3 Fish Recipes High in Omega 3 - No salmon.

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Including fish in your diet, from a nutritional perspective, is one of the healthiest things a person can do for their body. Fish is a great protein source, it’s lower in saturated fats than other animal meats and as a result is lower in calories. Some fish have small edible bones that contribute to our daily calcium intake and like most seafood, it contains other minerals like selenium and iodine. Unfortunately it’s not that simple. There are 2 main reasons for questioning our fish intake (other than just not liking it)

1.      Heavy metals and toxins present in our fish – Toxins like mercury and agricultural chemicals have been found in our fish. They are usually highest in larger fish like salmon or tuna. These larger fish eat smaller fish and over time accumulate the smaller fish’s toxins in their own bodies. Generally people sit on one side of this argument or the other. Yes the fish have toxins, but some believe that the nutrients in fish and seafood, such as selenium, are able to protect our bodies and reduce any impact. Other people believe that the toxin concentrations are so small that they are unlikely to cause a negative effect in the body. A good way to get around this concern is to eat smaller fish like anchovies and sardines. Because they're little, they don't eat other fish, and therefore do not collect and store other fish's heavy metal and toxin load.

2.      Environmental and ethical reasons – We are over fishing our oceans. It is a relatively accepted fact that if we don’t change our fishing habits, the oceans will be completely depleted of fish within the next 50 years. This is not because of the fisherman with his rod on the side of the rocks, it’s because of the enormous commercial fishing boats that go out and haul in millions of fish each day in giant nets. These boats also catch what is known as by-catch. By-catch can be anything other than what they were originally aiming for. It includes dolphins, sharks, whales, birds, turtles, whatever happens to be in the way of the net as it comes through. If we run out of fish, apart from throwing out the natural balance of our oceans, there are literally millions upon millions of people in developing nations who won’t be able to feed themselves. Their sole source of food often is what they catch with their little rod.

Whoa, that was a bit heavy. Just so we’re clear, I eat fish a few times a week. I am slightly worried about heavy metals and toxins but I think the rest of my lifestyle balances it out. I am much more worried about the environmental impact of overfishing.

So, the heavy stuff being said, what do we eat? Well, here are 3 recipes for fish high in omega 3 other than salmon. There is a recipe using anchovies, mackerel and one using trout.  There are ways to purchase these fish sustainably if you're concerned. I’ve included some links to some information on choosing fish sustainably.



image by Suhara, allrecipes.com.au


 

Spicy Mackerel Soup

Recipe from allrecipes.com.au. Find it here

Ingredients

Serves: 6

·     600g mackerel

·     6 cups (1 1/2 litres) water

·     5 tablespoons tamarind juice

·     2 ginger bulbs, sliced

·     3 sprigs Vietnamese mint

·     1 pinch sugar, to taste

·     4-5 pieces dried tamarind slices

Spice Paste:

·     10 shallots

·     2 stalks lemongrass

·     10cm fresh galangal

·     5 dried chillies, soaked in water, seeds discarded

·     3 fresh red chillies

·     1 teaspoon shrimp paste

 

Garnishes:

·     600g laksa noodles or egg noodles

·     1/2 fresh pineapple, sliced in small pieces

·     1 medium cucumber, thinly sliced

·     2 large red onions, thinly sliced

·     3 red chillies, sliced

·     3 sprigs mint leaves, torn

·     3 sprigs Vietnamese mint, thinly sliced

·     1 pinch salt, to taste

Directions

Prep: 20 minutes | Cook: 50 minutes

 

1. Simmer the cleaned whole fish in a saucepan of water until cooked. Remove fish and let cool before separating the flesh from the bone. Flake the flesh in small pieces.

2. Strain the stock and return to the saucepan with tamarind juice, ginger, Vietnamese mint, fish and sugar to taste.

3. Spice Paste: Use a food processor to grind the spice paste ingredients until fine. Add to the stock along with the dried tamarind slices. Simmer for 20-30 minutes until the soup thickens slightly then add salt to taste.

4. To Serve: Blanch the laksa noodles in boiling water, drain and set aside.

5. Share the noodles among six bowls and ladle soup over them. Garnish with a pinch of each of the remaining ingredients and serve

 

Spanish anchovy, fennel and preserved lemon salad

Recipe from Bon appetite. Find it here

photo Tina Rupp

Ingredients

• 9 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 5ouncesmâche or baby arugula
• 1large fennel bulb, very thinly sliced, divided
• 1/2small red onion, very thinly sliced, divided
• 1tablespoonminced purchased or homemade preserved lemon*
• 8ouncesSpanish white anchovies in vinegar or smoked trout

Quick preserved lemons

Combine 1 thinly sliced lemon, 1/2 cup lemon juice, and 4 teaspoons coarse salt in small skillet. Bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered, until almost tender, about 10 minutes. Cool.

Directions

• Whisk oil and vinegar in small bowl. Season dressing with salt and pepper.
• Combine oil and vinegar mix, 1/2 cup fennel, 1/3 cup onion, and preserved lemon in large bowl. Toss with enough dressing to coat. Arrange on platter. Top with remaining fennel and onion, then anchovies. Drizzle with more dressing and serve.

Grilled Trout with homemade pesto and fresh pine nuts

Recipe from rainbowtrout.com.au. Find it here.

Ingredients

·         Small bunch continental parsley

·         Fresh mint

·         Olive oil

·         Slivered almonds or pine-nuts

·         Coarse salt

 Instructions

1.      Combine the parsley, mint (two-thirds parsley to one third mint) and oil in a mortar and pestle and grind into a paste.

2.      Sprinkle a little salt on the fish and spread the paste over the whole fillet (about 2 teaspoons per fillet portion, and use the back of the teaspoon to evenly spread over the trout.).

3.      Top with crushed nuts and drizzle with oil. Grill flesh side up for 6 or 7 minutes making sure the nuts do not burn. Serve immediately.

4.      An easy variation is to use the Gourmet Gardens tubes of herbs.

 

Want more information on sustainable fishing and seafood? Here are some links

Fish 4 ever - http://www.fish4ever.co.uk/

Sustainable seafood - http://www.sustainableseafood.org.au/Sustainable-Seafood-Guide-Australia.asp?active_page_id=695

World Wildlife Fund - http://www.wwf.org.au/our_work/saving_the_natural_world/oceans_and_marine/marine_solutions/sustainable_seafood/