays more affordable. It also keeps for a long time until you're ready to use it, which makes shopping easier to plan.

When should you choose frozen?

For anyone living far from the coast, frozen fish is usually the safer bet — fish sold as "fresh" there has often travelled a long cold-chain journey too, just without the label to show it. If you want a fish that's out of season, or you're shopping for a future date rather than tonight's dinner, frozen fish makes planning easier. It also suits anyone stocking up ahead of a large gathering without leaving the shopping to the last minute.

In coastal towns, buying straight from the fishmonger in the morning usually flips this preference the other way — there, fresh fish spends hours outside the cold chain, not days.

What should you watch for when thawing fish?

The safest way to thaw frozen fish is in the fridge, in a covered container; depending on thickness this can take 8 to 24 hours. Fish left out at room temperature quickly reaches a surface temperature where bacteria multiply, carrying a real risk of food poisoning. Keep the container on a lower shelf so any liquid that seeps out doesn't drip onto other food.

In a hurry, fish can be thawed in a sealed bag submerged in cold water; but fish thawed this way should be cooked the same day and never refrozen. Microwave thawing can actually start cooking the edges, so it's only worth using if you're cooking the fish immediately after.