Field Guide to Seafood [Paperback]

Aliza Green (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2007 | Series: Field Guide

At last, a field guide to identifying and selecting seafood from around the world, including barramundi, lobsterette, wahoo, and more!
 
With the daunting array of fish and shellfish available in today’s market, Field Guide to Seafood is a must-have for every seafood consumer!
 
This helpful guide offers a comprehensive look at seafood, covering more than 100 different kinds of fish and shellfish, plus preserved fish, fish sauces, and caviar. Learn to differentiate between Arctic char and salmon or between snow crabs and stone crabs with the in-depth descriptions and full-color photographs. Each entry contains a list of alternate names, characteristics, and suggested preparation, including directions on when to remove or leave the skin. Step-by-step instructions explain how to identify, store, and cook the item.
 
Whether your fish is store-bough or just caught, this guide includes selection tips, suggested recipes, and complementary flavors. You’ll never feel overwhelmed by the wide variety of seafood with this handy guide — don’t go shopping without it!
 

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Don’t know your flounder from your halibut? Here’s the book you need.”—Relish magazine

“Any cook with a pledge to get smarter about consuming sea creatures ought to have Aliza Green’s new palm-size paperback in hand.”—The Washington Post

About the Author

Aliza Green is a chef, food writer, and teacher based in Philadelphia. She is the author of Field Guide to Produce, Field Guide to Meat, and Field Guide to Herbs & Spices and the coauthor of the James Beard Award-winning cookbook Ceviche!: Seafood, Salads, and Cocktails with a Latino Twist. 

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Quirk Books (March 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1594741352
• ISBN-13: 978-1594741357
• Product Dimensions: 4.5 x 1 x 5.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #156,967 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #56 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Cooking by Ingredient > Meat, Poultry & Seafood > Seafood

More About the Author

Aliza Green, the Philadelphia-based cookbook author, journalist and pioneering chef, is the author of ten highly successful cookbooks including her newest, The Fishmonger's Apprentice, full of step-by-step how to techniques and interviews with international seafood industry experts, is available now for pre-order from Amazon.

Researching her next book, Making Artisan Pasta (available now for pre-order on Amazon) in Italy inspired Aliza Green to gather a small group of fellow pasta fanatics to share the joys of making and eating the region's incomparable hand-stretched pasta from October 19 to 29, 2011. Green's book, which focuses on step-by-step pasta-making techniques, will be published by Quarry Books in January. The tour program is designed in connection with Epicopia Culinary Journeys, founded by culinary travel specialist, Harold D. Partain, CTC, CCTP. Visit http://www.epicopia.com/italy/item/62-italian-maremma-umbria-a-pasta-lovers-culinary-tour for complete itinerary and pricing.

Green's Field Guide to Meat: How to Identify, Select, and Prepare Virtually Every Meat, Poultry, and Game Cut (Quirk Books 2005) earned top praises from Food & Wine and Real Simple. Her Field Guide to Produce: How to Identify, Select, and Prepare Virtually Every Fruit and Vegetable at the Market (Quirk Books 2004), was highly regarded by the New York Times, Newsday, Men's Health, Shape and the Houston Chronicle. With the growing success of the series, her Field Guide to Herbs & Spices (Quirk Books 2006) and Field Guide to Seafood (Quirk Books 2007) are the latest entries in this popular series, a must on the shelves of food writers and editors.

Her masterly Starting with Ingredients: Quintessential Recipes for the Way We Really Cook was published to outstanding reviews in the fall of 2006. With over 550 recipes and detailed, practical, information about the background, culture, history, and uses of 100 important ingredients, this book has been flying off the shelves in the United Stated and Canada. Field Guide to Produce and Field Guide to Herbs & Spices are a must for chefs, food writers, and culinary students.

¡Ceviche!: Seafood, Salads, and Cocktails With a Latino Twist (Running Press 2001), a book she co-authored with chef Guillermo Pernot, received a James Beard Award for "Best Single Subject Cookbook" in 2001. Prior to it, she wrote The Bean Bible: A Legumaniac's Guide to Lentils, Peas, and Every Edible Bean on the Planet! (Running Press 2000), which Booklist declared as "comprehensive guide to the world of beans and bean cookery belongs in every cookbook collection." When Running Press re-released it as as Beans: More than 200 Delicious, Wholesome Recipes from Around the World in Fall 2004 with new photographs and recipes, the book appeared in a New York Times feature on top cookbooks of the year.

For the highly successful book Georges Perrier, Le Bec-Fin Recipes (Running Press 1997) features a collection of recipes from Philadelphia's landmark restaurant that Green co-wrote with highly regarded French chef. Green has conducted numerous cooking classes, had many television appearances and radio interviews, and is a highly reputed television and print food stylist.

As one of the pioneer chefs who helped make the city of Philadelphia a dining destination, Green began her career in the mid-1970's as Executive Chef at the renowned Ristorante DiLullo, where her culinary achievements landed the restaurant a prestigious four-star rating. In 1988, The Philadelphia Inquirer inducted Chef Green into its Culinary Hall of Fame, citing her as one of the ten most influential people in the city's food industry for her uncompromising efforts at working with local farmers.

Green cites her childhood, which she spent traveling and living abroad, as the inspiration for her culinary pursuits. She has been reading about, writing about and preparing and perfecting food for most of her life. In 1975 she opened a catering business, which served as her professional start. She worked as a chef for twelve years, and began exploring other culinary options after the births of her two children. Today, Green spends her time writing food guides and cookbooks, teaching cooking to high school students, and leading culinary tours.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good tool for buying seafood, April 18, 2007

By 

Ronald Partridge (Oxford, MS) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Field Guide to Seafood (Paperback)

I have purchased several books on seafood hoping to find one that is devoted to the basics of buying seafood (intended for the seafood challenged). This is the book I was searching for ! It describes the various varieties of fish and shellfish, gives alternate names for them, tells something about them, gives ideas for preparation and recipes and tells what to look for in buying them. It is well organized by alphabetical listing of names and very easy to use. I have spent considerably more on other seafood books but this is my favorite.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great pocket-sized guide to a broad range of seafood!, October 13, 2009

By 

R Schmidt (Honolulu, HI USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Field Guide to Seafood (Paperback)

Have you ever been confused with the name attached to a particular fish? Have you found yourself wondering whether the fish on display is fresh or not? Are you interested in trying a new seafood, but you'd rather know SOMETHING about it before you commit your wallet and your kitchen?

If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, you might want to invest in this little book, Field Guide To Seafood, by Aliza Green.

The book is organized logically, with some general information about fish and fish preparation, then going through 100+ species or varieties of seafood, from canned tuna to wahoo to octopus to eel. There's a lot here! And the center of the book has a large number of high-quality photographs of whole fish, fish fillets, and other seafood "sections" that you might find in a store.

One thing I really appreciated about this book is its notation for numerous species about conservation issues. Green recommends either the Oceans Alive seafood guide, or the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch guide. "As our oceans become depleted of once abundant fish, choosing a fish is an important decision" (p. 1). She even provides an email address for asking her a question personally!

Here's an example of the detail provided in one of the entries:

Chilean Sea Bass

-Other names

-General description

-Location and season

-Characteristics of the meat

-How to choose

-Storage

-Preparation

-One suggested recipe

-Flavor affinities

And Green doesn't sugarcoat the conservation issues: "Far less plentiful now because of overfishing, this slow-growing fish has been decreasing in size. Many are caught by illegal pirate fishermen, who take fish that are less than eight years old, before they begin to reproduce" (p. 33-34).

It's all here, whether I want to read about it or not! "The loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) is used to make a famous Maltese stew called stuffat tal-fekruna" (p. 282). Ouch! But then, "According to conservationists, much of the shark fins are being cut from living sharks in a process called finning, leading to a rapid decline in global shark populations. Shark fins have also been reported to have high levels of toxic mercury" (p. 291).

So it's all here... the good, the bad, and... the delicious. This field guide is designed to help you make wise choices. Use a Seafood Watch guide as a bookmark, and you've got a great combination!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great reference, June 30, 2008

By 

Christopher R. Travers "Einhverfr" (Chelan, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Field Guide to Seafood (Paperback)

I bought this book as part of a birthday present for my wife. It is a wonderful reference on the subject.

The book is largely a reference guide to fresh and prepared fish and shellfish (generally). It is in a standard field-guide format with a section of pictures, and a larger section describing the seafood, how to select it, preparation suggestions, etc.

This is not a "cookbook" as such. However, it is very helpful or people who may want to have such a handy reference.