Green Fish Blue Oceans

Listen to B is for Barramundi and Blue Crab Meat here or download on iTunes or Google Play. (And please subscribe!)

But first, a couple of quick thoughts.

You know this podcasting thing is new to me, so if I miss something, make a mistake, or say something you don’t understand, please let me know! You can find me on social media or shoot me an email. Here’s my contact info.

Hey, you know what’s cool?

My friend Charity messaged me that her eight-year-old daughter wanted to share her fave salmon recipe with—wait—the salmon lady!

Poached Salmon with Avocado Aioli (in the microwave)

Here’s how she does it.

For the Avocado Aioli

Add 2 cloves garlic, 2 tbs white wine vinegar or another acid, 1 egg yolk, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp mustard in a blender on the smoothie button or in a food processor on high. While the machine is running, slowly add up to 3/4 cup of olive oil until it comes together. Mash an avocado and add to the blender until the whole thing is smooth and creamy.

For the Salmon

Arrange the salmon in a shallow microwave safe dish. Season with salt and pepper, juice from half a lemon, a little olive oil and then add water to three-quarters of the way up the side of the fish. Microwave for two to three minutes until cooked thru.

Plate and drizzle the Avocado Aioli over the fish. Serve immediately with a green salad for a quick easy delicious balanced meal.

Do you have a favorite seafood recipe you’d like to share? Send me your favorite seafood recipes so I can share with my listeners!

And thanks, Charity!

On to the fish!

Barramundi

Of the over thirty thousand seafood species to choose from, why did I choose Barramundi?

First, barramundi is a terrific tasting fish. It’s sweet and slightly buttery, but clean. Mm-mm. It’s also high in protein and Omega 3s, and low in fat. It’s suitable for any method of preparation—on the grill, stovetop, and oven.

You might even be familiar with barramundi. It’s on restaurant menus around the globe and available in grocery markets too.

Barramundi is both wild and farm raised. Barramundi in general is a large and important commercial wild fishery. Barramundi is farmed raised in numerous countries with great success in ocean pens and land-based recirculating systems.

That is important.

You see, I believe that aquaculture, or farm raising fish, when done right, is one of the methods we can use to successfully feed our growing global population and help take the pressure off wild species.

I first became familiar with barramundi around 2007 or 2008, I can’t recall exactly. I was selling fish at the wholesale level in Florida. I didn’t sell much Barramundi because most Chefs wanted white fish that consumers were familiar with—grouper, snapper, cobia, wahoo, tilapia.

Then in 2015, at The Sustainable Seafood Blog Con in New Orleans, I met Josh Goldman, the CEO and co-founder of Australis Aquaculture, the company that farm raises barramundi. Josh and his wife invited me to sit with them for breakfast since I was sitting by myself like a wall flower. You know how conferences are when you don’t know anybody?

This is Green Fish Blue Oceans, the podcast where stories about seafood are good for you and the oceans, live now on iTunes, (and while you’re there, please subscribe!) or listen here.

I’m Maureen C. Berry. This week in my A to Z series on Green Fish Blue Oceans, I’ll dish Arctic Char and Anchovies.

But before I jump into the species, I want to share with you where my scientific fish information and research comes from.

* Seafood Watch is a program of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, the gold star in ocean conservation and fisheries research. Seafood Watch helps consumers and businesses make choices for healthy oceans.

* NOAA Fisheries, an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce which conducts environmental research and offers FishWatch, the largest US fish science-based database.

* Additional resources include Barron’s The New Food Lover’s Companion by Sharon Tyler Herbst and Ron Herbst

* The Connoisseur’s Guide to Fish & Seafood by Wendy Sweetser

* James Beard award-winning The Penguin Food Companion to Food by Alan Davidson

* In addition to copious trust-worthy online resources, I reference Marine Stewardship Council, an international organization that addresses problems associated with unsustainable fisheries, and offers a certification process, and FishChoice, a sustainable seafood sourcing tool.

Couple of thoughts here on this information. None of this information cited is a paid endorsement, nor is this podcast sponsored, FYI. Yet!

Now that all that is out of the way, onto the fish!

So what is Arctic Char?

Arctic Char is a delightful, flavorful, healthy for you fish. It resembles salmon in color, but a tad pinker and trout in terms of flesh. This unique species is both wild and farmed and sold fresh, frozen and canned.

In the wild, arctic char thrive in the icy polar salt waters and like salmon return to the rivers to spawn. Wild arctic char are available in remote Northern areas in the fall, but this species is not considered a viable wild commercial fish due to its geographic isolation. The good news is, this delectable tasting fish is farmed with success.

Arctic Char are raised in a land-based closed container with a recirculation system. So there is no chance for escapement in the wild (like an open net pen system in the ocean) and there is less disease associated with these methods.

Since Arctic Char is fished and farmed sustainably, Seafood Watch, the gold star in sustainable seafood recommendations, rates this fish green! Insert guitar riff for three secs. Wait! You know fish is rated, right? Maybe you’ve noticed over the years that some grocery stores use color coded labels, or maybe you use the Seafood Watch app (because it’s free you know for Android and iPhone). Seafood Watch offers three recommendations. Green for amazing, yellow for moderation and red for just don’t go there. Now the cool thing is, with science-based information and fisheries research, this recommendation list changes. Not often, so don’t get your panties in a wad, but something to be aware of.

Here are a few thoughts about why one species may be green today, but yellow or red the following year. Fish migrate, water temps change, oceans are on the rise. There’s acidification, overfishing, illegal fishing, and unsafe fishing methods—all these things are assessed and analyzed on an ongoing basis to ensure the health and safety of our oceans resources.

Now that you’ve got all that in your pocket, it’s time to shop and cook some Arctic Char.

* First things first,

Welcome to Episode 0 of Green Fish Blue Oceans, the podcast where stories about seafood are good for you and the oceans.

I’m Maureen Berry, Kentucky-based sustainable seafood advocate, author of the cookbook Salmon From Market To Plate, nature photographer, book-lover, wire fox terrier lover and wait for it, professional nap-taker—yeah, I never thought I’d confess to that!

So what is Green Fish Blue Oceans podcast?

Buying the right seafood is more complex than ever, but with a few guidelines, you’ll be on your way to becoming a seafood-phenom. On each fifteen minutes episode, I’ll talk about a different species from A to Z, including both common and under loved fish. For each species, I’ll share shopping and cooking tips, recipe ideas and explore the sustainability and traceability of that fish. You’ll find out who is catching or farming that fish and how it gets from the boat or farm to your plate.

Maybe you want to know whether you should buy fresh, frozen, wild or farmed seafood?

Don’t worry. I got you covered.

Eating seafood that is good for you and the oceans is easier than ever. Just listen in for fifteen minutes every other week. You’ll be a sustainable seafood-phenom before you know it.

Now you might be asking, Hey Maureen, why I should care about all this?

Because your choices and actions impact the future of our oceans and planet.

And our oceans and planet need your help today.

When we care about something, we act.

So what action can you take?

Subscribe now and add Green Fish Blue Oceans to your podcast playlist.

Want to know more about me and my projects? Check out my website, maureencberry.com for easy-to-prepare recipes, photography, poetry, book events, updates and more. While you’re there, you can buy my cookbook, Salmon From Market To Plate, when you want to eat salmon that is good for you and the oceans, available on Amazon in print and ebook.

Want to stay in touch? I do! Sign up for my free monthly newsletter. It comes to your inbox every third Sunday of the month. I highlight people and organizations doing amazing art, science, and tech, all to preserve our beautiful blue planet.

Got a question or want to say hello?

Shoot me an email maureen cberry at gmail dot com.

And lastly, let’s connect. I’m on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

That’s it for now, seafood lovers. Thanks for listening. Episode 1, A is for Arctic Char and Anchovies will be in your earbuds soon.