Cook Fish

The Basics:

• Fresh fish tastes and smells less "fishy" than older fish. Get it as fresh out of the water as you can.
• If not fresh, flash frozen is your next best bet. It is frozen before it can "go fishy".
• Thaw frozen fish fully before cooking or it will cook very unevenly. 
• Oily fish smells and tastes stronger than white fish.
• If you hate "fishiness", aim for the milder species and get it skinless.

• Salmon, Tuna, Trout, Herring and Sardines are good examples of oily strongly flavored fish.
• Mackerel, Talapia, Catfish, Pollock, Snapper, and Flounder are moderately flavored fish.
• Halibut and Cod are the most mildly flavored fish.

Cook all fish hot and fast:

• It cooks much faster than land animal meats, so be ready when you introduce it to the heat.
• Heat your oiled skillet or pan to medium-high: higher than you would use for steak or chicken.
• Breaded and fried fish pieces usually cook in under 1 minute, so don't walk away! 
• Pan cooked fish fillets are typically ready to flip over after 1-2 minutes, and will not stick if your heat is high enough to caramelize the proteins. If it doesn't release from the pan easily, turn the heat up a little and leave it alone; wait for the proteins to finish!
• If baking your fish, enclose it. Either make a packet with aluminum foil around the fish fillets, or bake in a covered dish. The hot oven will dry it out otherwise.
• BBQ methods also need to be very hot, and don't forget to oil the rack. Don't even think about trying to jam a spatula under the fillet until the fish lifts up easily, if will come up whole and gorgeous when it's ready! 

Flavors to add: 

Every culture has its own idea of what goes with fish, so don't let the old fashioned cook books limit your imagination. Here are a list of things that go well with fish that I have tried personally:
Garlic, onion, vinegar, citrus juice and slices, lemongrass, bell peppers, fresh hot peppers, smoked chiles, BBQ sauce, Tamarind sauce, soy sauce, green enchilada sauce, tomatillo, cumin, safron, basil, sage, rosemary, taragon, and of course salt and pepper.  Basically it's a list of whatever you have in the cupboard. Try to stick to one or two flavors at once if you're not confident about the mix.