With the recent spate of media coverage on downer cattle and slaughterhouse videos I've decided to try and start eating more fish for dinner now. I usually like to order turbot or monkfish, but these varieties aren't always available everywhere. So I want to know what other species people can recommend... Also what are the differences between fresh and saltwater fish, with regard to stuff like flavor, texture, bones?
My cousin played a cruel joke on me about Mahi Mahi. I was in Hawaii and I ordered a Mahi Mahi sandwich for the first time. After eating it, my cousin said "you just ate a baby dolphin". I have a love for dolphins. I nearly cried. She clarified that it is not a dolphin which is a mammal but a dolphin fish. Damn her!! Anyway, I like red snapper, salmon and tuna.
It seems to be true. The concentration of mercury in any given fish depends on the species of fish, the age and size of the fish and the type of water body in which it is found. In general, fish-eating fish such as shark, swordfish, marlin, larger species of tuna, walleye, largemouth bass, and chain pickerel have higher levels of methylmercury than herbivorous fish such as tilapia, trout, and herring. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methylmercury
Yes. It's called bioaccumulation/biomagnification. The higher up the food chain, the greater the risk. Except for shellfish. They absorb tons of pollutants with ease. Don't eat a lot of oysters.
Definitely recommend Mahi Mahi (or Dorado or Dolphin.....all the same fish, but called different names depending on where you are). Great taste and the fishery is highly sustainable as they are one of the most prolific, fastest growing species. A while back, NOT eating Chilean Seabas (Patagonian Toothfish) was all the rage as their stocks were being depleted, but there is a bit of a turnaround in the works now as Americans not eating the fish tends to only punish the legitimate liscenesed fisherman who follow the rules........the real problem being rogue fisherman who work with black markets in other countries. Fisheries politics aside though, that is one fine eating fish. The meat seems is so good, it reminds of large bites of crab.......already dipped in butter. Wild caught salmon is pretty much the rage now. I love salmon......and the wild stuff is definitely better than the farm raised. Wherever you are, if it says "Atlantic Salmon," then you know it is farm raised. Snapper and grouper are wonderful, but their stocks have been hit pretty hard. Same thing with Atlantic Cod and swordfish (the swords are coming back a bit). There isn't too many commercially available freshwater fishes, but most of the redfish (red drum) you see in the markets are actually farm raised in fresh water ponds (though they are a salt water fish). Flat fishes are alwasy yummy too........flounder and halibut.
Bad is relative. You'd be hard pressed to exceed dose limits by simply eating shellfish unless you ate it all the time. But I would not take the risk if you are pregnant, for example.
With a few exceptions (kona blue kampachi) stay away from farm raised fish. Swordfish, sharks, bluefin tuna, seabass are all pretty heavily overfished right now. Don't worry about the mercury in fish.
I found some seasoning in Asian grocery store that's made of chili powder, ground cumin, garlic, and ginger. Marinate the sucker for couple hours and it's ready to grill. Very nice flavor if you like spicy stuff.
As to what Pole said, Chilean Seabass is indeed awesome. I liken it to the lobster version of fish. A mild, delicate, buttery flavor. Easily my favorite, but like he said it's been in low reserves so I haven't had any in over a year. I also dig tuna and catfish, salmon to a lesser extent. Tilapia is my go to cheap fish.
Catfish and trout....those are freshwater fish right? Is there anything drastically different about them compared to the saltwater varieties like less salty taste or softer meat for instance?
DUH! I said there wasn't any commercially available freshwater fishes......completely forgetting about catfish. Tilapia is also raised in fresh water although I think it is usually found wild in brackish water. Trout can be fresh or saltwater, but I usually think of trout as a fish that more people catch rather than buy.
