Wait, fish have cheeks? They do, and they’re delicious. Unless you’re someone who is well-versed in eating a whole fish, you may be unfamiliar with this cut. Typically, when someone orders fish at a restaurant or buys some to prepare at home, they go right for a fillet or steak. While those are certainly reliable cuts to enjoy, fish cheeks fly under the radar and are frequently overlooked in western cuisines. However, they are revered in Asian cooking and are often eaten on special occasions. These little morsels of goodness are tender and delicate with a subtly sweet flavor that you don’t want to miss out on.
Fish cheeks come from the meat right below the fish’s eyes. While sizes of the cheeks vary based on the size of the fish they came from, they are mostly pretty small. For the cheeks to be worth harvesting and selling, they must come from a large species of fish, such as Alaskan halibut, grouper, cod, and lake trout. Even then, a portion size is typically one to two cheeks per person, and since each fish only has two cheeks, they can be hard to come by. You probably won’t find them at the supermarket, but instead will have to scour fishmongers or find a restaurant that serves them.
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