In the 1980s, a diminutive octogenarian named Clara Peller made advertising history with three words: “Where’s the beef?”
In this television ad for Wendy’s, Clara held a huge hamburger bun containing a miniscule hamburger. The not-so-subtle message: More beef is good.
Today we may ask the same question. Where’s the beef? With increasing attention to living a more healthful life, more and more people are replacing beef with plant protein and with fish.
Adding more plants to my diet? Check. Cutting down on sugar? Check. It’s National Nutrition Month, and this month I’m concentrating on eating more fish.
The American Heart Association recommends eating fish at least twice a week as part of a healthy diet. Fish is a nutrient powerhouse, a good source of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins D and B2 (riboflavin), calcium, phosphorus and minerals such as iron, zinc, iodine, magnesium, and potassium.
I asked Mark Lewis, owner of my favorite fish market, Dry Dock on Commonwealth Avenue in Fullerton, for some tips about cooking fish.
“If there’s complaints about the fish, that means you cooked it too long,” he said. “Fish takes only four to six minutes to cook, unless you’re using it in combinations like with peppers and tomatoes, for example.”
I know the proper way to cook salmon is slightly underdone, but I prefer it fully cooked. I asked Mark, “How do restaurants get it crispy on the outside without drying it out on the inside?”
“What they do is sauté it first and then put the pan in the oven,” he told me. “That way it’s crisp on the outside and it stays moist.
“I use a Le Creuset pan, which is cast iron, so it keeps the heat steady. Then put it in the oven for eight minutes tops for cooked through, the way you like it, depending on thickness, or you can pull a fork across it and see if it comes apart to check if it’s done,” he said. “Some people pour apple juice over salmon and a few drops of soy sauce to…
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