Serving fish for dinner? While it’s a great meal idea, figuring out how to get the fish smell out of your house can be a hassle. Learn more about fishy cooking odors, and how you can enjoy cooking and serving fish to your family without making your home smell like a dock.
Why Does Fish Smell?
It may seem like an obvious answer: fish smells fishy. However, there is a scientific reason behind the odor.
The fishy smell comes from the natural breakdown of fat and acid compounds, specifically trimethylamine oxide (TMAO) and its transition to trimethylamine (TMA) as the fish is exposed to air. Fish may taste great, but “fish” is not a scent homeowners want lingering in their homes.
Tips for Preventing Fishy Cooking Odors
The good news is that you can take a proactive approach and avoid fish smells in your kitchen to begin with.
Reduce the smell of fish with a few tweaks to your prep and cooking methods:
- Purchase the freshest, highest quality fish your food budget allows
- Choose milder fish types, such as tilapia, turbot, sole, and Pacific cod
- Rinse the raw fish in cold water to remove odor-causing TMA and bacteria
- Soak the raw fish in milk for 20 minutes; the milk’s casein protein binds to the TMA and reduces odor
- Cook the fish with an acid like lemon or vinegar, which reacts with the TMA, reducing the smell
- Turn on the kitchen hood vents and open the windows while cooking
Remove the Fish Smell from Your Home
If the deed has been done and the cooking is complete, you probably aren’t as concerned about preventing the odor as you are about getting it out of your house! No homeowner wants to be embarrassed by how their house smells.
Check out these tips to remove the lingering fish odor:
- Store leftovers in tightly sealed containers in the refrigerator
- Clean the kitchen immediately after cooking; consider using a lemon-scented cleaning product or citrus essential oils to combat the fish smell
- Diffuse citrus essential oils in the kitchen and throughout the home
- Bake cookies or something sweet – the aroma of baked goods will often replace the fish smell
If you’re concerned the air in your home isn’t fresh and wonder if it might be something other than fish causing the odor, this blog may help you to identify the source.
Take Back Control of Your Home Environment
Are you bothered by a fish smell or other odors in your home? You don’t have to live that way! It’s time to turn to the local experts at Rainbow Restoration for professional odor removal services. We will find and deal with the source of the stinky issue and have the right solutions to neutralize the air rather than only temporarily covering up the problem. Call or schedule an appointment online now to experience fresher indoor air for your home.
