Recently, blobfish has become a popular topic of conversation about food. Despite being among the hideous creatures, blobfish has surprisingly tasty meat.

Can you eat blobfish, and how does this disgusting animal taste? Contrary to popular belief, blobfish can taste incredibly good when properly prepared. In this article, I will take a closer look at blobfish in general and if you can eat it. I might also discuss a potential way to cook a blobfish.

Can You Eat Blobfish?

The blobfish is a species of deep-sea fish that inhabits the oceans around New Zealand and Australia. They are renowned for having a hideous appearance. In addition to being disgusting, blobfish are also gelatinous and quite acidic. So, can you eat blobfish?

Blobfish is edible if you have a stomach and can get beyond its odd appearance. It would help if you consumed tiny servings because few people are yet to try it. As far as I know, it hasn’t officially been deemed fit for eating. However, those who have tried it have reported no ill effects beyond the need to remove the acidic skin.

Although the gelatinous texture can put off the uninitiated, a good sear or thorough cooking should make this a nonissue. Overall, given that blobfish is not endangered and is a relatively sustainable option for your next seafood dish, I have yet to discover a compelling reason why you shouldn’t consume it.

Blobfish are uncommon in fish markets, and most individuals who eat them do so as a novelty or adventure. A butter-poached lobster tail-like flavor may be found in the flesh, which is rich and sweet. Although they don’t have the most appealing appearance, these fish are tasty. If someone feels daring, try adding extra spices or ingredients when cooking them to give them more taste.

Although most people wouldn’t consider blobfish beautiful, they have a decent flavor. Some people believe blobfish is inedible, but some have tested it out of curiosity and found it quite tasty.

What Does Blobfish Taste Like?

The blobfish is a kind of fish found along the coastlines of Tasmania and Australia. Their average length is 17 inches, and they live anywhere from 100 to 1,000 meters down. Although they resemble a lump of slime with eyes glued on top, this kind of fish has a knack for luring in admirers.

Many people need clarification on what blobfish tastes like. You can’t tell by looking at it what it tastes like. Many people might even be hesitant to try it because of its somewhat gelatinous consistency. However, after being seared, blobfish has a flavor similar to buttery lobster. Others claim that it has a mild tomato sauce with the flavor of cod or haddock.

You should try this dish even though it isn’t your average fish dish! Despite its unattractive appearance, it tastes good and is generally beneficial.

How to Cook a Blobfish 

People mistakenly believe that cooking a blobfish is challenging, but it isn’t. You can prepare this hideous creature if you prepare cod or haddock in a simple tomato sauce.

Start by cutting a good fillet out of your blobfish and dusting it with flour before you blowtorch it. The fish should then be breaded or coated in panko crumbs before being dredged in an egg mixture and fried in a blowtorch until golden brown.

Bake a blobfish for 15-20 minutes at 350°F until the flesh becomes creamy white. When prepared in this manner, the flesh will flake apart.

Your last resort is to poach your blobfish. Making fish stock requires using fresh water and vegetables, such as carrots and onions. The fish fillets should be added to the stock after it has simmered for about 15 minutes, and they should cook through in that time.

Where Do Blobfish Live?

Blobfish are renowned for being the world’s ugliest creatures. They are renowned for being among the few creatures that can endure depths of more than 3,000 meters.

The blobfish inhabits the ocean floor in 2500 feet of water off the coasts of Taznmainia and Australia, where the high pressure maintains the blobfish’s health.

Their bodies contain Swim Bladders and gas-filled air sacs that aid movement and buoyancy on the ocean floor. The air sac in a fish with a swim bladder “may inflate when they rise” when you remove it from its deepwater home.

The increased pressure drops when the Blobfish rise to the surface from the deeper depths, which causes the bladder to occasionally inflate and drive the fish’s stomach right out of its mouth. The blobfish, for example, is known for having the reputation of being the ugliest fish on the globe.

The blobfish’s habitat is considerably different from that of fish found in shallow water environments, as the fish loses its shape upon being brought from the depths of the sea, where light doesn’t penetrate, to the surface, where the pressure is much lower.

What Do Blobfish Eat?

Blobfish is known by its scientific name, Psychrolutes marcidus. It is a deep-sea animal that is threatened. Blobfish have never been sighted. However, according to scientists, it also nourishes shellfish, sea pens, sea urchins, and crabs.

The blobfish has a relatively restricted diet. The bluefish is one of the ugliest animals in the world, an undersea submarine that dwells in depths where it can squish. Small nuggets are what blobfish eat the most. Mollusks in the deep water resemble tiny snails. They do not hunt blobfish’s quick and straightforward prey.

Australia’s ocean floor is home to deepwater blobfish, which devour creatures like bald shrimp and crabs in deep waters. These fish are known as blobfish because they lack bones and will pool like bodies if they reach the surface.

These creatures are flexible. They will devour anything they can find that will fit in their mouth. Detritus contributes nutrients to the ocean’s surface and can be remarkably resilient.

What Are Some Key Facts About Blobfish?

Now that you’re aware of where blobfish live, what they eat, and if you can eat them, it’s essential that I drop some critical facts about blobfish.

Blobfish are full of water made up of gelatinous flesh floating outside their muscles. These deep-sea dwellers shun oxygen-burning muscles and the solid, calcium-dense bones usually found in their shallower-dwelling giant predator fish.

Swim bladders are absent in blobfish (the air-filled sacs that buoy many different types of fish) due to the pressure of the water at the depths where blobfish live, which would cause the sacs to collapse under the pressure of the water and force the blobfish to sink. They are sedentary, moving only to open their lips when a food source comes close enough to them.

Blobfish lack a skeleton and only have a partial backbone, which makes them vulnerable to predation. Because their muscles are so thin, they can withstand the crushing pressure of the deepwater habitats in which they live and thrive. Its gelatinous body, which is just slightly thicker than seawater, helps it maintain buoyancy and prevents it from vomiting its stomach contents.

It takes on a completely different appearance when the smooth-headed blobfish is present in its natural environment instead of being taken from it. It takes on a very offensive appearance as soon as it is out of the water or in shallow water.

Is the Blobfish Endangered?

When the blobfish is deep beneath in the ocean, where it dwells, it appears very normal; it is only when it rises to the surface that its appearance changes, and it takes on what most people find to be an incredibly repulsive aspect.

However, blobfish are currently regarded as critically endangered. In actuality, they are in danger of going extinct. Blobfish are frequently caught in bottom-trawling nets, even though they are not purposely targeted. 

These nets comb the ocean floor searching for deep-sea creatures like lobsters and other prey. Unfortunately, even though the blobfish is frequently returned to the ocean, it is already too late to save it from extinction.

The fate of the defenseless blobfish was jeopardized in 2006 when a group of international environmentalists met to suggest a moratorium on bottom trawling on the high seas, but they could not reach a consensus. It is especially true considering that deep-trawling fishing boats are operating in New Zealand and Australia and that the blobfish is on the verge of extinction everywhere.

Best Bread Crumbs To Try When Cooking Blobfish

1. Paxo Golden Breadcrumbs

Fish, poultry, pork, or vegetables are all excellent candidates for coating with Paxo Golden Breadcrumbs. They are simple to use and perfect for adding a tasty, crunchy topping to baked or grilled foods.

When used as a coating for fried meals, particularly breaded cutlets like tonkatsu and schnitzel, bread crumbs are crushed bread of varying degrees of dryness, often with seasonings added. You can also use them to top casseroles, fill fowl, thicken stews, provide affordable bulk to soups, meatloaves, and other similar items, and create a crunchy and crisp casserole topping.

Pros:

• No artificial colors
• Suitable for vegetarians
• Easy to use

Cons:

• It has gluten

Conclusion

In this short article, I answered the question, “can you eat blobfish?” The blobfish is the ugliest fish in the sea, but it is delicious! It can be prepared and eaten like almost any other fish. I have heard that pickled blobfish is a popular dish in New Zealand, but I could not confirm it yet.