Almost all families have a pack of at home fish sticksparticularly practical and quick to prepare and often loved by children too. Just take them out of the freezer, heat them in a pan or in the oven, and in a few minutes they are ready to enjoy. But have you ever wondered how these popular products are made?
If the answer is yes, a video of the program “How It’s Made” by Dmax can help you reveal the backstory. “How It’s Made” explores the industrial process behind everyday products, showing how ingredients are transformed in factories to create the foods or drinks we find in the supermarket.
In the case of fish sticks, the video (which we show below) shows how it all starts from blocks of frozen fish. In most cases, these are not whole fillets, but a fish paste obtained from less valuable parts or waste, which is compressed into large blocks. These blocks are then cut into rectangles of the typical stick size.
Once cut, the sticks pass through machines that coat them evenly with a mixture of flour, spices and flavourings. In the end, they are pre-fried quickly in oil to create a golden and crunchy crust before being frozen and packaged.
We all know the end result, but what we sometimes forget when we have sticks on our plate is that these are highly processed foods. The fish used is not always of good quality, and the long list of ingredients with which they are prepared can include preservatives, additives and artificial flavourings. For this reason, it is advisable to consume them in moderation (or avoid them at all), especially if you want to follow a balanced diet.
The video shows an American production of fish sticks, but the process is similar in Italy too.
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If you can’t do without it, the best solution is to prepare fish sticks at home. In this way you can choose your favorite fresh fish as a base, avoiding the use of additives and preservatives, better dosage of salt, etc.
HERE you can find a recipe.
