Something's Fishy!

And I love it!!  I have been wanting to buy fish here since before I even arrived!  I asked my darling sponsors to get fish for me to stock my fridge (they offered to stock my home with stuff) and I asked for fresh fish.  I think they were a bit surprised.  Needless to say, I didn't get fish.  But I did get a lot of great veggies and fruits!

Jackie surveying the land of fish buying. She's quite a pro!!

So I waited, met people and found a fabulous co-worker named Jackie who is always ready with a smile and a good recipe. We share a love for cooking and eating. Tuesday was our day to explore the fish market.  Jackie know the market like the back of her hand and showed me how to touch the flesh to see if it's cold  and if the gills are a rich red.  If it's cold it came from a freezer and is not a fresh catch.  If the gills are dark, it is also a sign of deterioration.  So, we poked and prodded our way through the market.  To bargain (Jackie has skills!) she would often speak Fon with the ladies instead of French.  I let her do all of the talking!

Cleaning Fish 101:Clipping the fins

The women are truly business woman and will negotiate like crazy.  What a powerful thing it is to see a woman who knows the worth of her fish!! Another reason why I didn't speak it that it's well known that foreigners will often pay twice or three times what a Beninese would pay.  Many sellers will immediately increase the price if they know you or the person you're with is a foreigner. Shrewd.  In efforts not to hinder the bargaining process, I saved picture taking for when we got our fish cleaned. I'll take pics of the fish I bought when I cook them.

Close-up of fin-clipping

Scaling the fish

The fish cleaning process was pretty straightforward: clipping the fins, scaling the fish, pulling out the internal organs and gills and rinsing it out. 

I ended up buying a grey and a red "dorado" and  sea bass.  There are dozens of types of fish here.  I look forward to trying all of them!!

Jackie gave me some tips for cooking the fish I bought.  Strangely enough, just buying the fish was plenty of success for me.  I've separated them into portions and froze them so I'll probably embark on cooking over the weekend.

A bientot!