Brussel’s Bar – Fontainebleau, France

mussels & beer

The Brussel’s Bar located on the main street in Fontainbleau, 47 Rue Grande, is a perfect place for an afternoon snack and a beer.

The prices are seasonable, the food is good and it is the perfect way to take a moment to enjoy another day in France.

Hint: the french fries may be in the top 5 worldwide. They are that good!

mussel plate

Glazed Swai with zucchini isn’t what it appears.

peter pearce photo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sy_1YqKtNbw

This link above was the video used by the Dude to complete his mission.

As stated in the video, Swai is not expensive but it tastes mediocre.  I made the dish pictured to the right  according to the video and it was pretty tasty.

What it doesn’t tell you is that Swai is raised in the Mekong River.

The Mekong River is one of the most polluted waterways in the world. Numerous factories get rid of the chemical waste by dumping them into the river. While pangasius fish (swai) can survive in such an extreme environment, they absorb all these contaminants. As omnivores, they eat whatever is available in the environment. Some breeders feed the fish trash and rotting matter to cut down the cost. Pangasius fish bred in such circumstances, certainly contain these toxic chemicals.

Injecting the fish with hormones helps to stimulate their growth. Certain breeders are able to make their fish grow four times as fast as they do in the natural habitat. Frequent use of antibiotics serves to control disease but can lead to the contamination of meat and development of antibiotic resistant pathogens.

Reliable farms utilize the clean areas of the rivers or breed the fish in artificial ponds. Frequent water changes and filtration maintain the quality of water, so that the fish avoid absorbing the pollutants. Trustworthy breeders feed the fish food scraps, dedicated fish pellets and rice bran. The carefully selected diet leads to healthier fish and improves the quality of their meat. Limited use of the antibiotics allows the fish to break the toxins down, instead of accumulating in the bodies of Swai fish.

To choose the safe fillets, check if the meat has been tested for the presence of the antibiotics and contaminants. Try to avoid panga fillets of unknown origin, as there’s a good chance that they are imported from these shady farms. The responsible shopping habits serve to reinforce the correct commercial breeding techniques. They protect the consumers from ingesting the toxic ingredients.

Bottom line, cheaper isn’t always better.

Seafood Guide and Watch.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium puts out a sustainable seafood watch guide booklet. It recommends to avoid the following due to overfishing or harmful conditions-

Cod Pacific (imported)
Cobia (imported farm raised)
Crab King (imported)
Grenader
Lobster (Brazilian)
Mahi Mahi (imported longline)
Monkfish
Pacific Snapper/Rockfish (trawled)
Shrimp (imported)
Tilapia (Asian farm raised)
Tuna (skipjack, tongol, canned)

It goes on to say minimize the following consumption due to mercury levels-

California Halibut
Caviar Sturgeon (wild imported)
Chilean Seabass
Dogfish (US)
Lingcod
Marlin (striped pacific blue)
Orange Roughy
Salmon (farm raised including Atlantic)
Sharks
Swordfish (US & imported)
Tuna (albacore, bigeye, bluefin, yellowfin)

Visit www.edf.org/seafoodhealth or www.seafoodwatch.org
for more information.

Homemade Fried Catfish Sticks Rock

catfish sticks

Homemade fried catfish sticks are easy to make and fun to eat. If you are looking for an alternative to pizza, pasta or hoagies then give this a try.

top

Take 1 lb of catfish and wash it off.
Chop it into preferred sized bits.
Mix 2 eggs into a bowl.
Pour some bread crumbs onto a plate.
Dip the cut fish bits in the eggs and then onto the bread crumb plate.
Once all the bits are crumbed up then deposit them into an electric frying pan that is dialed up to 340 degrees.
There only needs to be enough oil to sit the fish in. The sticks do not need to be submerged as you can flip them over. Let cook for about 5 minutes each side or until they look as crispy as you like them. Remove sticks from oil and pat dry. Put the sticks on a plate, sprinkle with some fresh lemon juice and serve with a side of tartar and your favorite cold beer. YUM.

Marinated Fish for Grilling

marinated fish

SIMPLY AWESOME TASTING !”

Halibut, Chilean sea bass or shrimp work well. In this photo you see thick fresh halibut fillets and fresh sea bass fillets all after having been soaked overnight in a delicious marinade I found at a local market in Santa Monica.

The marinade is an island blend sauce that was perfect. I then topped the mix with a pineapple ring, covered and let sit in the fridge. The ingredients pictured in the pan were thrown on a grill for a few minutes at a local architectural firm for Friday lunch, served with potato salad, grilled shrimp, grilled salmon with a rosemary lemon sauce and a side of mixed fruit chutney and it was simply delicious.

Sushi night at your house.

sushi party
$150. Sushi party.
$150. Sushi party.

$150. is not out of the question to spend at the sushi bar when including drinks.

Well here I spent $150. and had a party.

It served 2 couples.

We had various salads, sushi, sake, plum wine, aloe water, miso soup and good times.

Let me, the Dude of Food, show you how with my upcoming, Dude of Food cookbook.

Spicy Tuna Tofushi

The Dude of Foods own creation, Spicy Tuna Tofushi.
The Dude of Foods own creation, Spicy Tuna Tofushi.

This is an awesome Dude of Food creation.

Take some tuna and spicy it up. The scoop some tofu cubes out and fill them with spicy tuna goodness. Then wrap the base of the tofu cube with seaweed and serve.

The cubes here are shown with the tuna mixed with rice, but i found this is not needed. Just add the spicy tuna and you’ll be stoked.

FISH TACOS

These are easy and delicious. Crack open your favorite Mexican beer. Put the other 11 somewhere cold. At the cabin I stick them right in the snow outside the front door.

Next grate some cheese,  chop onions, lettuce, tomato and avocado and put the piles into separate small bowls.  Pan fry some red snapper, halibut or shrimp in light oil.

Bake some tortillas so they are warm and soft, but be mindful not to dry them out. I like them warm but not too steamy.

Once all the ingredients are laid out, create a conga line along the taco prep area and enjoy. Add salsa and a squeeze of lime per taste if so desired.

Fiesta y salud!

Fish Tacos.
Fish Tacos at p3.