Around 9 years ago I started a podcast called Max-Out Radio. This was before podcasting was really popular as I remember writing the code for my website by hand since there weren’t any good podcast website solutions. I had a segment on my show called Recipe Remix where I would take a recipe from a popular cooking show, book, or magazine and adjust or remix it to make it better for you.
I’ll never forget this one of the pieces of reader mail that I got about the show. It was a guy who loved the recipe remix section as he always wanted to cook dinner for his girlfriend but had trouble picking a dish that he could prepare, tasted good, and was good for the two of them. He would use some of the recipes from the Recipe Remix section and his girlfriend loved them. He told me:
You’re making me look good on Date Night!
I think this is what we all want with healthy eating. We want good tasting food that we can easily prepare which is also good for us. It drives me crazy that so many food options for special occasions have gluttony as the default menu setting. We want to be able to take scenarios like a date night and enjoy a responsibly portioned healthy meal. This generally requires some level of culinary skill.
Better Kitchen Skills, Better Body
I have found that one of the biggest barriers of entry for eating healthy with my clients is their ability in the kitchen. The kitchen can be intimidating. Fish is one of the more intimidating foods to cook. What fish do you buy? When does it go bad? Is it supposed to smell fishy? How do I season it? Did I over cook it? Preparing and cooking fish seems to have a lot of cooking rules and little room for error.
This is why people don’t eat lot of fish. You’d be surprised at how little fish people eat. I saw some recent food intake data for the U.S. and was shocked to learn that people get more protein from bread products than fish. Think about that for a second…bread, a food that is known for being devoid of protein contributes more protein to the average American diet than a food, fish, that is entirely made up of protein.
The lack of fish consumption in America thing is even more crazy when you consider that the health benefits associated with fish. Fish is one of the few foods that is eaten almost universally across the world by the healthiest sub-populations of people. For years various dietary guidelines have been trying to get people to eat more fish but aside eating fish pressed into rectangular shapes and breaded, people aren’t listening. Again, it think this goes back to intimidation in the kitchen – cooking fish can be a scary endeavor, unless quality and taste aren’t an issue and you are doing it like this guy.
Don’t do it like this guy!
Fish Made Simple
The other week I received some coupons to try out Bumblee SuperFresh Seafood, a premium easy to prepare (e.g. heat in a skillet or place in the oven) frozen fish entrée. My opinion regarding frozen entrees is best described as skeptical since they are usually pumped so full of flavor enhancers, preservatives, and stabilizers they end up being more of a frozen frankenfood than actual food.
From a practicality standpoint frozen, pre-portioned meals or meal components can be a lifesaver and a key component to a successful nutrition program; you wouldn’t believe all the frozen cut green beans I’ve eaten over the years. Previously if you had been looking for a fish protein option that was ready to eat but didn’t come with a lot of food science additives your option was basically canned tuna fish. I can tell you that serving canned tuna on date night doesn’t generally go over well 🙂
The Bumblee SuperFresh Seafood is unique in that it contains a small handful of herbs, spices and ingredients all of which you could pick up yourself at the grocery store (no degree in chemistry required). In theory this was a great food offering. A tasty, good for you, protein that had a long shelf life, no preservatives, and was quick and easy to prepare.
I picked up the Spicy Shrimp Romesco and Salmon with Garlicky Black Pepper & Extra Virgin Olive Oil and with both dishes I was able to easily pair them with a roasted (broccoli with the salmon) or sautéed (spinach with the shrimp) vegetable to make a complete, high protein, meal with minimal effort. The Spicy Shrimp Romesco only took me a total of 7 minutes to make, including sauteing the spinach.
It turned out not to be just theory, the fish also tastes really good. I also like it because it provides you with the protein portion of the meal that you can mix and match with either a vegetable side or a vegetable and starch side, depending on when you are eating it and how your diet is structured.
I have found that one of the hardest food times for my wife and I are the nights where the house is so hectic that the two of us eat dinner after the kids go to bed. But by the time they all are in bed, the idea of heading to the kitchen and whipping up culinary greatness is a little daunting (if you have kids you know exactly what I’m talking about). I’m going to now keep a couple of packages of Bumblee SuperFresh Seafood in the freezer for moments like this as I’ll be able to quickly (5-7 minutes) put together a meal that we can enjoy, allowing us to spend more time together and less time in the kitchen.
This post is sponsored by FitFluential on behalf of Bumble Bee SuperFresh.
