Fish of the Month - Bay Scallops

August’s Fish of the Month is bay scallops.

Call us geeks, but the Right Bite team is fascinated by scallops. Did you know they have a strong muscle that helps them to quickly clap their shells together? The shell-clapping action allows scallops to "fly" around underwater and out of harmful situations! This strong muscle is what many seafood lovers enjoy eating.

Fish of the Month - Farmed Rainbow Trout

July’s Fish of the Month is farmed rainbow trout, a fish that the Right Bite team has many fond memories of! We absolutely love visiting the Rushing Waters trout farm whenever we can, to talk trout with Peter, the manager, and even to put on some waders to help harvest the fish! Located in Palmyra, Wisconsin, about a two-hour drive from Chicago, this beautiful trout farm sits on 80 acres of pristine forest. Rushing Waters has 56 ponds and raceways to grow the rainbow trout. The staff harvests the fish year-round by hand, never using any chemicals or antibiotics.

What else is fantastic about farmed rainbow trout? For starters, most carnivorous farmed fish eat more protein than they provide to the people who eat them, which is an inefficient use of marine resources. For example, it takes three pounds of wild fish to grow one pound of farmed salmon! However, farmed rainbow trout are incredibly efficient at converting their feed into protein. That, coupled with ecologically responsible farming methods, makes farmed rainbow trout a best choice for sustainability.

Fish of the Month - Wild salmon from Alaska

June’s Fish of the Month is wild salmon from Alaska.

The pristine Pacific waters off the coast of Alaska are home to five types of wild salmon: pink, chum, sockeye, coho and Chinook -- the last one being Alaska’s official "state fish" and a dinnertime favorite of Right Bite staff! It’s no surprise why Alaska would choose salmon for this honor, as they are truly special creatures.

For starters, wild salmon are anadromous, meaning they’re born in freshwater rivers and lakes but quickly swim downstream to spend their adult lives in the salty Pacific Ocean. Once at sea, salmon can travel widely, feasting on crustaceans, squid, zooplankton and other organisms responsible for the beautiful pink-orange flesh that they develop.

Farmers market season begins!

One of my favorite spring activities is to make a fresh pasta with green garlic, yellow brandywines. In summer, I’ll throw in purslane and a handful of green zebras.

Fish of the Month - Lake whitefish

Recently some friends and I gathered together to enjoy a dinner prepared potluck style. The theme of the evening was local cuisine: everyone brought their own dish prepared with the most locally sourced ingredients they could find. Spring vegetables like scallions, Asian greens, and radish were present, as were pasture-raised proteins like eggs and beef. As delicious as the spread looked on the table, I couldn’t help but notice – there was no local seafood!

Overfishing and the need for sustainable seafood

As part of Shedd’s sustainable seafood program, Right Bite, local culinary students often take field trips to Shedd to discover the relationship between the fish in the ocean and the fish in their kitchens. The students learn about Shedd’s five primary concerns with commercial fishing, connect firsthand with animals impacted by these concerns, and leave the aquarium with the tools and knowledge necessary to make seafood choices that will help protect our oceans.

Fish of the Month - wild Pacific halibut

Not long ago, the Right Bite team visited Whole Foods Market to purchase ingredients for one of our sustainable seafood cooking demos. (The next one is on April 6 in the Oceans gallery. Join us to learn how to prepare the recipe at the end of this post!) At the register, we noticed some fun gift cards on display. They had the phrase "Just for the Halibut" printed on them – ha! Coincidentally, those gift cards highlight Shedd’s April Fish of the Month: wild Pacific halibut.  

Fish of the month - arctic char

March’s fish of the month is farmed arctic char.

Farmed arctic char brings back especially fond memories for me. It’s been a Right Bite team favorite for years, but I grew to appreciate this fish even more after I served as a judge in an arctic char recipe contest last fall. My fellow judges and I had a great afternoon restaurant-hopping and tasting all the wonderful and different ways this fish can be prepared.

Sustainable seafood recipe: easy diavola mussels

Easy Diavola Mussels
Serves 4

Ingredients:
6 garlic cloves, minced
½ teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
¼ cup dry red wine or chicken stock
1 cup prepared tomato sauce or pasta sauce
1 tablespoon drained capers
¼ cup pitted black olives, chopped
2 pounds mussels, scrubbed, debearded
½ pound linguine, cooked and drained

Sustainable seafood recipe: mussels in curry sauce

Mussels in Red Thai Curry Sauce
Serves 6

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons curry powder
1 pound tomatoes, seeded, chopped
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon chopped, peeled fresh ginger
2 14-ounce cans unsweetened coconut milk
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
¾ teaspoon sea salt
3 pounds mussels, scrubbed, debearded
Fresh cilantro and lime wedges, for garnish