I admit it — I’ve always been an omnivore, eager fan of cioppinos and chops alike, enthusiastic eater of all plants, proteins and so many delicious things in between.
So, when I married Arron, our founder/CEO, and learned right away that he was a strict pescatarian, my challenge became clear: to cultivate dynamic, delicious and seafood-forward menu rotations at home that are deeply satisfying for both of us.
So, after five years — the last of which was largely spent fumbling around in the kitchen — I’ve taken note of some wacky little nibbles of insight, happy-hacks that have transformed what I previously thought might be a boring pescatarian kitchen into a culinary odyssey of unimaginable wonders.
14 Kitchen Lessons I’ve Learned Being Married to a Pescatarian
- Miso-honey-mirin broiled sablefish is a perfect umami thing.
- A good seafood soup is like a great party. All the flavors start to mingle and then it truly starts to get better by the hour.
- Halibut is downright steaky.
- Serving fried seafood is an act of self love.
- Pantries packed with possibility always win — in addition to spices and dried herbs, lean on nutritional yeast, mushrooms, powdered dashi stock, dulse flakes, kombu and other seaweeds.
- I view seafood chowder as medicinal.
- Warm melted butter on a hot bite of Alaskan king crab is unexpectedly transcendent.
- Seafood stock is easy to make and deep-flavored (but a good old bottle of clam juice does the trick too, if you’re in a pinch).
- Fish tacos are like an edible weekend.
- Ground sockeye salmon makes an unexpectedly terrific bolognese.
- Passing your mashed potatoes through a fine-mesh strainer is the key to a truly well-crafted cod cake.
- Weathervane scallops are the true minimalists of the sea. Butter, sear, salt — that’s it.
- The mastery of a good sear is game-changing.
- Polenta and prawns are like Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell — simply meant to be.
So, whether you’re a pescatarian or a flexitarian, please know that the world of interesting seafood menus lives just on the other side of your most wild culinary imagination.
Live wild...and stay inspired!
Pictured above: (starting from top left, going clockwise): pan-fried halibut rubbed with tropical spices; a plate of Alaskan king crab getting ready for a dip in a butter bath; a parade of prawns alongside mushroom-barley risotto; and a plate of Irish cod cakes, my new Sunday night secret weapon. In sum — a seafood menu rotation is anything but boring.
