Free - food and drink recipes » Sea foods

Yellowfin Tuna Fish Wholesale – Delicious Grilled Ahi Steak Tuna

wowow — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 03:04:02 +0000

I first had a less than fully cooked seared tuna on a trip to one of Wolfgang Pucks restaurants twenty-five years ago. Just being done with college, I wanted to visit his famous restaurant on Main in Los Angeles. The first thing I noticed was the beautiful large kitchen and high class chef doing some cool things. I ordered the yellowfin tuna with the sea urchin sauce. This particular tuna that I ordered was very red and looked very rare. It had a dark red flesh with a seared exterior. It was very evident to me that the beef was raw. I tried it anyway and was pleasantly surprised at its deep red flesh coloration. When I asked about this remarkable flavor, the chef came to my table and began talking to me. He informed me that the larger yellowfin tuna fish typically has a higher fat content than smaller fish, and this is a desirable attribute for raw fish products, as well as for grilling, pan seared tuna, preparing spicy tuna such as wasabi tuna. I asked him the difference between sashimi and sushi. He started to explain to me that Yellowfin tuna is often prepared totally rare in many restaurants. Many people refer to this type of tuna as sushi was is inaccurate. With its mild flavor and firm texture, yellowfin tuna and/or Ahi tuna adapts well on many different levels. I found a site on the web, www.efoodschool.com which offers an excellent tuna steak for grilling or for sashimi. I ordered a box of four tuna steaks that got there in just a few days. I opted for grilled tuna on the first day. I grilled them briefly in an attempt to retain the center rare to raw. The grill still managed to cook the tunas red center a lot more than I expected it too. I prefered the second attempt better as I attempted to sear the tuna in a skillet. This browned the outside nicely without cooking the center which was very comparable to the grilling. Buying this tuna steak from www.efoodschool.com is a convenient and economical way to buy quality, wholesome sashimi grade tuna at wholesale prices.

You can find Delicious Yellowfin Sashimi Tuna at www.efoodschool.com! Visit Yellowfin Tuna Fish Wholesale – Delicious Grilled Ahi Steak Tuna.

source to this post: Yellowfin Tuna Fish Wholesale – Delicious Grilled Ahi Steak Tuna
From the Free - food and drink recipes website

Learn more:

Ring in the Holidays with Seafood Platters

Seagle — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 01:08:01 +0000

Spending quality time with friends and family is what the holidays are really all about. Well, that and food. Nothing brings people together and makes a gathering special like a good spread. Unlike Thanksgiving, where it is a requirement to serve turkey with its’ normal accompaniments, holiday menu options are only as limited as your imagination. That being said, traditional foods can be a true comfort. For me, Christmas is all about my mom’s peanut butter and Hershey’s Kiss cookies.

For more than 10 years, George has provided Western North Carolina with family-style Calabash seafood. “Our seafood platters are very popular,” says George. “People like a variety. Large platters are great for parties or family gatherings and make it easy to serve dinner buffet/family style.”

Shrimp cocktail is a classic any time of the year. You can prep the shrimp yourself or buy them already peeled and cleaned. If you don’t buy them pre-cooked, you can cook them the night before and leave them in the refrigerator until you’re ready to serve. Shrimp becomes tough if boiled too long and poaching is a preferred-cooking method. Some chefs insist on peeling and deveining the shrimp after it has been cooked as this helps maintain the curved shape and prevents butter flying.

When you’re ready to serve, use a deep serving tray filled with ice and place the shrimp on top. Add cocktail sauce and for a festive twist, cut limes instead of lemons (to complete the holiday color scheme) and you’ve got an easy appetizer that will feed a lot of people and leave your stove free for other tasks.

The addition of raw clams and oysters, along with other chilled seafood like smoked fish, takes a shrimp cocktail platter to a whole other level. For instance, the winter months are stone crab season in Florida. If you can get your hands on stone crab, this delicacy is a welcome addition to a raw bar style-seafood platter. Like shrimp cocktail, raw clams, oysters and chilled seafood are best served over ice. For a truly extravagant experience include champagne and caviar. This would be perfect for New Year’s Eve!

Guests who have just come in from the cold might be more appreciative of hot food and a platter of steamed seafood is sure to warm their spirits. Steamed shrimp and clams are great with drawn butter. Tell your guests to leave their nice clothes at home or provide bibs so you can dive into some peel and eat shrimp or crab legs. Garnish a heaping platter of steamed crab legs with kale for the ultimate holiday centerpiece.

Calabash-style seafood is the epitome of comfort food. If you want to be sure you won’t have leftovers, serve popcorn shrimp. Soft shelled crab, scallops, clams and oysters are also all crowd pleasers, especially when served with tartar or cocktail sauce. Just about any whitefish is delicious fried and fried fish dinners are a tradition among many families. Different breading mixtures and frying techniques can impart a variety of flavors to your favorite fresh fish. Calabash is about abundance and variety so pick your favorite seafood to create a personalized Calabash platter. For a gourmet touch try different recipes for the all important dipping sauces.

If cooking for a smaller crowd or preparing a more intimate dinner, look for seafood recipes from your favorite chefs or cookbooks to incorporate seafood into your holiday menu. For example, Clams Casino and Oysters Rockefeller also make great appetizers and Oyster Dressing complements meat dishes as an alternative to stuffing.

source to this post: Ring in the Holidays with Seafood Platters
From the Free - food and drink recipes website

Learn more:

Fresh Shellfish Is Full Off Variety

Seagle — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 13:53:01 +0000

Fresh shellfish is a wonderful thing to eat all year round. It includes clams, scallops, mussels and more. Farm-raised cultured mussels are fresh and readily available. Wild varieties are equally delicious. Clams are a very popular addition to pasta dishes. Hard clams, also called quahogs, live in sandy coves and can be caught when the tide is low. A great dish to enjoy with butter and garlic is stuffed quahogs. And, of course, there is always clam chowder!
During the summer months, fresh shellfish will take your mind off the hot weather. For a light yet delicious meal, consider an appetizer of raw or barbequed oysters. These tasty treats can be bought in most markets as well as chosen farms that specially breed them to sell. If you are lucky enough to live by a port or in a town near the ocean, you will probably find oysters easily and for a reasonable price.
Sea scallops are delightfully large, though must be shucked (removed from their shells) almost immediately after capture to ensure they don’t lose moisture and die.It is important not to overcook scallops, or you will end up with a chewy, inedible morsel.Scallops are meatier than clams and require very little preparation.
Mussels are covered with blue-black shells and brown hairs called byssal which are attached to their shell. Meat of the mussels is orange in color and is made up of protein. As in the case of clams mussels too taste best when steamed with shell intact.
Other fresh shellfish can also be crabs and lobsters. Compared with their small brethren, lobster and crab are bigger and more substantial. Of all fresh shellfish, lobster is undoubtedly the priciest but then it is a cuisine favored by both high-end restaurants and gourmets alike.
Once you get down to the meaty goodness of crab legs, you will want to make this fresh shellfish part of your everyday meal planning. Crab is maybe the most popular shellfish and is widely bought and eaten. The crabbing industry is a multi-million dollar one. While eating crab can be messy and often difficult, special tools have been created to make cracking crab easier.
It seems like everyone these days are trying to lead a healthier lifestyle. With fast food all around us and most foods being processed and stuffed full of chemicals and preservatives it is becoming more difficult to eat healthy. Fresh shellfish is a great alternative. The ocean is the perfect environment to grow all sorts of tasty critters. They develop far away from processing plants and all the unhealthy growing methods being used in other industries. Stay natural and eat healthy, eat naturally grown shellfish from the ocean.
A good thing to remember is that you can always get fresh shellfish, regardless of where you live. It is no longer necessary to live on the coast or near the ocean. You can always visit any one of the ever increasing amount of online seafood vendors. Quality Fresh Seafood is just one of the obvious choices. You can always have your shellfish order delivered to you overnight.

source to this post: Fresh Shellfish Is Full Off Variety
From the Free - food and drink recipes website

Learn more:

Live Lobster Dinners Are Healthy and Tasty

Seagle — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 19:57:18 +0000

Does the thought of live Maine lobster, sweet and dripping with melted butter sound good to you? Wouldn’t you enjoy eating some really good seafood about now? If you can access your computer and you have a phone, this can be reality for you whenever your taste buds are asking for delicious lobster. You thought that you would have to wait until summer for fresh lobster, now you can have what your heart desires!
There is something there to please everyone. You may want to start by having the famous Maine Lobster Can Bake that comes with everything you need to have a delicious dinner, including the can in which to cook your treasure. All you need to add to make this meal complete is the water and the steam to cook it in. Among the many items that you might find under Lobster Dinner packages, you may find that you want an elegant dinner for two, or you may want to have a party for twelve or more; there is something there to suit your every need.
To start your menu off right, there are appetizers and chowder that sound simply mouth-watering! Next, you can have some Caviar or fresh fish or smoked fish. To round out your taste buds; there are all types of lobster tails, seafood dinners, or you may want a little beef with your lobster; and they also will sell you a wonderful surf and turf choice.
Want something that offers the best of both land and sea? Why not try the surf and turf? This way not only do you get a choice lobster but a nice steak as well. It can be shared by two people and satisfy the both of you.
It looks and sounds simply scrumptious!
Why not set down now to your computer with your phone at hand, and look over the vast numbers of lobster dinners available to you. The choices are up to you.
You can start with the appetizers, chowder, and go right to main course with side dishes.
In this wonderful world in which we live, lobster can be yours; just for the asking. With the advantage of your Internet and phone, your dining can go to a higher dimension than ever before. The only thing that they ask of you to do is to supply the appetite!Bon appetite

source to this post: Live Lobster Dinners Are Healthy and Tasty
From the Free - food and drink recipes website

Learn more:

Looking for a Healthy Meal? Try Fresh Lobster!

Seagle — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 21:53:17 +0000

Finding a protein that’s good for you and tastes great can be hard. Everyone wants to diet, but no one wants to give up on good taste to do it. Red meat has been out for years, and many are cutting meat from their diets all together. Some have turned to fish, but with mercury level’s rising, that may not be safe, especially if you’re trying to have children. So where is a dieter to turn for a healthy protein alternative? Fresh lobster is a great option.
Many of us have long believed that lobster is bad for you. It tastes so great, and feels so deliciously indulgent, that eating it must be cheating. In fact, this just isn’t true. Lobster, at 90 calories per three and a half ounces, is actually better for you than other protein rich meats, like steak and even chicken. This means that including lobster in your diet is, unbelievably I know, a great way to get trim and stay healthy while doing it. Fresh lobster is a must add protein to your meals.
You may be thinking to yourself that lobster must be unhealthy, because that’s what you’ve heard and thought for years, but it’s simply not true. What is true is that most of the ways in which lobster has been prepared and enjoyed have been unhealthy, masking the fact that the fresh lobster meat itself is quite healthy. Of course, a creamy and rich lobster bisque isn’t good for you, and dipping any meat in butter wouldn’t make for a healthy meal, but on it’s own, because it is steamed in preparation, lobster is better for you than other proteins.
Lobster is healthy for many reasons, but did you know that fresh lobster meat is a great source of omega three fatty acids. This is something you may have been hearing more about lately. Omega three’s are naturally found in many types of shellfish and other fish. They are thought by doctors to help promote and improve your heart health, so much so that they’re now being added to many other foods. Fresh lobster is a great way to get them naturally. It’s also a great source of protein to keep your energy high.
There are many great ways for you to enjoy lobster in a healthy way. If you love salad, try adding a few chunks of lobster. This is a great way to add flavor and texture, get some protein, and not add a lot of calories to a healthy meal. Lobster also goes great with any strong flavored bread. If you’re stuck for dinner, why not try some simple and classic pasta and oil. Simply use whole wheat pasta, dress it sparingly, and add some lobster to give it a great flavor that family and friends will love.
Want to spice up dinner tonight? Try some healthy fresh lobster? It’s a great way to eat something that’s good for you, and tastes delicious. So go enjoy!

source to this post: Looking for a Healthy Meal? Try Fresh Lobster!
From the Free - food and drink recipes website

Learn more:

Smoked Salmon – Tasty Morsels from the Sea

wowow — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 13:36:01 +0000

While the waters of the Atlantic have been devastatingly over fished today for Salmon to be placed onto countless million dinner tables each year, the waters of Alaska are still very well populated with fish due to the fact of the guidelines fishermen have to follow in Alaska. In the nineteenth century almost all commercial Salmon were pulled from the Atlantic. Being canned in New England to be eagerly shipped off to California in the 1840s, and by the middle of the 1860’s the tasty delights were actually being produced in California and then carried off to the east!

A majority of salmon today (around 70%) are not even fished anymore, they are farmed on fish farms. Alaskan Salmon is a prime exception though. They live freely in the Pacific Ocean until the time they decide to return to the rivers of Alaska where they were conceived.

Alaskans highly praise the value of the Salmons orange-red flesh and thought that any form of disrespect shown to these fish would cause Sea Gods to take the salmon away.

Without the salmon not only the people and animals would suffer, but the land as well. When salmon return from the sea they bring back nitrogen so that the trees and plants thrive, benefitting the herbivores also. The best way to honor this salmon gift from the gods is to take only what is needed and use all that is taken. So it was vital to develop a way to store the salmon caught during their breeding runs back up their natal rivers. That is where Alaskan Smoked Salmon comes in.

There are many combinations of smoking to choose from when smoking Alaskan Salmon. Things which are considered in the smoking process are the temperatures, and the type of cure to be used. Cold smoking gives a lighter smoked taste, but offer more of the natural flavor of the Salmon, while hot smoking produces a much more smokier taste.

Cures are categorized in two fields, wet and dry. Wet cures require the meat to be soaked in a brine solution which can contain pepper, sugar, salt, and other spices. The dry variety of curing is typically to produce cured only fish and contains a mix of herbs or fruit, seat salt, and sugar.

Another important fact that must be taken into count while smoking fish is the actually species of salmon. There are actually give different species of salmon which exist in Alaskan waters, and each offers a different taste in the combination of cures and smoking.

Today, people can find salmon on their local grocery store shelves, but this variety is typically farm raised and cold smoked. For any connoisseur, however, Alaskan Smoked Salmon is the best bet. The taste of Alaskan Salmon is comparable to fine wine when its properly smoked and cured correctly.

source to this post: Smoked Salmon – Tasty Morsels from the Sea
From the Free - food and drink recipes website

Learn more:

Live Lobsters Make A Great Holiday Party Meal

kvadra — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 22:15:01 +0000

Parties for friends and family are always stressful. You’ve planned for months, but it’s hard to do all of the cooking, cleaning, and decorating you need when you’ve got work and family obligations as well. And of course, with times as difficult as they are today, you’d like to save some money, but it can be so difficult to find a good deal. Why not sit back, relax, and take care of dinner now by ordering live lobsters to steam and share with your guests at this year’s holiday blowout?

Live lobster! What could we possibly be thinking! Isn’t lobster a difficult meal to make? You would have to go to the store, and hope they have enough lobster, and then try to get them home and keep them alive until your party, and then try to steam them all! How is that any easier? It’s easier, because with online ordering, you can skip those first three steps. You simply need to sit back, relax, and let the lobsters come to you!

When you order live lobster online, it couldn’t be easier. There’s no driving too and from the grocery store, trying to find enough lobsters to feed everyone. All you’ll need to do is point and click while relaxing at home. And these won’t be the tough grocery store lobsters you’ve had to live with. Instead, you’ll be getting succulent and fresh lobster caught the day before. The only work you’ll need to do is deciding what fits your party best, one, two or three pound lobsters!

How do these fresh live lobsters get to you so quickly and stay so fresh? It’s easy. Instead of coming to a local store through suppliers, something that can take up to a week at a time, you are getting your lobsters directly from the fisherman. This means that you’re getting the best quality lobsters there are, and there’s no waiting time, since the lobsters are shipped directly to you. This means that you’re getting fresh and succulent lobster, without waiting for the middleman!

When you order live lobsters online, you get a great deal on the price! As you may have seen or heard about, the price of lobster has recently fallen. This savings might not be passed onto you at your local grocery store, however. Because the store has to pay their supplier, and for the price of running the store, which has only been going up recently, they can only give you minimal savings. When you’re buying from the fisherman however, you’re getting their direct price. This means that you’ll get great savings and value for your dollar!

Now more than ever is the time to order live lobsters online. They’ll be a fresh new take on your holiday meal, and you can save money and time! So why not impress your guests, and take the guess work out of dinner by ordering lobsters!

source to this post: Live Lobsters Make A Great Holiday Party Meal
From the Free - food and drink recipes website

Learn more:

Smoking Seafood

Seagle — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 05:18:01 +0000

Sometime after humans started to cook their food over fire, a great discovery in food preservation was made — smoking of meats. It was one of the earliest methods to prevent food from spoiling. If fact, until the invention of refrigeration, smoking was one of the primary means for keeping meat from spoiling, allowing people to store meat for the winter and to transport it over great distances. This method of preservation is still widely practiced in lesser developed countries, but today smoking is mostly done to impart meat with flavor. In theory, any type of fish can be smoked, but oily and fatty fish are preferred as they absorb more of the smoke flavor and take better to the smoking process.

The cool mountain climate and prevalence of outdoor space in Asheville, NC provide a perfect environment for smoking. George Baxevanis, and his son Alex, have taken to smoking trout which is prevalent in the streams and rivers surrounding Asheville in Western North Carolina. George is the owner of Fisherman’s Quarters II — a popular family-style seafood restaurant in Asheville. His son, Alex, grew up in the restaurant industry and is now running a catering business — ABC catering.

George and Alex shared that they have found a new love for smoking. “We’ve been experimenting with various methods and recipes. Alex is working to master smoking so he can offer smoked trout and salmon to his clients. “Currently, I’m working on a recipe for smoked trout fish dip,” Alex says.

Smoking methods vary and the smoking of fish is an art form. Whatever the method, there are some commonalities. First, the fish is treated with salt or “brined.” Usually, this is done by soaking the fish in brine which is salt water that may or may not have seasonings in it or by coating the fish with salt. This cures the fish, drawing out moisture. Some of the salt will soak into the fish and the combination of the salt absorbing and the moisture being removed prevents bacteria growth that will cause the meat to spoil. The curing time varies, depending on the size and density of the fish. Sugar, herbs, spices and sometimes liquor are used and the recipes used in the second curing create much of the variety that is available in smoked fish.

Then the fish is smoked in an enclosed chamber. The smoking time and temperature vary. Depending on the time and temperature, fish can be hot or cold smoked.

In cold smoking, the fish is smoked slowly at a low temperature between 60-110 degrees F. Cold smoking does not cook the fish; it just dries it a bit and gives it flavor. This keeps the fish moist. Properly cold smoked fish will keep for months. The most popular type of cold smoked fish is cold smoke variation of salmon known as lox.

Hot smoking happens at a higher temperature that sometimes starts lower but usually reaches a temperature of between 150-180 degrees F for a few hours. In this process, the fish is at least partially cooked and will keep for a few days in a refrigerator. Hot smoked fish is firmer and flakier than cold smoked.

Temperature control is crucial as too much heat will dry the fish out before it is properly smoked. Salmon is the most popular hot smoked fish, but trout, tuna, mackerel, bluefish and sablefish (often sold as black cod) are also common.

Hot smoked fish will not cut like lox and will crumble or flake if cut too thin. Hot smoke fish is best cut into chucks or cubes or flaked apart along the natural seams of the muscles.

Hardwoods are preferred to soft. Native Americans of the Pacific Northwest traditionally smoked salmon over alder. Oak, maple and hickory are other popular choices. Some people like to mix a hard wood with that of a fruit tree like apple or cherry. You’ll want to use small chunks or chips of wood.

“Experiment with different combinations to create your own signature smoke flavor,” adds Alex.

source to this post: Smoking Seafood
From the Free - food and drink recipes website

Learn more:

Lobster – A Tasty Seafood Dinner

Seagle — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 21:14:17 +0000

A pleasure that nobody should miss is to enjoy a delicious dinner of fresh shellfish. It is easiest to do this, of course, if you live on the coast or nearby. However, if you live inland and don’t have good access to seafood, there may be a specialty shop or a restaurant in your area that can sell you fish that were flown in that day. Of course the best place to get fresh seafood is from a reputable online seller. With the introduction of overnight delivery from Fedex to the continental US, there is absolutely no reason for you not to enjoy a fresh seafood meal on a regular basis. Frozen fish is not a great replacement.

Who is to question the king of seafood is none other than lobster? It must have taken a brave person to decide to try this thing the first time. Believe it or not, they were very unpopular for the longest time. To us, this pricey delicacy was once the food of peasants. Although true, it will probably be only a small comfort when your forking over $11.95 a pound in stores or $29.95 in a restaurant. Lots of times, the only way to ensure your getting the freshest lobster as possible is to order online. After all, this way you can be certain its fresh because you are ordering fresh from the coast and having it shipped directly to you.

In order to cook lobster at home, you must first purchase one live and kicking lobster per diner at your local seafood shop or fishmonger, carrying them home in a sack. Although people frequently place lobster in fresh water, this should not be done as it will kill them. Simply close the bag and store in your refrigerator. Lobster do not keep for long, so it is recommended that you eat them the same evening they are purchased.

This is the hardest part. Each lobster, sadly, will have to give its life for your meal, and you are the one who has to make it happen. To do it humanely, you can drop them into water that is at a violent rolling boil, or you can put them out of their misery first by inserting the point of a knife briskly between the head and the body, which kills them instantly. If you choose the second option, you can grill them. They can also be steamed in less water.

Put on a bib, serve your lobster with some butter and lemon, and don’t stand on ceremony. There are tasty morsels of meat all throughout the shell. Green tomalley or red roe which you may find in the body is edible as well, and gourmets prize this for sure.

An ocean-themed meal like this doesn’t have to be limited to just lobster. Try some fresh shellfish like mussels for instance. Just scrub them thoroughly and steam them in a liquid like wine, water or broth. Also try steamer clams, you steam these and dip them into a broth to wash away any sand left over from the beach. Another great shellfish baked, fried or sometimes raw is oyster. Don’t forget langoustines, shrimp and crayfish. All of which are tasty treats from the sea.

There are so many different ways to prepare seafood. You don’t have to be some kind of master chef to make a tasty and delicious seafood meal. Often times all you need to do is just cook the seafood to create a great tasting meal. The natural flavor of the seafood can stand on its own merits.

If all these kinds of seafood are still a bit daunting, there’s another choice for the faint of heart. You can always go to the soup aisle and purchase some clam chowder. Fresh fish is better, but you’ll at least get the true briny taste of the ocean. Serve it with oyster crackers, perhaps an extra dash of cream, and lots of ground black pepper. Then, pretend you’re on the beach.

Good times and great food go hand in hand. A lobster and shellfish taste adventure is no exception to the rule. When throwing an extravagant meal such as this, everyone invited will be very impressed. Whether it is just your friends that attend, or your family members too, they will all have fond memories of the seafood feast enjoyed on that occasion. Just the thought of it will bring warm and soothing feelings to all involved. It will truly be a historical event.

source to this post: Lobster – A Tasty Seafood Dinner
From the Free - food and drink recipes website

Learn more: