August 18, 2014 — I grew up eating fish. My family enjoyed a fish meal at least once a week, usually mackerel, salmon trout (now called steelhead) or flounder. Lox, pickled herring, smoked white fish and sable were occasional treats.
In summer, when I caught little sunfish and perch in a local lake, my mother dutifully cleaned and pan-fried them. Yum!
My sons like fish, and fishing, too. They often took sardine sandwiches for lunch at school; I knew they would not be traded for PB&J. When they pulled a five-pound carp from a Minnesota river, I stuffed and baked it, to the delight of dinner guests. I’m thrilled, too, that all four grandsons like fish.
So it baffles me that fish remains so unloved in comparison with the other sources of animal protein: red meat and poultry.
I know all the excuses: “I don’t know what to buy.” “I don’t know how to prepare it.” “It smells up the kitchen.” “I once ate bad fish and never touched it again.”
There are ways to overcome these objections. (A decade ago, I produced a seafood cookbook with Richard Flaste to facilitate this.) And it helps to know how and why to choose certain fish and shellfish over others.