My review for the Kirkland Signature frozen wild caught Atlantic cod from Costco!
Recently I decided that cod was actually okay tasting and began eating more cod because of the health benefits! I posted a review for this Miso Glazed Cod from Costco and when I ran out of that I decided I needed to buy some more cod.
I hadn’t tried the Costco Kirkland Signature Wild Caught Atlantic Cod so I picked up a bag to try. I figure it’s a healthy option because it’s just plain cod so I can control how much salt and oil I add to it!
You can find the Costco Kirkland Signature Wild Caught Alaskan Cod in the freezer section by the other frozen fish and the item number is 699794.
Taste
I really wanted to like this cod and I still like cod in general but will not be repurchasing the Costco cod again, it almost turned me off cod completely. I totally may have just got a bad bag.
First of all this cod smells fishy, as soon as I take it out of the packaging and put it in the oven to bake I just wait for my husband to start making comments about how fishy it smells. I do not enjoy fishy smelling fish at all and got turned off by the smell. Also I found a few small pieces of bone in my cod, not a big deal but when you combine the bones with the smell I wasn’t loving this.
There’s no added flavor to the cod, which is totally fine for me because I enjoy just simple salt & pepper. After baking this the cod was mostly tender, light and flaky but I did find some gross, slimy bites.
Cost
I paid $21.99 for the bag of Kirkland Signature Wild Cod. You get 4 to 6 cod portions in the bag that are 142 to 227 grams each and come individually vacuum-packed.
Convenience
You can choose to grill, sauté or bake the cod to prepare it. The cod needs to be defrosted and you can do that by leaving it in the fridge overnight. Once the cod is thawed the bag states it should be consumed within two days.
I chose to bake the cod, the packaging states to bake it at 400 degrees farenheit for 10 to 12 minutes however I found my cod needed a few minutes longer than 12 minutes before it reached an internal temperature of 158 degrees Fahrenheit.
The cod needs to be kept frozen until you’re ready to cook it and the best before date listed on the bag is about a year and a half from the date we purchased the frozen Costco Kirkland Signature Wild Caught Atlantic Cod.
Nutrition
Cod is a super healthy protein option. A 170 gram portion is 140 calories, one gram of fat, 120 mg of sodium, zero grams of fibre, sugar or carbohydrates and 30 grams of protein! The ingredients list is one ingredient, Atlantic Cod.
I’ve had other cod before that wasn’t at all slimy, was less fishy smelling and didn’t have bits of bone so I’ll skip repurchasing this product. I’m not sure if I just got a bad batch but I’m a little turned off to try it again!
Scoring
Taste: 6/10
Cost: 7.5/10
Convenience: 5/10
Nutrition: 10/10
Overall
Walk on by!
I enjoy the High Liner Miso Glazed Cod from Costco more than this so you might want to check that product out if you like cod!
Have you tried this cod? How did you find it, did I just get a bad bag?
Please note that this review was not paid for or sponsored by any third party. This product was purchased by Costcuisine for the purpose of producing this review. The opinions in this review are strictly those of Costcuisine. Costcuisine is not affiliated with Costco or any of its suppliers. In the event that Costcuisine receives compensation for a post from the manufacturer of a product or some other third party, the arrangement will be clearly disclosed (including where the manufacturer of a product provides Costcuisine with a free sample of the product).
I found the cod fishy smelling. I took it out of the packaging to defrost it ,as the directions said. It was tasteless. Very disappointed.
Ours were super fishy! Did not like at all.
I wanted to like this because it said it was wild caught and there was no flavoring.. But when I defrosted two of them I noticed that the had tiny red worms throughout the filets. Although I since learned that this is considered common and harmess to ingest, it completely turned me off and I threw out the entire package. Just too off putting.
Oh gross!
Hi, Natalie,
Thanks for reviewing some Costco foods for us.
I liked the Costco Wild-Caught Cod and did not find it to be fishy. Looking all over the packaging before purchasing, I could not find any words to indicate that the “wild-caught” cod might really be farmed cod. It does appear to be truly wild-caught cod which is why I purchased it.
On the other hand, the High Liner Miso-Glazed Cod also caught my attention and I was initially all set to buy that – because it said “Wild” on the package. However, further down on the package, I learned that the Miso-Glazed Cod was really farmed cod. Sadly, anymore, you cannot count on the words “Wild or Wild-Caught” on packaging to mean “truly wild – not farmed” – you have to read ALL the words!
In fact, if you look at Costco’s “Wild” Salmon Fish Oil and read all the words on the bottle, you will learn that Costco’s “Wild” Salmon Fish Oil is actually derived from farmed salmon. It’s sad that Costco can no longer be counted on to be truthful. At one time I took Costco at its word – but no more.
Natalie, looking at your photo of the cod you disliked (uncooked on a white plate), it appeared you perhaps had defrosted it while still encased in its plastic pouch. If so, that might explain why it tasted fishy to you. The package says to remove the cod from all packaging before defrosting. Once defrosted, before cooking, rinsing the cod briefly with water could remove any possible sliminess and help diminish fishiness. I have heard also that letting fish soak a while in shallow milk before cooking can also make the fish milder.
I have still not found any fish to rival the wonderful wild fresh-water bass we used to catch, years ago, early in the morning from a natural lake in northern Florida and have for breakfast! Yum! Now that was sweet meat! It was long before GMOs and glyphosate had begun to rear their ugly heads and make eating a somewhat hazardous experience!
Happy fishing at Costco!
Thanks for the informative comment!
Found the Kirkland wild cod easy to use and not fishy smelling at all. I especially liked that each piece is individually wrapped. I keep I. A separate freezer.
I am a member of Costco and not paid to write reviews.
Frustrating packaging! Difficult to open. Once open, impossible to seal closed.
My bag was not fishy smelling or tasting at all. Was very good. Blackened mine in a skillet with just a little olive oil.
We have purchased two packages and there was no fishy smell great price and good product will repurchase.
Vancouver Island
Yes my friend who just bought some said hers had no fishy smell either!
Super fishy smelling. Decided to marinate as a result and still had a slight fish flavor upon cooking. Going back!
Yeah I was not a fan!
I agree, these were too bland.
I had the exact experience with the plain filets. I too liked the miso glazed and I loved the orange blackened cod but can no longer find it at Costco.
When posting a review of any seafood sold at Costco, please state definitively if the item was farmed – and show how you know this to be true. Otherwise readers have to sift through multiple conflicting comments and still be uncertain.