American Catch: The Fight for Our Local Seafood
Author: Paul Greenberg
Rating: â 4/5
Date Read: 2014/07/07
Pages: 320
The huge salmon filet that I bought and cooked for my family a few nights ago was both incredibly delicious and simple. I seasoned it with some kosher salt, freshly ground pepper, and Californian extra virgin olive oil. I then broiled it for a just a few minutes, until the skin started crackling, then topped it with more olive oil and fresh dill. Of course, it would have been a sin to cook it all the way through: I like my salmon fairly rare in the center. And thereâs the rub: I only feel comfortable cooking salmon this way when I can find wild Alaskan salmon that has been processed in the US. Sadly, this high quality fish (which is critically important if we want to improve the health of the millions of Americans who are overweight or obese) can be difficult to find in American grocery stores. Iâm lucky to have a wonderful grocer down the street, that sources many different types of wild Alaskan salmon. Sadly, a large number of stores only stock imported farmed salmon, which obtains its pink hue from artificial food coloring.
American Catch deals with the shocking fact that the United States exports most of its high quality wild fish to more discerning countries (mostly in Southeast Asia). Most of the seafood that Americans eat is imported from questionable farmed sources in Asia. Yes, this is complete madness thatâs bad for health, and bad for taste. Farmed tilapia is increasingly popular throughout the US: itâs main appeal is that it doesnât really taste like fish. In reality, it doesnât really taste like anything. Itâs the boneless, skinless chicken breast of seafood, and itâs not even particularly healthy. The omega-3 rich wild salmon we catch in droves in Alaska is, apparently, âtoo fishyâ for the American palate.
This is a book that makes me increasingly angry with the American proclivity to value price and quantity over quality. Even though I live in a city that borders the ocean, with many people who are obsessed with good food, I donât frequent a good fishmonger. I have to carefully examine my fish purchases, because many grocery stores stock fish thatâs not sustainable. Iâd love to catch some San Francisco Bay oysters, but we kind of ended up screwing up their entire ecosystem. Oops. This is doubly bad because bivalves filter the water, making it clean and safe.
I recommend American Catch to anyone who eats seafood; itâs shocking how screwed up the seafood system is in the US.