Fisheses!

[pegkerr]

I'm thinking I want to cook some fish tonight. I could stop at Coastal Seafoods on my way home, and pick up . . . what?

Frankly, I hardly ever cook fish because no one in my family will eat it except for me (other than canned tuna, which Rob will eat). In fact, the girls gag and turn green whenever I've cooked and offered salmon, for example.

However, I'm learning a lot about my diet since joining SparkPeople, and one of the things I'm learning is that I need more Omega-3.

Since LiveJournal is the Sum of All Knowledge, anyone have any easy fish recipes to suggest for a neophyte fish cook? No sardines or herrings: something for a mild-tasting fish, because I will offer the girls a bite (although they may refuse). Halibut, or tilapia? Ideas?

Comments

Tilapia

[dlandon.livejournal.com]

I actually just made a recipe this weekend. If you go to www.cookinglight.com and search for tilapia + mango salsa you should find it. It's absolutely delicious, and the fish is just grilled with a little salt and pepper. We actually bought the tilapia at Coastal Seafoods, it was @$10 for 4 six ounce pieces. I made a garlic couscous to go with it.
Good luck finding something the girls might eat!
- D

Re: Tilapia

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that recipe in Cooking Light is what made me think of doing it! Maybe I'll try that.

Re: Tilapia

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

You can even buy mango salsa if you're lazy.

B

Just a fish type suggestion, no recipes.

[megd.livejournal.com]

I actually don't like a lot of fish. (Weird because I live on the coast, I know)

But I actually don't mind the taste of grouper. It's not a super fishy tasting fish. Mom always makes it blackened or on the grill.

[murumatsu.livejournal.com]

I've been reading and enjopying your livejournal for a while..
This is very easy and non-greasy (as opposed to fried fish). I don't know how it will go over with non-fish-eaters, as everyone in my family likes fish (my 3-year old insists on an adult-size portion). (I admit that I find salmon to be quite different tasting from most other fish, and I really don't like it much--to me it smells awful while cooking.So hopefilly your family will be more accepting of tilapia or some other fish than salmon).

Grease a flat pan (cookie sheet, pizza pan, whatever).
Put fish fillets on pan.
Put a few small pieces of butter on each piece of fish.
Sprinkle the fish with your choice of seasonings (salt/pepper/dill is good)
Cook for about 1/2 an hour at 400.

[sternel.livejournal.com]

My mother's standby fish dish has always been flounder, which she bakes with cheese sauce and onions. We were more than happy to eat it as kids, because it had cheese, and who doesn't love cheese? (Cheese sauce being a roux with cheese melted into it.) She also wisely left the onions in rings so we could pick them out easily. (She liked 'em, we didn't. Easiest compromise.) We've never had a hard time getting flouder, living right on the coast, but I'd imagine you could substitute any other mild fish filets.

Now I'm hungry. =)

[peacockharpy.livejournal.com]

fishy fishy fish!

Tilapia is extremely versatile and not at all fishy-tasting. Sometimes, I smear a little pesto on top of each tilapia slice and then bake it. Sometimes I mix up a sort of soy sauce-orange juice-ginger and then bake it that way. You only have to bake it about 10-12 minutes at 400 or so.

A non-tilapia recipe: if you get really good, fresh catfish, you can saute it in a little butter after sprinkling it with Old Bay -- that's simple, but delicious.

[faithhopetricks.livejournal.com]

Man, I would eat at your house in a hot second. Except I think my bland diet prevents me from eating a lot of things I would enjoy. ((sob))

I think fillet of sole is a pretty mild-tasting fish which is quite good baked. This is a nice simple recipe for Sole Piccata which looks pretty healthy.

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

When I tempura fish, it gets eaten. Any other recipe, and I have to eat it all myself.

[liadan-m.livejournal.com]

I happen to side with your daughters in this one, but I'll eat shellfish quite happily

how about something like clam chowder? or even a fish chowder? My cheating recipe is simple: 2 cans cream of potato soup, 2 potatoes cooked and cubbed, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 4 or so cups of milk, a cup of minced or chopped clams, salt, pepper and parsley to taste.

mix everything in a large pot. let boil, then reduce heat. The milk content varies to how thick you want the finished product to be...If I make it from scratch I skip the canned soup and just use a half gallon of milk, I then add some more seasonings, and more salt. The clams can be replaced by crab or mini shrimp.

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

We had a cottage and used to eat fish we caught ourselves - it's amazing how people who don't like fish will eat fish they caught. But, figuring that isn't one of your options, I will tell you that my mother used to poach fish in milk. It not only took away a lot of the 'fishiness' but it took away a lot of the fishy smell, too.

[serenya-loreden.livejournal.com]

Tilapia is quite mild, and a firm 'steak' enough to be grilled, baked, or fried. Scrod (or generic white fish) is also very mild (growing up it was the only fish my very fussy brother would eat). It's not as firm a fish though, so best seasoned and baked rather then attempting to grill.

The key is freshness, I would not risk anything more then a day old, as the fishy smell and taste can get very noticeable. I love fish, but I'm still pretty fussy about the smell.

[naomikritzer]

Coastal is great. In your place, I'd suggest going over, describing what you want, and seeing what they recommend that's not too expensive. They almost always have tilapia. Earlier this week they also had cod, and some white-fleshed fish I'd never heard of that might also be mild flavored. They can also give you suggestions for cooking the fish, and I'm quite sure they've had people come in before and say, "My kids normally won't touch fish but I'd like to encourage them to at least try a bite. What would you suggest?" Oh, also, since they'll sell any quantity you want, you could buy ahi tuna for yourself and a tiny quantity of tilapia for the girls, if you'd like something more assertive tasting.

I really like their bone-out rainbow trout, but Fiona and Delia would probably pass out cold at the very sight. (The heads are still attached. And the tails. And the skin.)

Thursday and Friday are both fantastic days to shop at Coastal; they've got a TON of stuff in at this point in the week. (Monday, when I bought fish for Kiera's birthday -- not so fantastic.)

[rivka.livejournal.com]

My favorite way to serve fish is to marinate it in olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and then top it with a homemade tropical fruit salsa: 1 diced mango, 1 small can of diced pineapple, 1/2 a diced red bell pepper (for color contrast and crunch), a splash of vinegar, a sprinkling of sugar, and chili peppers to taste.

Last night we tried a new recipe for tilapia. I put two tilapia filets in a baking dish and topped them with salt, pepper, and a few dabs of butter. In a bowl, I mixed together 1 Tbsp lemon juice, 1/4 cup pine nuts, and 1/2 cup halved green seedless grapes. I spread that over the fish filets and poured 1/4 cup wine over the whole thing. Then I baked them uncovered at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. It was good.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

I should probably specify that in the first recipe I do cook the fish. Usually five minutes on the George Foreman grill for something like thick salmon filets or steaks, and less time for smaller fish.

[hamsterwoman]

Tilapia may be a good choice for people-who-don't-really-like-fish -- I sort of fall into this category, and my husband even more so, and we both enjoy eating tilapia (fried lightly breaded, mostly, but it's good other ways, too; it goes well with soy sause and a little bit of wasabi for added flavor).

[next-bold-move.livejournal.com]

We pan-fry tilapia in a half-butter-half-EVOO mix with lots of garlic and fresh thyme, and that's always a hit around here.

[dreadmouse.livejournal.com]

My brother-in-law prepared a wonderful halibut dish for us when we visited him a few weeks ago. It was pretty simple; he floured some halibut fillets and then light pan-fried them. They were then smothered in a butter, whipping cream, and fresh tarragon sauce (which he rendered down to thicken rather than flouring). It probably wasn't the healthiest meal ever, thanks to the sauce, but it was sinfully good.

[rain-girl-ak.livejournal.com]

My favorite tilapia dish is to melt 2 tbs butter, 1 tbs lemon juice & a bit of garlic powder, pour it over tilapia filets, top with grated (fresh) parmesan and bake at 375. Two filets take 25 minutes. I usually serve it with steamed potatos and steamed broccoli.

[naomikritzer]

If I were trying to get Delia and Fiona to try it, this is probably the recipe I'd go with. Very simple, and you've said in the past they like parmesan.

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

If I were going to get those kids to try fish, I would take them out of their parent's house and to dinner without their parents. My guess is that is more central to the issue than the actual taste of fish.

B

[dreamflower]

I agree--tilapia is versatile and lovely. I love red snapper, too--broiled or grilled, and you can oven-fry catfish: I dip the filets in buttermilk and either cornflake or bread crumbs seasoned to taste--spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray, and lay the filets out, spray again. Then bake at 425 for about 5 minutes or so on each side (depends on the size of the filets.) Almost as good as real fried catfish, and much better for you.

[nmsunbear.livejournal.com]

I love tilapia pan-fried in olive oil, then topped with a quick pan sauce of white wine, lemon juice, and capers. (Just reduce real quick in the same pan you cooked the fish in.)

Depending on the fish-hater, tuna can be a good choice. Cooked rare, it has strong similarities to steak.

Enjoy! (Now I want some fish too. Hmm.)

[althea_valara]

I haven't tried tilapia yet. I'm guessing I should, from all the comments here. :)

I'm not a big fan of fish, either. I like shellfish quite a bit, though (especially shrimp and scallops). For non-shellfish, I'd vote for halibut or mahi mahi. I'm sensitive to texture as well as taste, and I've found that the texture of these don't bother me as much as fishier-fish.

For a fun meal that even non-fish eaters would likely eat... how about Fish Tacos? When I was in Seattle I made a point to eat fish at least twice, even though I'm not a fish eater, and my first fish meal was fish tacos made with mahi mahi. They were extremely yummy.

[huladavid.livejournal.com]

I'm very fond of orange roughy (sp?), but I don't know if it's got enought of the Omega-3s you're looking for.

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

I think we should eat the fish that tastes best, and if we need more Omega-3 we should take a pill.

B

[huladavid.livejournal.com]

Hmm.... Of maybe fishsticks with Omega 3 oil on 'em...

Mahi

[bluewaterlilies.livejournal.com]

If you can find mahi mahi, you should definitely try it. It's a wonderful fish, very mild and firm and almost chicken-like. I most often have it grilled and spiced to taste, with lemon butter on the side to dip it in.

[kiwiria.livejournal.com]

I tried a very easy and very delicious salmon lasagna not too long ago. I posted the recipe here.

Take heart - I couldn't stand fish as a child either, but learned to enjoy it.

[huladavid.livejournal.com]

Fish lasagna? That seems so...weird. But then this is coming from a man who willingly eats strange Mid-western food. Can't think of any right off the bat, but I know I must have eaten something odd in all the years I've been alive...

Oh, wait. Ketchup on scrambled eggs--that's weird and Mid-western!

[kiwiria.livejournal.com]

Really? You've never heard of fish lasagna before? Huh, weird. It's very common in Denmark. And goooooood :)

[huladavid.livejournal.com]

Danish/Italian cuisine, eh? Now that just adds to the weirdness in my Mid-western mind. Although, if it's common in Denmark, that might explains my bafflement--I'm pretty uncommon in Denmark...

[kiwiria.livejournal.com]

Hehehe... that's the benefits of the Internet - you can easily get international inspiration :-)

[kfitzwarin.livejournal.com]

I don't know if tilapia would help with the Omega-3 issue, but as a simple fish, it's pretty good.

We do most white fish in the microwave, in a Corelle or glass dish. Lay the fillets on slices of lemon in the pan, top with additional slices of lemon, a crack of black pepper and dot with a little butter. Cover with plastic wrap (or one of the plastic/elastic "shower caps") or lid and nuke until the fish turns opaque.

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

"...easy fish recipes to suggest for a neophyte fish cook?"

Put it in a pan with a little butter. Cook for a few minutes, until done.

Serve.

B

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

Speaking of fish . . .
Have you and/or K. checked out the new Wasabi sushi restaurant on Washington Avenue yet?

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

We have not.

B

[loup_noir]

Do you have a grill or would this be done on a stove?

If the fish is fairly dense, like snapper or lingcod, we usually grill it. A little mustard, sherry, horseradish and olive oil all swooshed together make the sauce. We have this little basket thing that we put the fish into after slathering it with the goo. A few minutes on each side (I wish I could be more precise, but so much depends on the type of fish and how much) and it's done.

Option two: frying pan. Almost all fish fry well. We don't like deep frying, but a little olive oil, a relatively high heat, fish lightly coated with spices, plop into the pan, cook a few minutes, flip, cook a few more minutes and sever works for us.

If you've got black bean sauce, you can put a thickish, dense slice of fish onto a piece of aluminum foil with a thin layer of sauce under it, put more on top, maybe cut up some green onions for extra goodness and/or some ginger diced up, fold over the foil, put under the broiler for three to five minutes, turn, repeat.

Halibut would work. I don't know much about tilapia. Snapper, ling cod, cod cheeks and carp work for the grilling and broiling options. Salmon, we grill with a sweet mustard sauce.

Now I'm hungry.

[ambar.livejournal.com]

Not an answer to your direct question, but EPA/DHA (fish oil) supplements are often recommended in other circles I travel in. I get mine from lef.org, but you're looking for "molecularly distilled".

[castiron.livejournal.com]

There's a few nice fish-in-foil recipes in Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home; they all take a fish fillet, slices of various vegetables, sprinklings of various spices/herbs, and a little bit of oil; wrap it up in foil, and cook (book's at home, so I can't give you time/temperature off the top of my head).

I also like to put a salmon fillet in a casserole dish, add sliced whatever-veggies-I-have-on-hand (onion, mushroom, zucchini, tomato, fresh basil, whatever), and cook that at 450F for about 20 minutes or so (covered if I'm running light on veggies; uncovered if the salmon's buried in them).