A Little Worm with Your Fish?

by Valorie Delp | More from this Blogger

02 Mar 2007 10:28 AM

WARNING: This is not the food related story you want to be reading after you've just eaten. In fact, if you love fish. . .don't read this either. If you shop at Whole Foods just keep searching for another blog for your morning reading. If on the other hand you like to be a highly informed consumer, please continue.

A woman bought some cod at a Whole Foods store in Columbus Circle (Manhattan) and when she went to fillet the fish, she discovered more than she bargained for: the cod had parasites. Not dead little worms but live, wriggling, crawling worms. I cannot write one more single word before I just say this: eeeeeeeeeewwwwww!

My husband and I watched as our lips curled downward in disgust. The woman went back to Whole Foods and asked the fish guy about it. Yep--it happens all the time with cod. But there's good news too! They are more than happy to refund your money each and every time you buy cod with parasites in it! No questions asked! (Again, is there any response other than eeeewwww????)

But in defense of Whole Foods one reason that it's common is that cod is apparently a bottom dweller. So as a bottom dweller, the cod fish is incredibly happy to suck up anything and everything. . .including parasites. Whole Foods says that they realize it is gross to find living parasites in your fresh fish (isn't that a relief) and that they do try to take every precaution to make sure it doesn't happen but sometimes it's unavoidable.

So what should you do?

Personally, I am not a big fan of cod fish. But if I were you can bet that I'd start buying fillets where someone else can dig out the parasites from the musculature of my fish before I see them. After all, what I don't know, probably won't hurt me. . .probably.

Actually, the big point of the story was to let consumers know that if they always cook their fish thoroughly the worms won't hurt them. Yes, you read that right. . .you may still be eating worms in your fish. . .but at least they won't hurt you as long as you cook it thoroughly.

At the risk of upsetting writers everywhere for my redundancy: EEEEEEEWWWWW!!!

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Learn more about Valorie Delp

Hello everybody! My name is Valorie and I am one busy lady! When I'm not writing or editing for families, I am busy trying to get my brood of 5 in line.

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Andrea Hermitt (5512) 02 Mar 2007 09:37 AM

(((shudder))) You said don't read this if you shop at whole foods, and I did it anyway. Thank God, I am allergic to fish! EEwWWWWWW!

Valorie Delp (49340) 02 Mar 2007 09:40 AM

I know! I couldn't resist blogging on it but I suppose it would be tacky to post a recipe for cod fish tomorrow huh?!

Heather Long (16954) 02 Mar 2007 10:17 AM

ROFL -- but let me add a little YECH to your EWWWWWWWWWWWWw

Valorie Delp (49340) 02 Mar 2007 10:24 AM

Rest assured. . .I have already posted tomorrow's article and it is as far from fish as I can possibly get! Do they every make sushi from cod?

Aimee Amodio (11995) 02 Mar 2007 02:46 PM

Ack! Gross! I would never recover from seeing worms in ANYTHING I bought. That would be the very last time that food entered my house, for sure. Blech. Ack! Yuck!

Lisa P (24013) 03 Mar 2007 06:55 AM

DIS-GUS-TING! And this is why I trust the Gorton's Fisherman! I get two lovely square shaped fillets in a package - I don't need to know what kind of fish it was before it became a frozen brick. When it comes out of the freezer, nothing is squirming and nothing ever looks wormlike before or after I cook it. The only thing that comes from the ocean that should be squirming in my kitchen is a lobster before I drop him in boiling water!

Valorie Delp (49340) 03 Mar 2007 07:01 AM

You've just described why I don't get my chicken from the Vivero.