Why don’t we eat more fish and seafood?

[KhansMambo]

A friend and I were chatting about fish and seafood (it’s Easter, after all), and wondering why the U.K. doesn’t have more of a fish/seafood culture or seafood based cuisine. Apart from the occasional bit of battered and deep fried fish, it doesn’t feature largely in a lot of people’s usual diets. And we consume markedly less than other countries with similar access.

As we’ve had so much access to it, historically, it’s interesting that it’s not the core of our traditional diet. Why don’t we have hundreds of razor clam recipes? Why didn’t everyone grow up eating an array of fish stews? Or using different kinds of seafood and seaweed as seasoning? I’m sure there’s all sorts of interesting anthropological reasons. I was wondering what everyone thought they were.

A quick Google dig up these, which I thought were really interesting.

• www.spectator.co.uk/article/britains-strange-aversion-to-seafood/amp

• www.newstatesman.com/culture/food-drink/2021/09/britain-is-surrounded-by-fish-so-why-do-we-eat-so-little-of-it

@elidelochanthefirst could I trouble you for some ideas? Would love to eat more fish but not sure where to start. Thanks

@veronicagoldberg

Seafood is grim. Mucusy shellfish and vile crustaceans. No thanks! Offal food.

for me its lean delicious protein!

I absolutely LOVE fish and seafood, as do the rest of my family. Watched Seaspiracy about 3 months ago and haven't bought any since. Not saying I'll never eat any again but there's a lot of types I don't think I'll ever buy again.

[quote alldressedupinblue]@elidelochanthefirst could I trouble you for some ideas? Would love to eat more fish but not sure where to start. Thanks [/quote]
Sure.

I use panko breadcrumbs and make a crust with any seasoning I fancy which I bake or fry - works for any white fish. Basa is pretty cheap, or cod/haddock.

I do a whole seabass baked in the oven or the fillets with herbs like oregano, basil and garlic with lemon then we have "Greek chips" and salad (basically feta and oregano on)

I use prawns a lot in currys, Thai or east Asian curries or stirfrys they are very quick.

Salmon / tuna fishcakes are nice with chopped spring onion, herbs and mashed potato, can fry in oil.

You can do sort of Indian spiced fish fingers if you do chunks of any white fish and mix garam masalla or spices into the breadcrumbs, then dip in flour, then egg then the breadcrumbs and fry or oven bake.

I sometimes buy the big whole prawns and grill on griddle pan with whole garlic cloves and parsley added at the end

I also like Dover sole just cooked for about a minute each side as it's so thin, with lemon and sea salt. Have with a salad very simple.

I also do fish tacos, fry then crumble into pieces with Mexican spices and have in tacos with lettuce and rice

Salmon with soy, garlic, ginger, fish sauce and oven baked - I love crispy salmon skin. I would do this with veg and rice or noodles.

Honestly so many options!

I'm in a coastal town in Cornwall and your post certainly doesn't apply here. Tonnes of seafood bars, fish restaurants, fresh fish delivery, etc. Prob have fresh fish at least twice a week.

We eat a lot of fish, we buy ours from Grimsby so it's as fresh as you can get (and far cheaper than in the supermarket!)

Seafood I tend to only like lobster, prawns and crab but my husband eats everything but oysters which he says are like inhaling snot.

5 or 6 meals a week are fish based.

I so wish we had more of a seafood culture. I get so bored of the fish on offer in supermarkets which is usually just salmon, cod and sea bass. No variety.

Jellied eels?

Interesting question. I suspect it’s related to the class system here (pretty unique to us) and the fact that seafood and fish was considered poor food for lower and working class people. We don’t have a sense of pride or heritage in what we consider working class roots.

Vast vast quantities of shellfish were shipped to London as it was food poor people could afford. Oysters were used to bulk out meat pies in ‘chop houses’. Equivalent of the MN lentils and pulses. Distance from the sea wasn’t really relevant to availability I don’t think, as transport via river end canal was very efficient.

So people aspired away from working class status and they wanted meat on the table not ‘poor mans’ fish. Add to that two wars that focused on improving farming and achieving long life and processed food not fishing industries.

I shall try some of those dishes thanks elidelochanthefirst

I have nothing worthwhile to add, but I am really enjoying this thread. It's something I've idly wondered about from time to time.

@Hausa

That article is literally in the OP.

Whoops! I did read the OP, but then thought round in circles on it for hours and had a bit of a Google, only to apparently come up with the same article. Top marks!

@CrowAndArrow

I gave up eating fish and sea food after watching Seaspiracy, I'll never eat it again.

Are you a vegan, out of interest? Think I'd become one in a second if I watched all of those programmes...

Far lower rates of dementia in people who eat fish a couple of times a week.

Where I work, mussels or the seafood stew are the most ordered dish off the otherwise traditional pub menu.
I developed a severe allergy to shellfish post pregnancy which I why I don't have it but DH will always pick a fish dish if we're out.

Being Vegan isn't any better for the environment tbh. They're burning swathes of the rainforest to make room for Soya bean production.

Humans are twats.

Probably better to be a meat eater that eats organic, locally grown meat etc

A note to the posters who only eat fish in Spain, Portugal or France. Most of their fish will be imported, from us, and/ or caught in the same waters. It is the same fish.

True @BigWoollyJumpers

Most of the fish landed in Brixham goes to the continent.

Some, such as prized fish like turbot, head to expensive restaurants.

I love fish and seafood but feel like an outlier.

I dont like slimy things like oysters but love white 'chippy' fish, salmon and trout esp smoked, calamari, prawns (all crustaceans really), mackerel, swordfish, tuna, mussels.

I don't know anyone who eats the 3 portions of fish a week we are supposed to.

(And there's never fish in food banks)

I eat fish or seafood most days - love it.

I live far inland - I envy people who live at or near the sea!

I love fish but DH isn’t a big fan - he will eat salmon & occasionally something like cod but much prefers the battered variety. We are lucky to have an excellent fishmonger locally & they go out early in the morning to buy the catch on the harbour side. Can’t get fresher than that. They also sell delicious dishes like Thai fish curry & they sometimes have prawn or crab salads. I’m not very adventurous with seafood & would like to try more.

I do like fish but I think for me it's what Felicity Cloake refers to in that article as the "fiddle factor" and when you match that with the expense it is often easier just to leave it.

I recently saw two whole lemon sole, not large ones, enough to feed 2 people. They were £11. I thought they'd be nice but I'd have to gut them and fillet them and take the heads off. Now I wouldn't have a clue where to find the guts on a lemon sole. I'm sure there are loads of you tube videos etc and I wouldn't be averse to having a go except if I messed it up it's a really expensive mistake.

We will occasionally have mackerel, kippers etc but you often end up with a mouthful of bones and then it gets really difficult to persuade DS to try more and enjoy more fish. Again, I can't justify the cost if DS is going to push his plate away and not eat it.

*Being Vegan isn't any better for the environment tbh. They're burning swathes of the rainforest to make room for Soya bean production.

Humans are twats.*

The soya bean production you are referring to is to feed animals not humans.

I am veggie (not a consumer of soy particularly) but my ds and dh eat plenty of fish and seafood, it is my ds favourite.

Well this thread has inspired me to stick some sardines and mackerel in my shop this week!