Fish Without a Doubt: The Cook's Essential Companion (Hardcover)

by Rick Moonen (Author), Roy Finamore (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist
*Starred Review* Moonen and Finamore’s encyclopedic volume appears at just the right moment. Nutritional awareness has given fish cooking even more prominence within the culinary arts, and efficient transportation now brings fresh fish into the nation’s interior. With this book to guide both neophyte and expert, no one need any longer fear to cook any of the deep’s denizens. In instructive photographs, Moonen and Finamore show how to clean, bone, and portion both finfish and shellfish. Recipes are organized by cooking method—broiling, poaching, roasting, grilling, steaming, frying—providing the creative cook some latitude in determining what to do with the fish at hand. Succeeding chapters cover such fish basics as chowders, fish cakes, and salads. A final section offers unique takes on side dishes such as coleslaw. Both the book’s organization and its comprehensive coverage make this a necessary addition to any cookbook collection. --Mark Knoblauch

Review
How to broil a bottom-feeder FIONA MORROW Globe and Mail August 6, 2008 VANCOUVER — You know what not to eat: Chilean sea bass is a no-no, monkfish is totally taboo. You've double-checked SeaChoice.org for a list of aquatic life that's not ethically verboten, maybe even read Taras Grescoe's Bottomfeeder for a deeper insight into the fish crisis. But what are these exotic-looking critters in your fridge? And how do you turn them into something worth eating? Rick Moonen feels your pain. The chef-owner of RM Seafood in Las Vegas has been front and centre in the movement toward sustainable seafood in the United States for many years, and believes enjoying fish has never been so fraught. He recognizes how difficult it is for consumers not to navigate their way to a piece of ethically caught fish, but to know what to do with the darned thing once they've bought it. Enlarge Image Don't be afraid to experiment with ethical fish at home, says chef Rick Moonen, co-author of Fish without a Doubt. The cookbook offers instructions on preparing such sustainable seafood as broiled sardines: Serve them with your favourite hummus and pita bread; drizzle the sardines with olive oil, sprinkle on some salt and curble on oregano if they're not marinated. His message: "Be less afraid." His new cookbook, Fish Without a Doubt, is designed to make choosing and cooking seafood at home a breeze. First, he proffers a list of what's okay and what is environmentally unsound, with information and links to the organizations that keep this information up to date. Then he turns to the practicalities, keen to assuage readers of their fear of cooking fish. "Even your average home cook is nervous about fish," Mr. Moonen says from Las Vegas. "It's expensive and they don't want to ruin it - you can pay $30 for a piece of halibut, and you don't want it to turn out bad. I really want to see more people have successful seafood meals at home." The book offers step-by-step guides on removing "wings" from squid, snipping off the faces of soft-shell crabs and shucking oysters without spearing your palm. Feel good about the choices you've made, Mr. Moonen says. He calls sardines -never far from the table in Mediterranean countries - "almost the perfect ocean product for your health." Full of protein, calcium, iron, phosphorous, potassium and omega-3 fatty acids, all they need is a grill or broiler, "a squirt of lemon, some good olive oil and crusty bread." (If small bones bother you, the book has instructions on how to butterfly sardines and anchovies.) Mackerel is dispatched just as easily: Baked over a base of potatoes and topped with a tangy olive and anchovy puttanesca sauce; spiced up in burgers with jalapenos; or cured in a ceviche of rum and pineapple. Be sure it's really fresh, Mr. Moonen notes: "It's a fish that deteriorates rapidly. Check for bright, shiny skin and a clean aroma." He also made sure to include substitutes for each recipe. "You want to buy the seafood that looks the best that day," he explains. "If you go to the market and they either don't have what you needed, or it just doesn't look fresh, then knowing what can sub in the recipe really helps." A pineapple-carrot ceviche with sea scallops, for example, can also be made with grouper, black sea bass, Arctic char or squid. To be sure his dishes can be recreated comfortably in the average kitchen, Mr. Moonen decamped to co-author Roy Finamore's apartment. "This was your typical New York kitchen," he laughs. "One stove, four burners, one oven, regular pots and pans. ... I wasn't about to fill a book with recipes from my archives - these were all created specifically for the book in a small, basic kitchen." But as much as he wants people to cook and eat more fish - a large part of the book is about motivating them to do so with a clear conscience. "Our children are going to see the collapse of fisheries and this is a call to arms," Mr. Moonen argues. "All wild fish are going to be commercially extinct and we need to get the message across that there's a problem in the ocean." While he hopes people will make changes in their purchasing, he looks to governments to take the lead. "They need to make regulatory changes," he says. "The U.S. West Coast salmon fisheries were shut down this year - five years too late." Mr. Moonen has seen first-hand how such action can make a difference. He was prominent in the Give Swordfish a Break campaign, launched in 1998 when 27 East Coast chefs took the fish off their menus and demanded action. The campaign ended in 2000 when the National Marine Fisheries Service announced the protection of key nursery populations within U.S. waters. Two years later, swordfish had reached 94 per cent of full recovery. Still, it doesn't help, he says, when organizations send out confusing signals. "Whole Foods puts Chilean sea bass back in its stores because it has a reliable source but what message does that actually send?" he asks. "Suddenly, people think Chilean sea bass is universally okay again." Keeping it interesting in the kitchen, he says, is the key to enjoying fish at home. "Let's mix it up a little. Don't get fixated on the one fish you know how to cook, or forgo fish altogether because cooking squid or sardines scares you. With just a little effort, you can take your level of comfort to the next level." ***** Broiled sardines If you have the time and inclination, marinate the sardines. But even if you don't, they will still be blistered, browned and delicious. Serve them with your favourite hummus and pita bread, which you can warm under the griddle while you broil the fish. Marinade What you need 2 teaspoons cumin seeds, toasted (see below) 1/4 cup olive oil 1 tablespoon chopped garlic What you do To toast the cumin seeds, put seeds in a small heavy skillet, either over medium heat or in a preheated 350 F oven. Shake the pan often, until the seeds are lightly coloured and aromatic. Remove them from the skillet immediately so they don't burn and let cool before you grind them. Stir the oil, garlic and cumin seeds together in a dish large enough to hold the sardines in a single layer. Roll the sardines in the marinade, coating them, then cover with plastic and refrigerate for three to four hours. Broiled Sardines What you need 8 sardines, scaled and gutted Extra virgin olive oil Coarse sea salt About 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano (if not marinating the fish) Lemon wedges What you do Set a cast-iron griddle on the top oven rack and heat the broiler for at least 15 minutes. When the griddle is searing hot, remove the sardines from the marinade. (If you haven't marinated them, rub the fish generously with olive oil and season with salt.) Broil until the skin is blistered and browned and the tails are charred, about four minutes. Drizzle the sardines with olive oil. Sprinkle on some salt and crumble on the oregano if you haven't marinated the sardines. The lemon wedges go on the plates. Serve while the sardines are hot. Serves 4. Butterflying sardines and anchovies Scale the fish with your fingers under cold running water, working from the tail to the head. Be gentle - the skin is delicate. Stand the fish on its belly on a cutting board and make a cut right behind the front fins and through the spine. Hold the body of the fish in one hand and the head in the other. Bend the head down toward the belly, pulling it off. Most of the guts will come out as you do this. Push your index finger into the cavity you've made at the head end and open the fish up along its belly. Remove the remaining guts and rinse. With the fish on its back, work your index finger under the spine at the head end. When your finger is in to the first knuckle, slide in your middle finger too. This will lift the small bones from the flesh. Continue working your fingers under the bones until you reach the tail. Pinch off the spine at the tail. Lay the fish flat on your working surface and trim the edges. Pat down any ragged flesh. Mackerel with puttanesca and potatoes I like making this satisfying, warming casserole in individual gratin dishes, but you can just as easily make it in one larger dish — just increase the cooking time by five minutes. Make the puttanesca and boil the potatoes a day ahead and the dish will be a snap to put together. This pasta sauce is actually a great accompaniment to fish. It's the start of a fine fish casserole, too. Accept substitutes: Try this recipe with bluefish or filleted, fresh sardines. What you need Olive oil 1 pound white or red-skinned potatoes, boiled until tender, peeled and sliced Coarse salt 4 tablespoons dry vermouth 4 (6- to 7-ounce) pieces mackerel fillet Freshly ground white pepper 2 cups puttanesca sauce (recipe below) 1 cup dry bread crumbs 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley 2 garlic cloves, minced or put through a press What you do Preheat the oven to 450 F. Oil four individual gratin dishes (two-cup capacity) generously with olive oil. Divide the potatoes among the dishes and season with salt. Sprinkle one tablespoon vermouth into each dish. Season the fish with salt and white pepper. Lay the fillets on top of the potatoes and spread 1/2 cup of the puttanesca sauce over each, covering it completely. Mix the bread crumbs, parsley, garlic and two teaspoons of olive oil together in a small bowl. Sprinkle the crumbs over the casseroles, dividing them as evenly as you can. Slip the casseroles into the oven and bake until the potatoes are piping hot and the fish is cooked through, about 12 minutes. Serves 4. Puttanesca What you need 1/4 cup olive oil 1 cup chopped onion 1/4 cup chopped garlic 8 to 10 anchovy fillets, chopped Crushed red pepper 3 cups chopped tomatoes (Pomi preferred) 1/2 cup sliced kalamata or other black olives 1/4 cup drained capers What you do Add oil and onion to medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir often, until the onion is translucent, about seven minutes. Add the garlic and continue cooking until the onion turns gold at the edges, another three to four minutes. Add the anchovies and a good pinch of crushed red pepper and stir until the anchovies start... (Globe and Mail )

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 448 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (April 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 061853119X
• ISBN-13: 978-0618531196
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 8 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #9,725 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The fish cook's bible, June 17, 2008

By	Julie Neal "The Complete Walt Disney World" (Sanibel Island, Fla.) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This hefty book has all you need to know to cook fish and shellfish. The recipes are clear and descriptive. I like that the authors help you "see" with their words, as in this advice from Oyster Stew: "Cook just until the edges of the oysters curl; they'll look like ruffled petticoats."

As a relatively inexperienced fish cook, I appreciated the section up front called Preparing Fish and Shellfish for Cooking and Serving. It's a step-by-step guide, fully illustrated with black and white photos, showing how to clean and filet a round fish, shell and devein shrimp, prep scallops, clean squid, shuck clams and oysters and prepare lobster.

The cookbook missed the fifth star because of the lack of nutritional information for each recipe, and for too few photos. The 41 color images included are luscious.

Under the dust jacket is a cover that has the same art except for the reviews on the back cover.

Some other good new cookbooks: Hungry Girl, Deceptively Delicious and The Most Decadent Diet Ever!.

Here's the chapter list:

INTRODUCTION
1. Fish and Health
2. Sustainable Seafood

THE BASICS
3. Is It Cooked?
4. The Fish Cook's Kitchen
5. Preparing Fish and Shellfish for Cooking and Serving
6. Shopping for Fish
7. Storing Fish and Shellfish
8. Notes on the Fish in This Book

LET'S COOK
9. Poaching
10. Steaming and Boiling
11. Broiling
12. Grilling -- Stovetop and Outdoor -- and Smoking
13. Baking and Roasting
14. Searing and Sautéing
15. Frying
16. Shellfish Appetizers and First Courses
17. Chowders, Soups and Stews
18. Salads, Ceviches and Gravlax
19. Fish Cakes and Burgers
20. Pasta and Rice
21. Salsas and Relishes
22. Sauces, Vinaigrettes and Spice Mixes
23. Essential Sides

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thank you "Gourmet" for this recommendation, May 24, 2008

By	B. J. Lewis (Highlands Ranch, CO) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Do I need another cookbook? Well, I guess I did, if my first experience with this one is a foretaste (!) of what I can expect. I'm writing this after just finishing one of the best dinners I've ever experienced. I made the Sauteed Char with Hoisin Glaze and Wasabi Butter Sauce (p.238), although I used salmon. And, instead of bok choy or wilted cabbage, I made the Asian slaw (p.453). While the list of sauces seem intimidating, they are all quite easy and can be done well in advance of the final preparation of the fish -- and they add, oh, so much. If nothing else, the Hoisin Glaze is a revelation of how much a truly simple sauce can elevate a boring piece of sauteed salmon into something delectable. Thank you, chefs Moonen and Finamore. There are a couple of purring adults right now in Highlands Ranch, Colorado.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Turgid?, June 5, 2008

By	TRP (Virginia) - See all my reviews

This is a criply written, witty, utterly indispensable cookbook for anybody interested in eating well while treating this planet's resources responsibly. Ignore the dope above. If you savor things aquatic, buy this book. I'm sure I'll be cooking happily from it for years.