Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with seafood

Tastes like...chicken?

sickinthehead — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 07:59:06 -0800

Help me learn how to like eating seafood. I don't eat any fish - never really have. The idea of eating fish kind of disgusts me. It's hard to delineate exactly why that is, but I think it partially has to do with the fact that when fish is cooking it does not create a pleasant aroma. I would never walk into the house of someone cooking fish and think "mmm, that is going to be delicious" the way I would of someone roasting a turkey or grilling a burger.

The few times I've tried fish I didn't think it was bad, per se, but I couldn't mentally get over what I was eating so I just ate really fast and tried not to think about it.

I realize, however, that not eating any fish at all isn't the healthiest diet, and I really want to start incorporating it into my weekly menu. So I'm looking for suggestions of which types of fish to start with (the least fishy-tasting most palatable to a meat-lover type of fish) and any recipes you have that go along with said fish.

Sensible Caution or Fear Mongering?

esereth — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 14:39:04 -0800

Did you (your wife) eat peanuts while pregnant? Did you child develop an allergy as a result? As we consider the conception of our second child, my husband and I are having disagreements.

My husband put me off many foods when pregnant with our first. Peanuts, sea-food, even single glasses of ice tea. Our daughter was born healthy with no allergies. Husband says I couldn't live with myself if ate peanuts with this pregnancy and the child was damaged. (Neither of us have any food allergies).

I have come to believe there is a lot of fear-mongering when it comes to pregnancy and children, and I'm so sick of participating in it. I suspect most babies are tougher than the people who sell books and magazines would have me believe. Even my ob/gyn looked quizzical when I said I wasn't eating peanuts.

So I'm down to requesting anecdotal evidence. I want to know more about what DOES happen, not what we fear COULD happen. Peanuts, reasonable caffeine, sea food, mild alcohol...did you (she) imbibe in any of them and what were the effects on your child? (Especially peanuts!!)

Know any good restaurants on City Island?

xetere — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 07:27:05 -0800

Where is a great place to eat on City Island? Me - native New Yorker hasn't been to City Island since about 1984. I need to arrange a dinner for a small group Wednesday evening.

It *used* to be a cool, almost New-England type fishing village right off the Bronx.

Whether or not it still is, I have no idea. Browsing menu pages and Zagat leaves one with conflicting reviews for each restaurant it seems (either good, or Red Lobster w/o the signage) ergo I am stumped.

So anyone know City Island? Anyone know a good place with good seafood (price is actually not a factor, woo hoo!) of the type and ambiance that City island used to be famous for?

TIA.

I catch a fish, I cook a fish, I eat a fish, I like it!

furtive — Fri, 08 May 2009 14:10:37 -0800

Trying to remember a cool site about ethical seafood and fish? It showed maps and had lists on the right, and if you entered a fish/shrimp that you currently buy it would rate it in regards to health, overfishing, farming etc. and suggest alternatives. Anyone remember what it was?

Fresh Lobster in Downeast Maine?

Any Moose In a Storm — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 08:27:28 -0800

Getting ready for summer: What are the best places to get Lobster north/east of Acadia National Park/Bar Harbor? Looking especially for lobster pounds or fresh from the dock. Specifically: The Schoodic/Gouldsboro area. NOTE: Not interested in driving into Bar Harbor if I can help it.

Looking for personal recommendations for seafood restaurants in St. Petersburg, FL area.

getmetoSF — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 07:20:40 -0800

My SO and I will be in St. Petersburg, FL area for 2 and half days and I've been put in charge of lining up where we should eat. His requirements are to pick a place with ice cold beer and conch listed on the menu. My requirement is to find a place where the locals go and tend to be less touristy. Suggestions for places you've actually dined that meet both of our requirements? Oh, we will have a car, are flying in and out of Tampa and don't mind travelling a bit farther out for a great place. Thanks!

I wish for fish right on my dish

Miss Otis' Egrets — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 16:56:18 -0800

About nine years ago I spent a couple of days in Tossa de Mar on Spain's Costa Brava. One night we had a fantastic buttery-garlicky fish dish which my memory (and Google) tells me was called cimi tomba. Does anyone know of the recipe for this masterpiece of Catalan cuisine?

Traditional-schmaditional

owtytrof — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 12:49:42 -0800

RecipeFilter: Seafood stew stumper! A local Italian restaurant serves a fantastic bowl of cioppino, which I would like to try to replicate at home. The problem is that the dish I'm trying to make is not cooked in the traditional tomato and garlic broth, which is all I can find via Google, but a creamy lemon butter version.

I'm fairly handy in the kitchen, and not afraid of improvisation, but I need a starting point. Any tips, ideas, or actual recipes for this apparently rare version of cioppino would be greatly appreciated!

Somewhere...beyond the sea scallops?

thatbrunette — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 10:56:52 -0800

I bought some "fresh" (previously frozen) sea scallops from the grocer yesterday. They are currently in a small airtight container in the coldest part of my fridge. I don't want to re-freeze them, because they'll disintegrate upon re-thawing, but I don't want to eat them today or all of them tomorrow (I have five). How long can I expect these scallops to last in the fridge?

Should I eat it and if so, how?

desjardins — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 18:25:34 -0800

Should I eat it and how, the cooked shrimp edition. Bought a bag of frozen shrimp (cooked, tails on) on Saturday night. Husband defrosted about half of it by running it under water, then changed his mind and cooked something else for dinner. Shrimp has been in the refrigerator since (in sealed tupperware). Is it still OK to eat? Will it be OK tomorrow (i.e. 3 days since defrosting)? How about Wednesday?

If the answer's yes, what creative things can we do with it? We usually have it scampi or alfredo style, and I'm bored with both. I don't want anything spicy. We have normal kitchen implements, including a wok.

Where is the best place to eat affordable seafood in Rhode Island that is accessible from Providence on public transit?

peetle — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 17:32:21 -0800

Where is the best place to eat affordable seafood in Rhode Island that is accessible from Providence on public transit? I am a college student with not much money. I live in Providence. I want to enjoy Rhode Island seafood. Trick is... I don't have a car. Where do I go?

Best fish with the most omegas and least Hg

mateuslee — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 06:47:06 -0800

What is the tastiest seafood with the most omegas and the least mercury? I try to eat well, but always feel sort of lost in the fish department because I don’t know what to eat.

I want to find a fish (or seafood like shrimp, mussels, etc) that is easy to bake (can just be breaded and baked, for ex) and tasty, plus high in protein and omegas, but which has a low level of mercury and is safe to eat.

Is there a resource, for example, that charts mercury levels against omega content?

I live in the Netherlands, so this might limit some choices – and I rarely have time to go to the fresh fish market… so most of my food is bought in the supermarkets.

(Bachelor-friendly) recipes appreciated!

Maninara Mix Alternative

mattoxic — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 22:38:20 -0800

We have marinara mix that needs to be cooked now, but we don't want pasta. Any suggestions?

I say oysters and you say ersters...

TungstenChef — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:45:04 -0800

I'm visiting Portland this weekend and would love some food tourism suggestions. So far, my plan is to stuff myself to the gills (heh) with seafood. My sister-in-law lives in the area, and already has the following activities planned:
-winery tour
-tasting menu at a very nice restaurant (I don't remember the name unfortunately)

Other than wineries, are there any other types of food producers we should visit, like oyster beds for example? What local seafoods are in season right now? Any suggestions for hole-in-the-wall types of places where we can get some great seafood on a budget? Any secret places I should know about if I want to eat an obscene amount of oysters? Finally, we're driving to Eugene to catch our flight out on Sunday, is there anywhere along that route that's worth taking a few hours to check out?

Thanks!

Frozen mussels, help!

kanuck — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 20:41:54 -0800

How to use frozen whole-shell NZ greenshell mussels? Needed some mussels for a broth the other day, but couldn't get my hands on any fresh, so I ended up with a package of frozen whole-shell New Zealand greenshells. I've never worked with anything but fresh mussels, and realized I had no clue what was going on.

Are they already pre-cooked? Most info I found about greenshells talks about a) fresh b) cooked & frozen on the half-shell or c) shucked, cooked & frozen. There's a conspicuous lack of information on the whole-shell frozen kind.

What are some adjustments to think about when using them in recipes as a replacement for fresh mussels? In particular, when steaming them, how do you know when they're done, how do you know if any are bad, and should they be de-frosted prior to use?

My experience: I just tossed them in the broth to steam, but they never popped open the way good fresh ones do (photo). That freaked me out: were they all bad? I left them in far longer than I normally would have, but they still didn't open, yet when I forcibly opened them by hand, they didn't look bad (photo).

I ended up not eating them, but used the broth. Yummy, no side effects. I'm guessing they were at least blanched prior to freezing, with bad ones tossed at that point, but could use some reassurance.

dead floaters?

defcom1 — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 03:26:24 -0800

Why are floating mussels to be discarded before cooking? I'm trying to cook mussels. Looking around various sites, I am told to throw out any mussels which float in a bowl of cold water before cooking. Other sites say not to worry about it, they have eaten many floaters and been fine. I know not to eat any which will not close their shells or which are not sealed properly, but I have a batch where most of them float, but otherwise respond as "alive" closing their shells etc. I'm confused?
The Joy of cooking, my usual fallback for cooking discrepancies, does not comment on the floating / sinking issue, just that they better be closed before preparation. Does anybody know why the floating ones should be discarded? Any other mussel insights?
Thanks!

Good oysters in Austin, TX?

the matching mole — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 20:44:59 -0800

Can I find good, interesting oysters in Austin, TX? I'm in Austin, Texas for training for a few days this week. And I could really go for a dozen Belons and a nice Sancerre (not that I've ever had either, but I have been reading a lot about oysters and wine lately).

Considering that Austin has a pretty happening food scene, what are the chances I can find good oysters here? Any recommendations?

Shad roe

veggieboy — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 06:27:08 -0800

Does anybody have a lead on shad roe by mail? I'm going to visit my mother in California in a few weeks. She wants me to buy some shad roe here, freeze them and bring them on the plane. This seems like a monumentally bad idea. But I would like for her to have her shad roe.

Does anybody have experience with a source that will ship? Fresh is best, but frozen is an option too, if that can happen — especially since the season may be over by the first week of May, right?

(Note: I've never had frozen shad roe. So if that's just not worth it, feel free to warn me away.)

Overcoming a fish block

banjo_and_the_pork — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 04:07:12 -0800

Help learn to like (or at least tolerate) fish! Recipes needed. I've read this thread, and have always written fish/seafood off as something I'll never like. I've never, ever, liked any kind of food from the sea, but I'd like to give a valiant effort to trying to overcome my fish block. I eat pork, poultry, and beef, but I'd like to have some more options (other meats need not apply, I could barely choke down some lamb I made last night, but I'll save that for another question).

In recent years I've tried really high quality seared tuna steaks and a little smoked salmon- the tuna wasn't overly fishy, but the texture and the length of time it sticks around in my mouth for chewing really put me off. The salmon was so, so fishy, and again, the texture was off-putting. I'm not picky about veggies or spices, so any kind of preparation would be welcome.

I'd love some tried-and-true recipes that have helped to convert non-fish-eaters to fish-likers (or fish-tolerators). Please no seafood, though, I'm ok with the idea that I'll never eat lobster, clams, etc.

Good seafood restaurant in West Palm Beach, FL area?

fx3000 — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 11:59:37 -0800

Recommend a good seafood restaurant in West Palm Beach, FL area or within a 40 mile or so radius. I am taking my Mom out for her 70th birthday and she is kind of fussy. She mainly likes to eat seafood and vegetables. If it is near water or has a water view that would be even better.

Where can I buy fresh seafood in DC?

borkingchikapa — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 19:43:03 -0800

Where can I buy really fresh raw seafood in DC? I mean, come on, we're not that far from the Atlantic. There's absolutely no reason I should be relegated to eating beheaded, deveined shrimp and frozen crab from Whole Foods.

Is there a metro or bus accessible market or store somewhere in this beautiful city where I can buy shrimp, crabs, clams etc.? Fish a plus, but ain't too big a'deal.

What does imitation crab meat taste like?

GardnerDB — Sat, 26 May 2007 13:10:08 -0800

Does imitation crab meat actually taste good and what can I do with it? I love crab, but I rarely eat it because it's too expensive and not easily available in my area. Does imitation crab meat taste pretty good? Does it taste like real crab meat? It probably doesn't taste exactly the same, but is it close enough? What are some tasty things to do with it?

What drinks go with seafood paella?

jroybal — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 08:08:43 -0800

What alcoholic drinks go with seafood paella? My friend and I are going to be making paella tonight, to be accompanied by sangria. What other alcoholic beverages would be good with seafood (scallops and shrimp) paella? Wine, hard liquor, beer? Thanks in advance!

Can I make myself like seafood?

tastybrains — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 15:04:35 -0800

Is there any way to acquire a taste for seafood after a lifetime of total disgust? Why is this distaste for seafood something I can't seem to get over? I do not like seafood. At all. For as long as I can remember, I have found the smell, taste, texture, and even concept of eating fish or shellfish repulsive. I've tried forcing myself to eat it, telling myself that everyone else must seem to like it for a reason, and that I just need to keep trying it. Well, I have choked down a lot of seafood, some of which made me gag, some of which I could eat a few bites of, but none that I found even remotely pleasant to eat.

I live in New England and have a family and in-laws and husband who all lust after seafood. I have tried a lot of fish & shellfish. I have tried ahi steaks & swordfish steaks after being told that they aren't fishy in taste or texture. I've tried fish & sticks and popcorn shrimp in the hopes that the deep-frying would make it tolerable. I've tried crab dip and shrimp cocktail and clam chowder. I've tried gorgeous, expensive lobster with butter that I *really* wanted to like (and expected to like) and found that it tasted (to me) kind of how body odor smells. This isn't an isolated case, I've tried lobster a few times and had the same strong, unpleasant taste from it each time, even though everyone else eating the lobster said it was perfect and exactly as lobster should taste.

The only seafood I have found remotely tolerable (and this means I can eat a few bites without gagging or feeling grossed out, not that I actually enjoyed it) is (1) raw salmon sushi rolls when the salmon is very thinly sliced and paired with avocado & rice, (2) california rolls which I know isn't even real crab, and only sometimes I can stand the texture of the fake-crab (3) very specific tuna salads made with white albacore (not the cat-food like pink stuff) and just the right amount of mayo ... I have only found these tuna salads that I can eat at NY delis & bagel shops. I also once had some shrimp at a hibachi restaurant that wasn't too bad, but when I tried it again at the same place I couldn't eat it beyond a single bite.

The thing is that I am trying to eat healthier and I know seafood is an often low-fat, high protein food that a lot of other people seem to enjoy. I wish I liked it and could look forward to some gri. What is blocking me from being a ble to enjoy seafood? Is this just the way I'm wired?

I'm not a picky eater - I will try almost anything at least once and I like a lot of different foods and cuisines.

By the way, I'm 26 years old, and I've disliked fish since I was about 3 or 4. I think it started when my parents bribed me to finish my (breaded flounder) dinner, and I have had serious hatred of seafood ever since.

Also note that I think the concept of eating bugs (like mealworms or crickets) less disgusting than eating a slab of fish. What is wrong with me?

Blow our (fish) balls off.

melissa may — Sat, 14 Oct 2006 01:56:37 -0800

Where are the really good, really fresh, really affordable seafood restaurants in Portland, Oregon (or the nearby coast)? So, every time we go to a seafood place in town or on the coast, they all seem to have been issued a blurb from Gourmet or somesuch to the effect of, "These people have clam chowder/oyster shooters/crab legs/steamer clams/wild salmon that will blow your balls off," and so we dutifully go in and try some, only to leave with our balls decidedly unblown off. We're feeling especially bitter about the clam chowder (it's always "famous"), which is either mildly good or tastes like something out of a Progresso can. Also, these people keep breading and frying the fish just like they do in the midwest so you won't notice that, were it still speaking, it would harangue you about how spoiled you are because you failed to live through the Depression. At first we wondered if was just a bad year for oysters, but no, we bought a batch and steamed them and they were great. (Actually all the fresh seafood we've bought's been really good.) I'm sorry to be emotional but we just returned from two rounds of seafood on the coast, and besides the breading thing we paid a rather hefty sum for some little blobs of Dungeness crabs when half the fun is wrestling them out of the shells. Being new to town and loving much of its unbreaded portions, we're not giving up on the dream, so please: tell us where to go. We'll drive out to the coast if we need to, but it'd be nice if it was in town and not so hard on our wallets (though we'll save up to have our balls well and truly blown to kingdom come).