Dory Fillet or Basa Fillet?

I have had the experience of being the seafood buyer for largest hypermarket operator in Malaysia (they’re expanding fast and deserved to be the market Giant by all means) for a year and that gave me invaluable experience in knowing the trade and tasted so many types of seafood!

I guess by now, many of you out there have tasted the dory fish. Do you actually know what is dory fish made out of? Mind you, it’s not the Ms.Dory from Finding Nemo.

Dory fillet, also known as Basa fillet (for US market) comes from the Pangasius fish. For Malaysian, it is ikan patin (river catfish). Surprised? Well, almost all the dory fillets sold in Malaysia hypermarkets and supermarkets are imported from Vietnam. Vietnam is the world’s largest producer of dory fillet now. The ones that we usually see in markets are in packages of 500gm up to 1500gm, containing 2 to 4 pieces of fish fillets. Those fillets are IQF (Individually Quick Frozen). During the IQF process, glazing (25-40%) will be applied to the fish fillets (to protect the fish meat and ensure its freshness). Basically, when u’re buying the IQF Dory fillet, 25-40% of weight are actually water!

There are generally 3 grades of dory fillet (quality and taste), the better grade of dory fillet is creamy and slightly pinkish in appearance. The worst grade of dory fillet is dark pink and yellowish (when cooked, the fillet is smelling and tasting very MUDDY)

When buying any fish fillet, if possible please go for those packages with large pieces of fillet instead of multiple small fillets in one package, this is mainly due to the fact that large piece of fillet contains lower glazing and you’re not paying more for water! Usually dory fillet comes in 3 sizes (120-170gm per pc, 170-220gm per pc or 220gm & above). The price per kg increases with the weight.

3 major hypermarkets operators in Malaysia carry this product. C4, Giant and Tesco. I have had the nightmares -> having only steamed dory fillets (without any sauce or seasoning) as lunch to try all existing brands in the market. The verdict as follows :

C4 – carries only a single packaging of 500gm per packet. Quality of product is ok. However the smaller packaging also means consumers are buying smaller fish fillets, which translate into higher percentage of glazing.

Giant – carries 2 types (800gm & 1.5 kg) pack of dory fillets. Quality of product is the best in the market. Good fillets size with reasonable glazing (you can test it out if you want. Just weight the fish meat before and after thawing).

Tesco – carries free weight. Products are usually repacked in food-grade wrappers or plan clear plastic packaging. Highest percentage of glazing (almost 40%) and product quality is the worst. Strong muddy taste when cooked.

The Country Farm (there’s an outlet at LG Bangsar Village) serves one of the best dory fillet dish around. Go try it out. The Vietnam Kitchen also serves a good dish using the dory fillet. One of my favourite outlets is in USJ Taipan (next to slimming sanctuary), easier to find parking and nice dining environment.