So...whats for dinner?

I live in Nc. It seems all the tilapia is farm raised and from overseas. The catfish is different. USA raised. We are fortunate to have NC fresh shrimp.

Things are so different now. I remember catfish that had the head, bones, made into steaks. You had to ask the butcher to filet it if you wanted no bones.

Never heard of tilapia growing up. We ate catfish, perch and whiting. Salmon came in a can.

DH who was raised in rural Louisiana, was an expert fisherman. He ate all kinds growing up. All fresh. I envied his family who had fresh shrimp and crabs, right off the boats.

On another note, the only time we had boneless chicken breasts was when we asked the butcher to do it for us. As a young wife and mother (talking 38 years ago) I would first cut up the chicken, then debone the breast and thighs.

Can anyone remember when boneless chicken breasts became the norm in grocery stores? Or was it my geographic location? (Chicago, Indiana, Michigan? )

Val

I guess because I don't eat tilapia, I did not know that. I do eat shrimp, but only buy gulf shrimp if I can get it (and pay more but I don't care) and I eat cold water fish out of the Atlantic (living in CT) which is cod or haddock and occasionally sole generally. I don't care for salmon (I know, that is almost unheard of) and I catch the trout or char that I eat in the spring/summer. My ex husband used to catch catfish and we would eat them (delicious!)

Yay April, I'm not alone! Salmon is not my favorite either although I will eat it if served to me. I grew up on canned salmon and mackerel (but no tuna oddly enough.) Perhaps that has something to do with it. I don't like tilapia or swai. We eat fresh fish when I can get it, frozen cod, halibut, mahi mahi, etc. DH doesn't like catfish but I love fresh caught or U.S. raised. I love all gulf fishes.

Is catfish safer than tilapia?

Farmed catfish is raised responsibly and sustainably in the US, under strict regulation. Tilapia is usually raised somewhere in Asia (most often Vietnam) or S.A., with no regulations as to their feed, crowding, or sanitation. It was almost unheard-of until the Galilee (the area west of the Sea thereof) flooded about 30 yrs. ago; our tour guide told us not only was the hot & muggy climate perfect for planting eucalyptus trees & kiwi orchards, but also for building containment ponds for what was then called “tilefish” (not the native “St. Peter’s Fish” served whole & deep-fried in olive oil at tourist restaurants). It could be farmed cheaply as it matured quickly and (allegedly) did well in crowded conditions. I didn’t like it even before hearing of sanitary & pollution concerns—IMHO it’s as boring and tasteless a fish as they come, even blander than the frozen flounder & whiting fillets we used to get as kids. It’s the tofu of fish—picks up the flavors of whatever you cook it with because it has none of its own. And cheap shrimp usually is farmed in Vietnam as well. I try to buy wild Gulf shrimp whenever I can find it. Ditto salmon—I prefer wild from the PNW, BC or Alaska, but Verlasso (in Chile?) farms the Atlantic varieties under safe and sustainable conditions without affecting the native fish populations.

Wild trout & steelhead, as well as farmed Idaho trout, is safe and sustainable. Careful about wild catfish, though—it is usually heavily contaminated with mud & sludge and needs to be purged in freshwater tubs several times before it’s safe to eat (and still needs Vietnamese-style long clay pot braising with some kind of sauce, or breading/battering and deep-frying to be palatable).

A Canadian firm tried to farm salmon off the coast of BC, but its methods were as irresponsible and unsustainable as those of Icelandic salmon farms (from where we get most Atlantic salmon)—and some of its spawn did manage to escape and possibly negatively impact the native Pacific salmon populations (keta, coho, king and chinook/sockeye). But the latter wild species have remained unharmed (and that fish farm is out of business).

I hesitate to say this lest it be misconstrued as political, but if you love wild salmon & Pacific black cod—especially those caught in & around Alaska’s Bristol Bay, there is a Canadian/UK/American mining consortium trying to gain approval for a copper & gold mine called the Pebble Mine not all that far upstream of the Bay. If allowed to begin operations, the mine would send effluvium and metal tailings down into the Bay, endangering both the fish and the people (mostly native) who earn their livings catching them commercially (as well as those service providers & equipment vendors who depend on commercial fisherfolk). Check it out. Meanwhile, eat Alaskan salmon as often as you can afford it.

Peggy, head east to where the Snake & Columbia Rivers meet, at the Horse Heaven Hills. Then continue east along the Columbia. When I lived in WA, there was nothing in the HHH (we on the wet side of the mts. often called it the Horse Hockey Hills) other than the beautiful wild horses; the Columbia Valley was strictly vineyards selling to winemakers, and very few wineries to tour & taste. (Woodinville, in the Seattle exurbs, had Ch. Ste. Michelle and Columbia Crest across the road from each other). But Columbia Valley is now an officially designated AVA (American Viticultural Area), and the jewel in its crown is Maryhill, outside Goldendale and perched on a hillside overlooking the Gorge. Maryhill has some of the best Sangiovese I’ve tasted outside Tuscany, and a magnificent Viognier—but everything they make is delicious, all of it from serious vinifera varietals. There’s a lovely little terrace restaurant and an amphitheatre that hosts major pop & country concerts.

Oh Peggy - I'd love to meet you but will be going north from the airport to the Olympic Peninsula then directly south on Hwy 101 and I-5 tp Portland. Next trip I hope to get back over Snoqualamie Pass and up to Lake Chelan & Oroville. My Dad used to take my brothers fishing at Kelowna across the border in Canada.

Sandy - I knew there was a reason I didn't like Tilapia. I do remember researching it back when restaurants first started serving it. I'll look up the mine.

Linner ended up being a large 5-lettuce mix salad with added asparagus, celery, English cukes, zucchini & avocado. I tried a new HEB dressing and it was good - Ruby Red Grapefruit Vinaigrette.

Ribeye steak, baked potato, and salad. Always a winning meal and easy.

Eric, I freeze turkey carcasses. I'm sure others do too.

We are honoring the warm weather today by grilling pork burgers for dinner. Baked beans and cole slaw will be sides.

I went up to check the mail box...just junk mail and a bill from the lawyer I engaged to handle mom's legal affairs. Anyway, when I got back, the house smells wonderful. Jessiecat, Gypsy (yellow lab) and Franky (black mixed breed) are all in the kitchen. I guess they are guarding that white pot on the stove. :-)

Sharon and I ate a very late lunch, so I don't think any of the humans in the house are going to be hungry for dinner.

It's time for Jessiecat's antibiotic. It's a thick liquid that I have to get into his mouth. He hates it. Time for the towel. :-)

Eri...so glad that Jessiecat's "haling nicely" !

At the time we tossed all that stuff, we didn’t think we’d be filing an insurance claim so didn’t make a list.

Plaster dust is pretty amazing in its ability to migrate everywhere. If they do it right, and it sounds like they do, it shouldn't be too bad outside of the rooms that are being sanded.

I have two gallons (!) of turkey broth cooling on the counter. Once the fat can be skimmed off, I'll load it up in the jars and run it through the pressure canner. It's a cold and rainy day here...a perfect time to do this kind of stuff. :-)

Minus, I was deployed to Beaumont and Galveston for Hurricane Ike. The powerless freezers, after a couple of weeks, were "especially memorable".

Wow - more than 24 hours w/o a post. That has to be a record. Hope everyone is having a good holiday.

Brunch was 1/2 a leftover bagel toasted w/cream cheese & salmon. I didn't bother to cut up & set out all the garnishes since I was in the middle of changing the sheets, scrubbing the sinks & toilets, etc. All those fun house things that we all have to manage somehow, especially if we don't have housekeepers. When I worked full time I did treat myself to a cleaning lady every other week - but they never changed the sheets or did laundry. Social Security doesn't even stretch that far.

Dinner will be spiralized zucchini sauteed with garlic & maybe some sweet onion. And what else? Either a toasted English muffin with peanut butter or smoked oysters on Triscuits. I've lost track of time and it's almost 6pm, so I guess I'll have a glass of Pinot Noir while I decide - Chilensis Reserva, Estate bottled, DO.Valle Del Maule, Chile. Just another one of those Chile Valley screw top wines that are pretty good. It suits my budget & my taste buds.

Had a flute of Gloria Ferrer Brut and a cup of black-bean soup with cilantro cream for dinner last night. This morning, got up early, fried an egg, nuked some hollandaise and put it on toast with a turkey sausage patty. Then the reconstruction crew arrived to set up and thoroughly tarp over everything in the kitchen. They also put up plastic sheeting over the doorway between dining room & kitchen (and cleaned up after themselves when they left a couple of hours ago). All I had to for lunch was a Girl Scout Thin Mint, saving my calories for dinner: heading back over to Cellars for a $5 cheeseburger & sweet potato fries (maybe they'll let me sub out a veg). Probably have a glass of pinot noir, though they also have local microbrews on special. The crew’s coming back tomorrow to set up, apply & sand one more skim coat and maybe paint—or wait till Wed. to paint. These guys did a fantastic job of protecting everything & cleaning up—the difference between them and the sledgehammer-wielding remediation crew is like night & day.