While the coals are hot, make grilled clams and mussels as a healthful and low-calorie Labor Day treat.

This video shows how easy it is:

Find more of our favorite seafood recipes.

A good caterer knows that presentation makes a big difference. At every event we attend, there’s usually a clever idea to bring home.

Today, the tip is to repurpose the rocks glass. Elegant Affairs Caterers, which works in The Hamptons and metropolitan New York City, uses it instead of a conventional plate to layer a fish course and bean salad. The glasses are presented on trays or on a buffet table for guests to enjoy as they circulate.

For sit-down eating, use a service plate under the glass.

What’s wrong with a conventional plate of fish and bean salad? Nothing, except the rocks glass glass is more visually arresting. Use it for a smaller fish course before the main.

Instead of using a conventional plate, layer a bean salad topped with grilled fish. The grilled fish will flake easily without requiring a knife. We adapted the concept with leftover tuna skewers, balancing the skewer on top of the glass. For a vegetarian recipe, substitute diced tofu.

And have fun with it.

Instead of a plate, layer grilled fish and bean salad in a rocks glass. Photo courtesy ElegantAffairsCaterers.com.

EASY BEAN SALAD RECIPE

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. If using frozen corn, allow to defrost; drain.

2. Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Let stand at 15 minutes or longer for flavors to combine.

2. Toss and fill glasses. Top with grilled fish and garnish with a small sprig of cilantro or parsley and/or a bit of grated lemon or lime zest.
 
Find more of our favorite fish and vegetable recipes.

How many ways can you think of to use this
crunchy, colorful garnish? Photo courtesy
Bemka.com.

If you’re a sushi fan, you’ve seen tobiko (also spelled tobikko). They’re the tiny, crunchy, nutty beads of flying fish roe.

They’re served in a gunkan-maki (battleship roll), on uramaki (reverse rolls) and as a sashimi garnish.

Originally available in orange, the popularity of tobiko has led to a rainbow of options: flavored tobiko in black (colored with squid ink), green (wasabi), pale yellow (yuzu) and red (ume plum), as well as spicy orange.

Tobiko is an asset in the kitchen, where you can use it to add instant festivity:

Even smaller than tobiko eggs is masago, called capelin roe or smelt roe in English. You’ll also find the larger, more flavorful and pricier ikura, salmon roe.

Tobiko caviar comes from the flying fish of Iceland and the Pacific Ocean. It’s available at better supermarkets, at specialty food stores and online.

So for special occasions, pick up a jar. You’ll get a lot of bang (or is that crunch) for the buck.

Check out other types of caviar in our Caviar Glossary.

Think outside the box when combining ingredients. That’s what Executive Chef Leo Forneas of Silk Rd Tavern did, topping a crispy fish fillet with julienned apples. He chose red-skinned apples to add a touch of color.

You can use raw apples or lightly sauté the strips in butter or oil. You can cook the apples in advance so as soon as the fish comes off the grill/out of the pan, you’re ready to roll. You can also add a bit of allspice, cinnamon or nutmeg to the apples for another layer of flavor.

While the crunchy apples nicely accessorize the crispy skin of the fish, you can use them to garnish any grilled or sautéed fish.

You can also build on the idea, adding slivered almonds, blueberries or raisins/dried berries.
 
 
Julienne Vs. Baton

Fish with apples: It makes you smart while keeping the doctor away. Photo courtesy Photo courtesy Silk Rd Tavern.

Julienne strips resemble small matchsticks, typically 1/16-1/18 inch wide and 1 to 2 inches long. To cut julienne strips, first cut the vegetable into 1/16 or 1/8-inch-thick slices, then stack the slices and cut them into 1/16 or 1/8-inch-wide strips that are of the desired length.

Batons (sometimes called batonnets) are larger matchsticks, typically 1/4 x 1/4 x 2 to 2 1/2 inches long. Use the same method as with julienne strips.

Find more of our favorite fish recipes.

June 28 is National Ceviche Day in Peru, where it one of the national dishes. The holiday has arrived in the U.S.—a healthy celebration.

Ceviche—shellfish cured by citrus juice acid—has been popular in Latin America for many centuries. It dates some 2,000 years to an Inca dish of raw marinated fish.

The dish was discovered by Spanish conquistadors in the 1500s; they added the lime juice and onion that are integral to modern ceviche. The name “ceviche,” pronounced say-VEE-chay, is thought to come from the Spanish “escabeche,” meaning marinade.

Today, ceviche—spelled seviche or sebiche in some countries—is so popular that there are cevicherias, restaurants that specialize in ceviche.

Shrimp ceviche. Photo courtesy Shrimp Council.

There’s a whole menu of ceviche, from different types of fish and seafood to country-specific preparations. Each country adds its own spin based on local seafood and preference for ingredients like avocado. Some add a dressing of ketchup or a combination of ketchup and mayonnaise.

Ceviche is delicious “health food.”

 
Try this classic shrimp ceviche recipe.

Create your own recipe, using your favorite seafood, with this guide.

Ceviche with mixed shellfish. Photo by Food
Colors | Fotolia.

Executive Chef Damian Gilchrist of the Ocean Reef Club in North Key Largo, Florida serves Florida Lobster “Ceviche-Style” with Watermelon Salad. Here’s his recipe, which serves 4 as a main or 8 as a first course.

RECIPE: CEVICHE-STYLE LOBSTER WITH
WATERMELON SALAD

Ingredients

For Serving

Preparation

1. Mix all ingredients in mixing bowl to thoroughly combine. Refrigerate for 2 hours.

2. Serve atop watermelon planks with mache and drizzled with balsamic syrup. For balsamic syrup, reduce balsamic vinegar or buy a ready-made balsamic glaze.

More on the history of ceviche.

Anchovies get a bad rap in the U.S. They typically appear on “most hated foods” lists. That’s because many people were first introduced to cheap, oily, odoriforus, overly salty and “fishy” tasting examples on pizzas or in Caesar salads at the local diner. (One reason they’re so intense is that casual restaurants don’t take the time to rinse the anchovies, but just scoop them up from the oil.)

But in fact, these little fish can be truly delightful—still with a strong flavor, but one that’s delicious.

The 144 species of anchovies, a salt-water fish related to herring. They live in many of the world’s oceans and seas, including the Atlantic, Indian, Mediterranean and Pacific.

The good brands are things of beauty. Italians—who not only make some of the world’s best food, but as a society have among the most demanding palates—use them as a backbone in many recipes.

If you’re willing to try again—or if you’re already an anchovy fan—you can get absolutely delicious anchovies from Gustiamo.com, an importer of Italian delicacies.

Anchovies: quite lovely, actually. Photo by Kaan Tanriover | SXC.

The anchovies come from Cetara, an enchanting fishing village along the Amalfi coast, on the Gulf of Salerno. They are packaged by Nettuno, a family-run company. Production is completely by hand, using simple but precise traditions of local anchovy preserving.

The best anchovies are caught between March and July, when their flesh is at its most plump; Nettuno only fishes during this period. The fresh anchovies are immediately placed in oak barrels layered with water and sea salt and cured for about five months. The salt used by Nettuno is the exceptional sea salt that is hand-harvested in the salt panes of Trapani from, uncontaminated Sicilian waters.

The result: anchovies that are are soft, moist and plump. It takes only a few seconds to rinse them in cold water and then put them too use.

Get your Cetara anchovies here.

And if you’re a true anchovy lover, try a bottle of Colatura, a descendent of the favorite Roman condiment, garum.

RECIPE: PENNE PASTA SALAD WITH ANCHOVIES

This recipe is courtesy La Cucina Italiana and Chef Andrea Tiberi. It serves 4.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. Heat oven to 200°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Drop plum tomatoes into water and boil 30 seconds. Using a slotted spoon, remove tomatoes from pot (reserve water); drain, peel, cut in half, and seed.

3. Place tomatoes on baking sheet and sprinkle with salt. Bake until tomatoes are partially dried and flavor is concentrated, about 3 hours.

4. Return water to boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente. Drain, transfer to a large bowl, and toss with a drizzle of oil and pinch of salt. Set aside to cool.

5. Remove tomatoes from oven; transfer to a cutting board and finely chop. Add to bowl with pasta. Add greens, Piennolo tomatoes, 3 tablespoons oil, anchovies, capers, chervil and marjoram; toss to combine. Arrange on plates. Sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt and some fresh-ground pepper.

Parsley leaves, cherry tomatoes and lime
juice make a salad topping for catfish. You
can do a mixture of parsley and cilantro, as
well. Photo and recipe from Whole Foods
Market; get the recipe. A second recipe is
below.

Chefs nationwide are adding catfish dishes to their menus today, National Catfish Day.

The catfish, one of the world’s least attractive fishes, gets its name from the long barbels (feelers) hanging down from around its mouth, which resemble whiskers (but far less cute). Catfish is found worldwide: Most catfish are freshwater, though there is also a saltwater variety found on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.

The majority of catfish sold today in the U.S. are farmed in ponds in the Mississippi Delta.

Looks apart, catfish is a tasty fellow, lowfat with firm, mild-flavored flesh (though the tough, inedible skin must be removed before cooking). Catfish is versatile, suited to most manners of preparation, including soups and stews. Much of the time, it’s filleted and fried, grilled or sautéed.

At the Grand Central Oyster Bar (the seafood restaurant located “below sea level” at Grand Central Terminal in New York City), executive chef Sandy Ingber shares his National Catfish Day recipe so you can whip it up at home (we got our catfish at Whole Foods Market).

GRILLED CATFISH FILET WITH ESPRESSO-ANCHO RUB & LEMON CAYENNE SAUCE

Ingredients For 6 Servings

 
Preparation

1. Rub all catfish filets with the espresso-ancho rub (below). Shake off excess.

2. Heat grill to medium hot. Dip rubbed filets into a small amount of oil and place on grill. Cook fairly slowly until browned on one side, about 5 minutes, being careful not to burn. Flip over and repeat. Catfish should be cooked all the way through.

3. Put on a plate and serve with 2 ounces of sauce per person. Serve with brown rice and cornbread—both whole grain foods—and a side salad.

ESPRESSO-ANCHO RUB

Ingredients

 
Preparation

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl. The rub can be made up to one week ahead, covered and stored at room temperature.

LEMON-CAYENNE VIN BLANC SAUCE

Vin blanc is one of the mother sauceswe presented a few months ago. It’s a key ingredient of Coquilles St. Jacques and Oysters Rockefeller. After you make it the first time, you’ll find many ways for to use it with fish, seafood and poultry. This recipe makes about 1-1/3 cups.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. Combine the wine and shallots in a saucepan and bring to a full boil. Reduce by half. Add the water, cream and bouillon and return to a boil.

2. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and cook, stirring, until it smells toasty, about 1 minute. Don’t let the flour brown. Now you have a roux (pronounced ROO).

3. Add about half of the liquid and stir well to dissolve the roux. Stir in the rest of the liquid and bring to a simmer.

4. Add cayenne pepper, that you liquefy with 1 teaspoon of water. Reduce the heat and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Finish with the lemon juice. Strain the sauce through a fine strainer.

Let us know if you think it’s the cat[fish]’s meow.

 
Order top-quality lobsters online from one of our favorite gourmet food purveyors, used by top chefs nationwide.

A gift idea for summer weekend hosts and hostesses. Photo courtesy W. W. Norton Company.		Ingredients 4 New England-style hot dog buns (see note above) 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 1 recipe lobster salad (recipe follows) 4 Boston or bibb lettuce leaves, washed and dried 4 dill pickle spears Potato chips (go for the best, like Kettle brand)   Preparation 1. Heat a 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Spread each of the hot dog buns with 1 tablespoon butter (half on each side). Place the buttered buns into the hot dry pan and toast without moving, until golden brown on one side, about a minute. Turn and cook the other side, about 1 minute more. Remove from heat.
2. Open the buns and place in a paper holder or on a small plate. Place a lettuce leaf on one side of the center, inside the bun. Spoon the lobster salad evenly among them. Serve with pickles, and potato chips on the side. LOBSTER SALAD RECIPE Ingredients 1 pound fully cooked lobster meat or 5 pounds live lobsters 1 small to medium cucumber (4 to 5 ounces), peeled, seeded and cut into ¼ inch dice 1/2 cup Hellman’s mayonnaise (or your own homemade easy blender mayonnaise) 2 or 3 small scallions (white and green parts), thinly sliced Freshly ground black pepper   Preparation 1. If you are using live lobsters, steam them until fully cooked and then allow to cool to room temperature. Use a cleaver to crack and remove the meat from the claws, knuckles and tails. 2. Remove the cartilage from the claws and the intestine from the tails of the cooked meat. Cut the meat into ½ to ¾ inch dice. You may pick all the meat from the carcass and add it to the meat or freeze the carcass for soup or broth. 3. Place the cucumber in a colander for at least 5 minutes to drain the excess liquid. 4. Combine the lobster, cucumber and mayonnaise. If the salad is to be served within the hour, add the scallions. Season with a bit more pepper if needed; it is unlikely that salt will be needed. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes before serving. Makes 2 cups, which serves 4 or 5 for sandwiches or as a light entrée.   EDITOR’S NOTE If you like more sophisticated flavors, don’t hesitate to build on the recipe. Our favorite additions include: Finely diced fennel or celery (in addition to flavor and crunch, it stretches the pricey lobster) Fresh herbs—basil, dill, parsley Green mayonnaise, with fresh herbs (Julia Child’s recipe) Heat, via a very small amount of wasabi   Try adding your favorite flavors for a “gourmet” lobster roll.

We love skate, a group of cartilaginous fishes belonging to the family Rajidae, the rays. The firm white flesh, which comes from the “wings” of the ray, is sweet, succulent and distinctively delicious.

We always order skate when we see it on a menu—invariably at a French or seafood restaurant. Often, it is served in brown butter with capers; but however it is prepared, it is always a treat.

Because skate isn’t the easiest fish to find at the market, we never cooked it at home—until this super-easy recipe sent us on a skate wing hunt. The recipe is from Brooklyn Wok Shop, a New York restaurant that has reinterpreted Cantonese cuisine using classic French techniques.

Chef Edric Har worked at some of New York City’s great restaurants (Le Bernardin, Veritas, Cru) and his wife, Melissa, grew up in her family’s Chinese restaurants in Orlando. They call their concept Chinese Food 2.0.

Skate has a delicious white flesh that is distinctly different from other fish. Photo courtesy Brooklyn Wok Shop.

We enjoyed the recipe so much, we’ve made skate our tip Of The Day. It may not be easy to find, so call around to your local fish stores.

Skate with Ginger and Scallions

Serves 2-3 with a side of rice.

Ingredients

Preparation

1. Cut each skate wing in half to create two palm sized pieces.

2. In a pot large enough to fit all the fillets, fill with water about 5 inches deep and bring to a boil. Note: The skate will curl as it cooks, so allow enough water to cover.

3. Once the water is boiling, season with salt and add the skate. Turn off the heat and cover with a tight fitting lid. Cook 3-4 minutes, depending on the thickness of the skate.

4. Remove fish to a plate with a slotted spoon and top with scallions and ginger.

5. Heat canola oil until just smoking and pour over the ginger and scallions. Drizzle soy sauce over the fish and season with white pepper. Serve with rice and a side of your favorite greens (broccoli rabe or conventional broccoli go nicely).

 
Find more of our favorite fish and seafood recipes.

Recently one of our team embarked on a two-week trip to India. Problem: She doesn’t like Indian food.

We hooked her up with Sea Fare Pacific—sustainable, wild caught albacore tuna and salmon in lightweight, environmentally-friendly pouches.

You don’t need to leave the country to enjoy the tuna and salmon, though.

Sea Fare Pacific catches fish one at a time with a hook and line. The goal is to keep the earth and ecosystem safe, and to provide the highest-quality, omega-3 packed tuna with no mercury concerns. Unlike most supermarket brands, the fish is cooked only once to preserve its natural oils and flavors.

The earth-friendly pouch keeps food fresher than a can, is lighter to tote and is more environmentally friendly. There’s no oil or water to drain—no messiness. Simply tear the seal and enjoy.

The company was founded by Oregonian Mike Babcock, who aim to create a Pacific albacore tuna that tasted like his mother’s home-canned tuna. We haven’t tried Mom’s, but find Mike’s product to be excellent.

Lightweight, environmentally-friendly packaging. Photo by Elvira Kalviste | THE NIBBLE.

The tuna, in steak form, flaked for a salad. Photo by Elvira Kalviste | THE NIBBLE.

Products

 
The challenge: Finding the tuna! As a new brand, distribution is in the early phases. Contact the company via the website or at 541.266.TUNA.
 
Why does the tuna taste so good?

The company points out that most brands of albacore tuna on the market are “twice cooked,” which causes the fish to lose most of its heart-healthy fats. Sea Fare Pacific products are cooked only once.

Mercury In Tuna

All tuna are not created equal, vis-a-vis mercury content.

Albacore, often referred to as “chunk white” tuna, is one of the safest fish you can eat—provided it is caught in the U.S. Pacific or Canadian Pacific. The Seafood Watch project of the Monterey Bay Aquarium lists Albacore tuna caught in the US Pacific or Canadian Pacific as the “Best Choice.”

These fish are younger and therefore have had less time to build up high levels of mercury. Most of the popular commercial brands use tuna imported from Southeast Asia, where the larger albacore tuna are much higher in mercury (and lower in omega 3s than their younger West Coast counterparts).

“Chunk light” tuna is a blend of different species, and often includes meat from high-mercury bigeye tuna (along with less contaminated yellow fin). It’s best to avoid it.

Do you know the different types of tuna?