I think I understand the purpose of brine better now. It retains moisture and keeps the fish plump and succulent.
As I was preparing fillets to soak in a simple brine overnight for my smoker tomorrow, I tried a "quick brine" on my yellowtail collars for the grill. I lightly rinsed off the salt and cooked them skin side down without flipping in my covered table top Weber grill on medium. It was more of a bake than a grill.
I pulled them off and let them rest for a few minutes under a loose tent of aluminum foil.
The meat slid off the cartilage of the collar perfectly cooked, moist, and with good texture. It required no additional seasoning. The brine I rinsed off provided just the right amount of salt to bring out the wonderful natural flavor of
hamachi kama.
The rich flavor of yellowtail washed down nicely with slightly chilled dry red wine.
Old Dog:New Tricks
Now I feel hungry for chocolate chip cookies
PS, at no additional charge: For those who like exploratory cooking, here is a similar "quick brine" technique for salmon that demonstrates the purpose of brine:
http://foodwishes.blogspot.com/2014/...ut-i-want.html