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KIDSAFE SEAFOOD: THE HEALTHIEST FISH IN THE SEA

When I was a teenager, my dad used to take us sailing near our home in Southern California on The Evely, the sailboat he fixed up and named after my mom.  Once we got some distance offshore, my dad would catch whatever grabbed his bait, and, to my horror, would clean it, slice it up, slather it with horseradish and soy sauce, and eat it raw (despite his encouragement, I refused to taste it).  I later came to love all varieties of sushi, and now wonder how my dad’s “sushi” would have stacked up to our local Japanese restaurant’s.  

Even though we don’t have to catch it ourselves, seafood may be the trickiest of all foods I feed my family and recommend in The Scramble!  While certain types of fish are among the healthiest foods we can eat, others are tainted with contaminants such as mercury and PCBs (a regrettable result of human pollution).  Once I narrow the list of edible fish down to those that are safest for human consumption, environmentally friendly, and appeal to finicky eaters, I often feel like the list of acceptable seafood is very short.  

Despite those challenges, I still love cooking fish.  Fish is generally a low fat protein that has a mild flavor and is quick and easy to prepare.  When it’s fresh and flavorful, it tastes fabulous.  

Recently, The Scramble has teamed up with SeaWeb and Environmental Defense to provide clear guidance on the very best seafood to serve kids—seafood that is nutritious, low in toxic pollutants, and ocean-friendly (some varieties of fish are being over fished to the brink of extinction).  At the top of the list of best seafood for kids are tilapia, wild Alaskan salmon, and Northern US and Canadian shrimp—which are three of my favorite types of seafood to cook.  

For more information about Kidsafe seafood, along with quick recipes (including some recipes from The Scramble), visit www.kidsafeseafood.org.  For an even broader list of acceptable seafood for adults, visit www.oceansalive.org.  

I plan to continue serving up fish each week at home and in the newsletter, and I hope your family enjoys making seafood part of its delicious and healthy dinners each week.  If you have any recipes (fish or others) to share with me, I’d love to give them a try.