Ocean Friendly Cuisine: Sustainable Seafood Recipes from the World's Finest Chefs [Hardcover]

James O. Fraioli (Author), The Monterey Bay Aquarium (Author), Jean-Michel Cousteau (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2005

In an era of depleted oceans and endangered fisheries, this book introduces delectable and ethical seafoods that should be selected when dining out or cooking at home.

The abundant and well-managed species of fresh and saltwater fish, crustaceans and mollusks featured in Ocean Friendly Cuisine can be eaten not only with a clean conscience but with culinary delight using 100 gloriously designed and photographed recipes from the world's finest chefs.

This timely and attractive book is endorsed by the Monterey Bay Aquarium whose highly-lauded Seafood Watch program continues to educate millions of consumers and chefs on choosing ethical seafood options.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"James O. Fraioli used California's Monterey Bay Aquarium's list of sustainable seafood to select 88 exciting recipes from leading restaurant chefs for this book. Fifty kinds of sea life - from Spanish mackerel to wahoo to green-mangrove crab - are described, and sidebars inform readers how the fish are harvested. The recipes are accompanied by mouth-watering color photos of the inventive dishes.

I have known that some species of fish are raised or harvested in more ocean-friendly ways than other fish, but like many consumers I knew very little about the harvesting methods. Reading Ocean Friendly Cuisine has ended my ignorance: I now can purchase fish with an education in buying sustainable seafood - seafood harvested without serious depletion or pollution of the ocean.

Readers will delight in such recipes as Pistachio-Crusted Rainbow Trout With Cilantro-Citrus Hollandaise and Peppercorn Crusted Yellowfin Tuna With Saffron and Fava-Bean Risotto. The book is a great gift for environmentally aware people and seafood lovers. Oversized at 10.25 inches square, the title stands out on bookshelves. Ocean Friendly Cuisine will enhance the cookbook and ecology sections of your store."
(Susan LosCalzo, New Age Retailer Magazine )

"This is one of the best seafood cookbooks I've seen."
  (John Ash, Culinary Director for Fetzer Vineyards )

"A must-have addition to the library of all enlightened seafood lovers... [this book] is as handsome as it is useful and intelligent."

  (James M. Lawrence, Editor Eating Well )

"A stunning collection of delicious recipes that not only taste good, but make you feel good to be a human being:"
  (Chef Tom Douglas, Tom Douglas Restaurants )

"Clearly demonstrates that there can be a responsible approach to the future of sustainable seafood."
(Chef Roy Yamaguchi, Roy's Restaurants )

About the Author

Jean-Michel Cousteau is a contributor for Willow Creek Press titles including Ocean Friendly Cuisine.

James O. Fraioli is a contributor for Willow Creek Press titles including Ocean Friendly Cuisine.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 232 pages
• Publisher: Willow Creek Press (May 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 159543061X
• ISBN-13: 978-1595430618
• Product Dimensions: 10.5 x 10.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #896,019 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

James O. Fraioli (pronounced "fray-o-lee") is a full-time writer and President of Culinary Book Creations - the leader in custom published cookbooks for high-end restaurants and celebrity chefs. He is the published author of 19 titles, with additional books currently in production.

Fraioli's culinary books have garnered numerous literary and design awards and have been featured on The Food Network, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and given as gifts to members of the White House staff.

The author is notorious for teaming up with celebrity chefs and world-renowned restaurants to showcase the best the culinary world has to offer. Participating chefs over the years include James Beard award-winners John Ash, Tom Douglas, Christine Keff, Bradley Ogden, Jacques Pepin, Holly Smith and Allen Susser, as well as Emeril Lagasse and Roy Yamaguchi. Fraioli's cookbooks have also appeared on dozens of national radio shows, including Martha Stewart Living Radio, Food Talk with Rocco DiSpirito, The Gene Burns Show, and The Tom Douglas Show. The author's beautiful and well-crafted books, continually noted for their exceptional prose, high-production value, exquisite photography, and savory subject matter, have received further praise from such esteemed periodicals as Forbes Traveler, Reader's Digest, The San Francisco Chronicle and The New York Times.

In 1991, Fraioli was accepted into the highly competitive Entrepreneur Program at the University of Southern California, where he earned one of the prestigious "Business Plan of the Year" awards. Today, Fraioli infuses business acumen with a natural talent for writing and book packaging, which proves to be a winning combination, especially when marketing and promoting his work.

Prior to his successful writing and publishing career, Fraioli served as a contributing writer and editor for more than 20 magazine publications, and has more than 250 feature articles to his credit. He's also served on many boards including the Pacific Northwest Writers Association (PNWA) where Fraioli created and launched "The Word Is Out" - a venue for selected members to read an unpublished piece of work for a live audience at a major bookstore, just as published authors would. Today, TWIO is one of the most popular activities at PNWA.

He also spent ten years in the motion-picture industry for Walt Disney, Warner Bros, and Fox, and has produced television programming for Discovery Channel and National Geographic Television.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The love of food, May 2, 2005

By 

H. L. Thomas (Athens, GA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ocean Friendly Cuisine: Sustainable Seafood Recipes from the World's Finest Chefs (Hardcover)

Ocean Friendly Cuisine is a great overview of fresh and saltwater bounty that can be enjoyed without the descimation of a species. The recipes reflect the inspirations of a lot of good chefs and organizations that quite simply love to cook and to present a variety of seafood that reflects the complexity of what is fish and shellfish. It's important to free ourselves from sinking into a culinary sameness that seeks to destroy specific species of fish such as the Orange Roughy, Chilean "Sea bass" not a bass, Red Snapper, Black Grouper, Atlantic halibut, bluefin tuna and wild abalone to name a few. This cookbook shows the way.
There are more fish in the sea than we are usually exposed to and the insights of this book, the Montery Aquarium, Seafood Choices Alliance, Sea Web and the chefs and restaurants involved in this effort go a long way to show how great the underutilized seafoods are today. I am lucky enough to have recipe included in this book, and can attest that the recipes represent the best of contemporary cuisine, cuisine well worth cooking both at home and professionally. If we shop wisely and dine with attention to the details of sustainable seafood then we can make a mark on making this a better world through taste and farming/fishing. As M. Cousteau tells us in the forward, seafood is our last hunted species commercially sold in markets and restaurants and we should respect the life cycle of our greatest food.

To J. Fraioli's credit he brings it all togther. There are so many flavors and textures in so many different seafoods that it is amazing how cooks are lured into preparing the same fish over and over, and Ocean Friendly Cuisine joins the ranks of interesting and easy to use books that inform, teach, show, and lead the cook towards being better at cooking and at being a part of the world. Tilapia, trout, farmed abalone, PEI mussels, wild coho/chinook/silverbrite/sockeye salmon, Opah, trevally, blue crab, stone crab, farmed oysters, clams, striped bass, white bass, octopus, sea urchin sablefish,white sturgeon (farmed), wahoo/ono, and this is just to name a few, a few who each have a distinct flavor and texture all it's own. The book has ample illustrations to show how beautiful fresh seafood looks. Ocean Friendly Cuisine explores the suggested seafood and shows how to ask questions when you shop either in the International markets, by purveyor, butcher shop, grocery store, or online for the best possible fish of the day. We should always be able to have a true fresh fish of the day, and by respecting what is sustainable this will always be possible.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book for environmentally conscious cooks., July 27, 2005

By 

Thomas Grinnell (San Jose, CA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ocean Friendly Cuisine: Sustainable Seafood Recipes from the World's Finest Chefs (Hardcover)

I have tried a number of the recipes in the book and they are delicious and not difficult to make (no exotic or hard to find items). I have also found myself looking for the "friendly" fish when purchasing and avoiding the ones identified as endangered or stressed. I would recommend this book to anyone.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book for responsible cooks!, January 3, 2007

By 

Lovic C. Desormeaux "Chef Chip" (Georgia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ocean Friendly Cuisine: Sustainable Seafood Recipes from the World's Finest Chefs (Hardcover)

I'm a Personal Chef specializing in dinner parties and I bought this book as inspiration for fine seafood entrees.

What originally attracted me to this book is that almost all the recipes are illustrated and the overall theme: no fish in this book is in danger of being over harvested. I like the idea of being a responsible cook.

All the recipes I've tried (including the pistachio encrusted trout with cilantro-citrus hollandaise) have been accurately written and the end result matches what's described in the recipe. It's obvious that the recipes in this book are tried & true and not just a bunch of random recipes thrown together in a book.

I highly recommend this book for the experienced cook who's looking new ways to prepare great seafood.