Tip of the month: Do you want to know which fish are
safer to eat? Which to avoid because of
over-fishing and bad catch management?
Then visit the Blue Ocean Institute http://www.blueocean.org/Seafood/
for their “Guide to Ocean Friendly Seafood.” You can also get wallet-sized
copies free for the asking.
Food
Focus: Fish -- Omega-3 Fatty Acids vs. Mercury?
Why are omega-3s so important? They are important now because our Western
diet has favored the other essential fatty acid (omega-6 – think vegetable oils)
and brought most of us into imbalance as a result. Omega-3s help produce what our bodies need to
cope with inflammation and thereby help us fend off arthritis, colitis, diabetes,
hypertension, and ulcers, as well as
bronchial, cardiac, and some skin problems.
Basically, our immune systems need it.
Oily, cold water fish are prime sources: salmon, sardines, tuna, eel,
mackerel, trout, herring. Eggs can also
provide some omega-3s. (Earl Mindell’s
New Vitamin Bible, and Vitamins for
Dummies)
But what about
mercury and PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyl, a now banned but persistent organic
toxin)? The general advice is to prefer
the smaller fish because they’ve eaten fewer other fish and thus accumulated
fewer toxins. Do consult the Blue Ocean
Institute (see above) for up-dated bulletins on various species fished in
various locations. (The carcinogenic
pollutant dioxin is found in fresh water fish in rivers and lakes.)
Recipe of the month:
Mahi-mahi
Prep Time:
5 minutes
cooking time
15 minutes
Yields: 2 servings
Ingredients:
2 6-8 ounce mahi-mahi fillets
Sea salt and pepper to taste
2 limes, juiced
3 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 ½ teaspoons of fresh grated ginger root
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Lemon, cut into 4 wedges
Directions:
- Rinse, season with sea salt and pepper, and place the
fish in a shallow baking dish.
- Combine the lime juice, soy sauce, ginger, and olive
oil in a small bowl and pour it over the fish.
- Turn the mahi mahi over in the marinade and let it
sit for 10-15 minutes.
- Preheat the skillet on medium-high heat.
- Cook the fish with the marinade for a total of 8
minutes per inch of thickness ( i.e., 4 minutes each side if the filets
are 1 inch thick) or until it is firm and opaque.
- Garnish with the lemon wedges.
- Optional bonus step, courtesy of Dominick Jones:
·
Remove
the fish from the pan and keep it warm
·
Rapidly
reduce the marinade until syrupy, being careful not to burn it
·
Off
the heat stir in some butter when the marinade is warm, not hot.
·
Pour
the sauce over the fish.
