Category Archives: fish

Four Ways To Cook Fish

It is common knowledge that fish are a healthy choice when compared with red meat. High in omega-3 fatty acids, potassium, and vitamin B12, fish is also a great protein source. Many people struggle, however, when it comes to cooking fish because they're not sure how do to it. Here are a few quick and easy tips on the different ways to cook fish

1.Baking

Baking is one of the easiest ways to prepare fish and it's fairly straightforward. The simple rule of thumb when it comes to baking fish is not more than 10 minutes for each inch of thickness. Being mindful of this measure means you're less likely to overcook the fish.

When choosing to bake fish it can be done either directly in a dish with seasoning or you can wrap it in parchment paper, season, and make a packet to place on a baking tray. The packet method is going to create a fish that is more steamed, but it's still cooked in the oven and is a healthy choice.

2. Broiling

This is a delicious and easy way to prepare fish. Do be mindful that the fish needs to be at least 4-5 inches below the broiler coil in order to make sure it does not burn. Fish will need to be basted when broiling to make sure it doesn't dry out. Broil approximately 4 minutes on each side. Check with a meat thermometer to make sure it's cooked through before serving.

3. Poaching

Poaching is a great way to cook fish while keeping it moist. Begin by placing the fish into a dish and just barely covering it with liquid and your seasonings of choice. Bring the fish to a simmer on the stovetop and check it with a meat thermometer. When it has reached an internal temperature of 165-180°F it's ready.

Poaching is a wonderful way to add flavor. Start by heating the liquid and the aromatics. If there's olive oil use it to saute any onions or garlic first to bring out their flavor. Bring the ingredients to a high simmer, add the fish and then poach 10-12 minutes until the fish is cooked though. If needed increase the liquid and aromatics to make sure the fish is covered.

Some tasty poaching liquid combinations include:

2 cups olive oil + 1 diced shallot + 3 cloves of garlic, minced + 1 bay leaf + 1 heaping teaspoon citrus zest
1/3 cup white wine + 2/3 cup butter + 1 clove garlic, minced + 2 small sprigs of fresh thyme
1 tablespoon olive oil + 1 shallot + 3 cloves garlic, minced + 1 teaspoon grated ginger + 1 14.5 ounce can of full fat coconut milk + zest of 1 lime + 2 tablespoons lime juice + ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 cups bone broth [link] + 2 leeks, cleaned and sliced + zest of 1 lemon + 2 tablespoons lemon juice + 1 teaspoon grated ginger

4. Pan frying

Frying fish is another quick and delicious way to prepare many kinds of fish. Typically with this method butter or oil is added to the pan. Once it's heated the seasoned fish is then placed in the pan and cooked until done. While you can purchasing seasoning mixes for fish, it's simple to make your own by combining

1 tablespoon dry basil
1 tablespoon dill weed
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 heaping teaspoon parsley
½ teaspoon celery seed
sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together and sprinkle liberally over the fish
For more flavor keep the sauce from the pan and drizzle it over the fish once it's on the plate
Then add a generous squeeze of lemon juice for a wonderful way to finish the dish

General guidelines for eating fish call for 2-3 servings per week. However you prepare your fish keep in mind that it is a fabulous protein. For better nutrient density when it comes to fish be sure to purchase wild caught, not farm raised. It's also a good idea to be mindful of the sustainability of your fish (how responsibly it's been sourced and the environmental impact). The best resource to check this is the Monterrey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch. You can check online or download the app.

Long time readers will be aware that I have a true food allergy for fish and seafood. This would be why there are so few fish recipes on the website. This post was generously contributed by my friend Rachel, a wonderful cook and real-food advocate.

[expand title="Sources"]

"Advice About Eating Fish". U.S. Food And Drug Administration, 2022, https://www.fda.gov/food/consumers/advice-about-eating-fish.

Caters, Eco. "Wild Caught Vs. Farm-Raised Fish: Which Is Better? | Eco Caters". Best Catering In San Diego, Los Angeles, & DC | Eco Caters, 2019, https://www.ecocaters.com/blog/wild-caught-vs-farm-raised-fish-which-is-better/.

Wadyka, Sally. Consumer Reports. How Often Should You Be Eating Fish.

https://www.consumerreports.org/healthy-eating/how-often-should-you-be-eating-fish/. May 17, 2018

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Do You Need More Iodine?

by Mirafish, health, nutrients

Iodine is an essential nutrient

In order for your body to keep the thyroid functioning properly while maintaining a healthy metabolism you need iodine. This tiny little gland (located in the neck near the larynx) is part of the endocrine system. It is responsible for producing the hormones that regulate your body's metabolic rate. It also supports digestive function, heart, muscle, and bone health as well as brain development. The catch is that the body doesn't make iodine on its own, which means you have to get it through certain foods. Otherwise, you'll be facing an iodine deficiency, which comes with some undesirable symptoms. So if you want to stay healthy, here's what you should know about the role of iodine in the body–and how to make sure you get enough of this nutrient.

Symptoms of Iodine Deficiency

First, it's important to know if you get enough iodine in your diet. Your doctor will be able to test you for iodine deficiency, but you can also pay attention to some telltale signs that you don't have sufficient iodine in your body. In general, the symptoms all revolve around the thyroid. For example, you might notice goiter, which means your thyroid gland is enlarged.

In addition, if you have an iodine deficiency, you might also have low thyroid levels–or hypothyroidism. The symptoms of this condition include:

fatigue
dry skin
muscle weakness
weight gain
slower heart rate
feeling cold (when others feel the temperature is comfortable or even warm)
frequent issues with constipation
depression

The symptoms of hypothyroidism in children include slow growth and mental delays.

Best Food Sources of Iodine

You can prevent the symptoms of low iodine by eating foods rich in this nutrient.The ocean has lots of iodine, which means most seafood has it, too. In particular, you can find iodine in tuna, cod, shrimp, and seaweed. Sea salt, however, is not a rich source of iodine. Because of this, you may be tempted to simply use iodized table salt. Unfortunately, this is sodium chloride which has added iodide, not a naturally occurring, most beneficial form. So while it is recommended that you use sea salt rather than iodized table salt you need to be sure to include iodine rich foods in your diet or add it supplementally.

Iodine-rich foods include:

sea vegetables (kombu, wakame, nori, dulse)
fish/seafood (tuna, cod, shrimp)
turkey breast
navy beans
yogurt
raw milk
eggs
potato (with the peel).

It is important to choose the best quality of these items possible in order to support optimal health. Remember to choose organic, pasture-raised, or free-range if possible to avoid added hormones, antibiotics, pesticides, and genetically modified animal feed.

Household Exposures That Block Iodine

Another fact to consider is the role of halogens in the body. Halogens are a group of five chemically similar elements, including chlorine, bromine, astatine, fluorine, and iodine. However, since halogens are so alike chemically, they actually compete with each other in the body, which means they can block your body's ability to absorb the iodine you get from food. For this reason, it's important to make sure you get enough iodine and not too high a dose of the other halogens.

If you live in an area with city water you are being exposed to chlorine and fluorine through your water. These halogens compete with iodine for receptor sites on the thyroid. In order to remove chlorine and fluorine in your cooking, drinking, and bathing water you can add filters to your home* including showerhead and bathtub tap filters.

At Home Iodine Test

Now that you know how important iodine is you may be wondering if you have enough in your system (especially if you're not eating iodine rich foods in your diet). One way to determine what your levels are is to do Iodine Patch Test:

Begin in the morning after showering
Using 2% Tincture of Iodine (easily available at drugstore) paint a 2” x 2” patch on the lower belly or upper thigh
Note the time you painted the patch
Observe the patch over the next 24 hours and record the following
When the patch begins to lighten: _______ AM / PM
When the patch disappears completely: ________ AM / PM
Any description of the patch after 24 hours

The faster the patch disappears the higher your need for iodine is likely to be.

If the patch begins to slightly lighten after 24 hours this is considered a normal result.

If the patch disappears or almost disappears in under 24 hours you would want to increase iodine-rich foods and possibly consider adding supplemental iodine. You are encouraged to talk with a healthcare provider about your iodine levels and how much you need.

Clearly, we all need sufficient levels of iodine in order to stay healthy. Now that you know how to determine if your levels are low, consider eating more iodine-rich foods to make sure you're not missing out on this important nutrient.

*disclosure

Your Food – Fortified With Fish

by Mirafats and oil, fish, ingredients, labeling

As the Food Ingredient Guru I advocate reading the food label. It's your best line of defense against all of the chemical cr@p that manufacturers insist in stuffing into your food. If you or someone in your family has a food allergy it becomes imperative that you read the label because you need to pay attention to those ingredients that may cause a serious or life threatening reaction.

In my case it's fish and seafood. For me it's not just a food intolerance (sometimes called a food sensitivity). It's an actual full-blown food allergy. I have an epi-pen. And as much as I advocate and believe in the power of fish oil for health, I can't take it myself.

While fish itself is generally easy to avoid sometimes it gets added to food under the guise of the health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids. Now we've all heard that omega-3s are good for us (they are) and that we don't get enough of them (most of us don't). Manufacturers want to capitalize on this and they add omega-3s to the food, fortifying it*, and displaying this information in big bold letters on the front of the package. But that's not the whole story.

There are three different kinds of omega-3 fatty acids. ALA (alpha-linolenic acid), EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid), and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). ALA comes from plant sources, such as flax, olive oil, walnuts, and soy. EPA and DHA come from fish, with the best sources being cold water fatty fish like sardines and salmon.

Omega-3 fortified products can include milk, yogurt, eggs, juices, bread products, baby food, peanut butter, protein bars, protein shakes, and more. While ALA, or vegetable-sourced omega 3s, are cheaper, that doesn't always mean that that's what the manufacturers are using in their food.

Recently I was doing in a client's pantry and came across this jar of peanut butter. Looking at the label we can see that the omega-3 was is from fish (because is says DHA and EPA on the front). In the ingredient panel (sorry for the fuzzy photo) it lists anchovy and sardine oils as well as tilapia gelatin. I'm not sure why the tilapia gelatin is there except for some sort of binder, but as a source of omega-3 it's not a great one. For someone with a food allergy the difference between vegetarian and animal sources of omega-3 could potentially be huge.

It is also important to note that farm raised fish, such as tilapia, have been shown to be higher in omega-6 fatty acids. We already get too many of these in our modern diet and they're known to be more detrimental to cholesterol, LDL, HDL and triglyceride levels. This is because farm raised fish are eating corn and soy (both probably genetically modified by the way) instead of beneficial algae. When fish eat algae they can convert it into the omega-3 fatty acids we need. When they eat corn and soy they can't and so wind up with the higher omega-6 levels.

Another issue to be aware of is that when we add omega-3s to our food by fortifying it, studies appear to show that the fortified versions don't have the same beneficial effect as the original, whole food source. Additionally, the amount of omega-3s in fortified foods may not reach the levels needed to truly have a beneficial effect on your health. Once again, manufacturers are capitalizing on buzz words and media focus to add something to their food products in an attempt to convince you to buy. Unfortunately it may not provide the health benefits that you think it will.

The solution? Stay informed, read the label, and eat real food.

*Quick reminder: Fortified foods are those that have an added substance that was never in there to begin with (like omega 3s in peanut butter). Enriched foods are those that have ingredients removed during processing added back (usually chemically synthesized versions).

September Is Cholesterol Awareness Month – Part 2

by Mirafish, health, oats, tomatoes, Uncategorized, vegetables

More about cholesterol

In part one of this series of articles for Cholesterol Awareness Month, you learned some of the important facts you need to know about cholesterol and how it can affect your health. In part two you're going to learn about some healthy foods to add to your diet which can help to reduce cholesterol and support better overall health.

Good for you food choices

Let's start by remembering that if a label says the product is low-fat or fat-free this often means it's been adulterated with chemicals that are probably not good for your health. For optimal health it's important to avoid a highly processed SAD (Standard American Diet) plan and instead eat real, whole foods which are delicious as well as nutritious.

Omega 3 fatty acids

These are excellent for heart health. Unfortunately, the modern/SAD diet tends to be very high in omega 6s and does not include nearly enough omega 3s

cold water fatty fish: salmon, tuna steak, arctic char, mackerel, cod/sablefish, haddock, herring, anchovy, and sardines.
walnuts
flax seeds and chia seeds

While you do need omega 6 fatty acids in the diet, many people are getting too much of this and not as many of the omega 3's. Plus certain omega 6s should be avoided; these are typically found in:

soybean oil
corn oil
canola oil
peanuts and peanut oil
safflower oil
sunflower oil
grapeseed oil

Fiber

Adding fiber to your diet is a great idea not only for cardiac health but also for gut health. A higher fiber diet will help to form bulk for your stools and also provides prebiotics, the food that the probiotics in your gut need to live.

Whole grains such as buckwheat, quinoa, and oatmeal (old-fashioned rolled oats, oat groats, or steel-cut, NOT instant)
Legumes – beans, lentils, chickpeas

Note: if you're not used to eating fiber start slow as too much can cause intestinal distress.

Olive oil

A delicious way to cook, dress salads, or create a dipping sauce, olive oil is a heart-healthy food that you want to make sure is part of your pantry. Be sure to choose extra virgin, cold-pressed olive oil as many “light” olive oils are highly processed and don't have the same benefits.

Vegetables

Sadly these days most people think that salad counts as a vegetable. But what they're really eating is nutritionally deficient iceberg lettuce with a few pieces of other vegetables, croutons, candy-coated nuts, or dried fruit, and drowned in chemically laden, high-calorie dressing.

If you're going to have some vegetables I want to encourage you to choose real vegetables packed with nutrients. Colorful, tasty, and good-for-you choices include:

avocados (high in monounsaturated fats)
brassicas – broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and Brussels sprouts(high in fiber and phytonutrients)
tomatoes (lycopene is great for reducing LDL)
sweet potatoes (high in beta-carotene and fiber)

Polyphenols

Found in a number of delicious foods this category of antioxidants is highly supportive of heart health and a very delicious way to support lowering your cholesterol.

Green tea
Red wine
Grape juice
Cocoa products (such as dark chocolate or cocoa powder) – due to caffeine and/or sugars these need to be eaten in moderation

How much to eat

The following are appropriate serving sizes for the foods referenced above. Food journaling is a good way to monitor how much and when you are eating so you can build your nutritional plan to incorporate more of these foods:

Protein – 6-8 ounces of animal protein / 12-24 ounces of vegetable protein
Leafy Greens – 3-4 cups per day
Colorful veggies – 2-3 cups per day
Complex Carbs – .5-1.5 whole grains / 2-3 medium root vegetables
Fruit – .5-1.5 cups
Booster foods – 2-4 tablespoons (seaweeds, greens powders, nutritional yeast, seeds, spices, and herbs)
Liquids – 1-3 cups per day (nourishing broth, green tea)

note: 3 tablespoons = 1 teaspoon

Don't forget to check out the other articles in this series

If you enjoyed this article join The Ingredient Guru Community to get the ingredients for living a healthy life.

Aquaculture

by Mirafish, gmo, health

Pacific threadfins in cage | photo: Haplochromis

A recent article on NPR spoke about some of the challenges facing the idea of acquaculture – in other words, farming fish. As our appetite for fish grows it creates a market for those who want to sell it. However producers want to sell their product the fastest, most efficient way possible at the highest possible profit. That means starting to tinker with the food chain.

Leaving aside the issue of the horror of GMO fish here are some objections to what appears to be happening in aquaculture. It is important to start by pointing out that this is not to oppose sustainable aquaculture; where fish are grown in an environment that allows them to flourish symbiotically with plants, insects, other fish and aquatic life. The objection is to the concept of huge aqua-farms; the marine equivalent of confined feedlot operations for meat animals. The animals are fed the cheapest, most efficient product to make them get fat faster so they can be sold quickly thereby increasing profit. No real effort is made to raise the animal humanely or sustainably, just profitably.

A direct quote from the article says, “A salmon gets more nutrients from a fish in the wild than it would eating something else.” Well that certainly makes sense. So why would we want to feed them anything else?
“[Scientists] are looking into new fish feed using renewable sources, such as biofuel co-products, poultry by-products, soybeans and so on.” Excuse me? First, go back and read statement one above. Then stop and think about what this says. Biofuel co-products? These are already fed to cattle contributing to their ill health. And when they try to feed it to pigs the pigs don't like it. Poultry by-products? As far as I know poultry is not fish and I do not believe that fish should eat poultry guts, bones, skin, and feathers all mulched up into some sort of gloppy muck and then dried into pellets. And the concept of feeding animals not fit for human consumption to other animals makes no sense either if the animal you are feeding it to will eventually be consumed. Soybeans? We eat too many of them as it is in this country and the vast majority of what we eat is contaminated by GMO. This doesn't even begin to take into consideration those people who are allergic to soy. They may quite possibly now be allergic to farmed fish which I'm sure is not going to be labeled ‘this fish was fed soy.' And so on is another statement that bothers me; it is such a blanket, open ended concept that there's no telling what they'll decide to feed the fish. As long as it's cheap and makes profit I am sure it will somehow be deemed appropriate to feed to the fish.
“One of the challenges [they] face is getting a fish to eat something unfamiliar.” Then why do it? I don't think it's healthy for the fish. And if it's not healthy for the fish, ultimately it will not be healthy for us. There is lots of evidence showing that grass fed is healthier both for cows that are raised that way and for those who eat those cows. But in this country we persist in raising corn-fed beef, creating unhealthy fatty cows that we then slaughter and eat. Now we want to do this with fish which is touted as a heart-healthy food? I do not believe it will be as healthy a food after it has been force fed an unnatural diet.

If you eat seafood you want to print out a copy of the Seafood Watch created by the Monterey Bay Aquarium; it lets you know which fish were raised in an environmentally friendly manner.