Everyone knows that seafood is a healthy choice – don’t take away those health benefits by seasoning with too much salt! Here are some ways to reduce your sodium use when cooking seafood.
Cook from Scratch
The easiest way to control sodium intake is in your own kitchen! Cooking from scratch means you have total control over how much salt you add to your own food. We’d like to recommend picking up a pound or two of your favorite seafood to cook at home each week! Our weekly specials are a great way to enjoy fresh fish at a great price.
Experts recommend taking baby steps – that is, don’t just stop using salt altogether… if you slowly reduce the amount you’re using chances are you’ll hardly notice its gone (and neither will your family). Here’s a tip from Cooking Light; “Measure out all the salt called for in a recipe. Put 25 percent of it back in the salt shaker and cook with the remaining 75 percent. Do this for two weeks. Then cut back again.”
Skip the Salt
Sure, salting food is an easy way to boost flavor, but seafood tastes great with other flavorful seasonings! We love citrus with all kinds of fish – lemons, limes, oranges and grapefruit all work with with seafood. Adding citrus zest and juice to a rub or marinade is a great way to add bold, bright flavors to your food.
Fresh herbs are another way to add a layer of flavor to any seafood dish. Cilantro, mint, chives, basil – you name it! We love to top wild salmon with pesto, and tarragon goes great with lobster.
The bold flavor of vinegar can also add full flavor to your seafood dishes – a splash of balsamic goes a long way!
Make your own Sauces
Whether you’re looking for the perfect barbecue sauce or something new to top your halibut with, home made sauces are an easy way to monitor sodium content. Mark Bittman offers some great recipes in a recent issue of the New York Times, all of which would go great on seafood.
Share your favorite low-sodium seafood cooking tips in the comments section below!