Thursday, May 22, 2008

Something Fishy This Way Comes...Please

We're big fish fans in our house. We eat it often, but always out. Peru has some fantastic seafood restaurants and we've enjoyed incredibly prepared and perfectly seasoned meals many times. In Washington, DC, too we ate fish frequently. We are particular fans of ceviche
and sushi,

but our tastes run the seafood spectrum. I grew up in Hawaii and ate a lot of fish - sometimes right from the ocean into the pot and into my mouth - does not get any fresher than that. However, in all my fish eating, I have cooked fish only a handful of times. Something about preparing it always gives me pause. I mean, I have no problems sticking my hands into raw hamburger or marinating chicken or searing juicy steaks (because I think well done meat is a sin), but with fish, well, I am stymied. We won't always live in a place with great seafood options, okay so we will for the foreseeable future, but sometimes its nice not to pay someone else to do what you could do yourself. And, we are trying to eat healthier these days by cutting out all kinds of junk, which includes limiting our starch and red meat intake too. With those goals in mind, I have walked through the fish aisles


many times of late trying to be inspired with what to buy and cook, but my lack of experience is too great a hurdle to overcome and I always leave with more chicken. Clearly, I need, and with this post am fishing (couldn't resist) for help from you, our faithful readers. Please send us your fish recipes, tips, success stories, humorous anecdotes etc. We'll try them out and pick our favorite and send you a prize - not fish related, just fun. A suggestion from you a prize from us - it's that simple and you'll be doing us a HUGE favor.

PS though we love the flavor, we're hoping for dishes that look more like this:


and less like this:

19 comments:

Hollyween said...

Ah, fish. I have no great recipes but I LOVE LOVE LOVE Salmon. Especially when it's smoked. And Crab. Ya gotta love having crab! Not crabs....

Jake said...

Oh yeah. We are fish people too. Love love love it.

Of course my husband would KILL for some authentic Peruvian ceviche. He got me hooked on the good stuff, too.

We generally grill our fish...but on a rainy day you can just put fish filets in a Pyrex dish. Sprinkle with lemon juice, dillweed and dot with butter. Then fill the dish enough water so that the fish filets are submerged half-way. Cover tightly with foil. Bake at 500 degrees for 12-15 minutes until fish flakes with fork. Perfect!

Jake said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
dana said...

I'm impressed you're trying to eat so healthy. Our eating habits need a face lift as well. We eat far too much cheese (and Ice cream of course).
Fish...you know, I'm really NOT a seafood person. I've tried and I just don't like it. My husband loves it and I think he's sad I'm not a bigger fan. BUT here's the strange part...I love sushi! He often asks me, how does that work? You hate Seafood but love sushi?
But they're totally different. Sushi is not as "fishy" tasting or smelling. Spicy tuna, Unagi, yellow tail....yum.

So, I am of no help to you. I just felt like commenting.

teresa and the boys said...

I'm with Dana, only without the affinity for sushi. I want so badly to like seafood, and I try it at nearly every opportunity, and I just..... don't. It's tragic, really.

So double the no help to you, but hi!

GermPharm said...

Oh how wonderful Peruvian ceviche is! Thanks for bringing back a great food memory.

My personal at home fish recipe is to put the fish filet in some tinfoil with coarse salt, pepper corns, and lemon slices. I can't remember the temp or time, but this simple recipe is very good.

Ilene said...

Open a can of tuna fish. Add mayo anb chopped dill pickle. Spread on a slice of whole wheat toast and top with lettuce. Add mustard for a little zip.

Oh, I am so going to win this contest.

As you can tell, I don't do fish at home either. Dan's family loves, loves salmon. I think they rub it with olive oil, add spices, some lemon juice and grill. I think that is how they do it. I never pay attention. Whoops.

Jenibelle said...

Gotta try Ilene's recipe!
We love grilled salmon. Take a salmon, dot with butter, put red onion slices on it, lemon slices, lemon pepper & capers. Wrap up in foil and place on the grill about 15-20 minutes, juicy and tangy and yummy. Byron also likes chipotle mayo, spread thinly, lime slices and jalapeno slices and then grill, it's spicy and flavorful.

I hope Ilene wins.

Annemarie said...

I've only cooked seafood once or twice, but the winner at my house was roasted shrimp..toss it with olive oil, lemon juice, salt & pepper & roast at 400 degrees until pink (5-10 min)

I also hope Ilene wins. That is classic!!

kimcolton said...

Let me know when you find a winner! We have the same problem, so many fish, but not enough skill. We just got your letter, btw! Our first piece of snail mail--thanks for taking the time, and what a cute baby! Love you guys!

Melissa said...

oh I love sushi... but I can't have it with seaweed... I have to have it wrapped with rice paper. I can't stand sushi

The Doughracle said...

Hey guys - we love to eat fish and found the following recipe one of
our favourites:

This can work with salmon or any nice white fish.

Put fish (whole or steak) in skillet. Use one part soy sauce to 3-4 parts water, enough to almost cover the fish. Add chopped garlic, and a pinch of spice or crushed chili flakes.
Bring to boil and leave to simmer till the fish is cooked (you wil need to turn occasionally to ensure cooked on both sides).
Serve with salad and fresh bread, maybe even some nice cheese.

Hope you like it! We're so excited for your adventures ahead and only sad we never made it out to visit you in Peru! :(

Tristan said...

I am SO not a fish fan. I will eat shrimp, and crab and lobsters sometimes. My husband however is a big fan. He likes to eat sardines right out of the can. Makes me want to vomit. So he has to clean the can out, clean the sink, run the dispoal if he wants to eat them and he does. I also can not stand tuna, will never eat that at all! Yuck! I hate the smell of fish. Ok...I think I have complained enough :)

Thanks for visiting my blog! This is my first time on your blog so don't feel bad. But I love food so I will be back as well :)

alisa and sometimes brandon said...

I have the VERY same issue...I cannot bring myself to cook it. I think I've made salmon once on the grill. I remember aluminum foil being involved. :)

Lauren in GA said...

I love sushi! I also love most fish but, I don't know that I have any great recipes...I am liking what Gabi said...I think I will try that.

AnnEE said...

Best way to start? Tilapia. I was very wary of cooking fish, but this is a light, easy fish that you can't really screw up.

Little bit of garlic salt, lots of lemon juice, cook in the oven for about 12-15 minutes, or until you can stick a fork in the middle, twist it a 1/4 turn, and it kind of flakes.

Serve with steamed broccoli and uhh...maybe something else? It's light, fresh, and delicious!! After you've mastered that, we'll move on to scarier fish. :o)

Anne said...

Linsey, I lOVE fish! i have been craving fish non-stop lately. the following is my favorite marinade, which i have only used for Salmon, but tonight i am planning to use it for a frozen (sadly) white fish i can't identify since it is in Hebrew...

1.5 lbs salmon filets (I used 1 kilo, or 6 filets)
1 tsp ginger (fresh is MUCH better)
1 tsp garlic (again, use fresh)
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup orange juice (optional, could use lemon or rice vinegar instead)
1/4 cup honey
1 green onion, chopped

mix ingredients, put in ziploc bag with fish. marinate as long oas possible (overnight is best). grill or bake until fish flakes easily with a fork. we baked ours at 175 centigrade (350 Fahrenheit) for 30 minutes or so.

check out allrecipes for other ideas. that is where i got the recipe from originally.

Heather said...

Absolutely no help from me, but I'll check back to see if someone else's help to you could help me too, since I too enjoy fish but don't cook it much. By the way, loved the ceviche picture, made my mouth water.

terahreu said...

I just happened upon your blog. Wow, Lima would be a fantastic place to live! So many cool things to see and do.

As for fish, we lived in both Croatia and Dubai (fantastic fish!). I miss fish soooo badly I could die. Although they do have it in Nepal, the water frightens me and cures me of all my fish eating desires.

 

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