Ask Esther: The Goods on Grains

So Mom, what kind of rice should I buy?
Short or long grain brown rice is good; Brown Basmati rice has a delicious aroma that smells like popcorn. And wild rice is the absolute healthiest, but you have to soak it overnight.

What rice should i not buy?
White rice.
(ed: shocker. nothing white lives in the Gordon household, except maybe tennis shoes.)

What about Quinoa (pronounced Keen-Wah) ?
Ohh, quinoa is great. That's the grain with the most protein; you can even get quinoa pasta and the texture is very similar to regular pasta. If you get the quinoa grain, you can make it for breakfast in the morning and mix it with fruit and almond milk.

(this is where Esther takes control of the interview)

You know what I just got? It's called Crispy Brown Rice, made by Erewhon. The only things in it are: organic brown rice, organic barley malt and sea salt. It's crunchy and delicious and only has 1 gram of sugar. You should get that.

Ok Mom, let's end this on a nostalgic note. Give us a story about grains from your childhood:
When I was in the Isle of Pines, Cuba as a kid (back when tourism was big there) they cooked rice in coconut milk, and it was so good. I sometimes put coconut oil and sea salt in rice when I cook it now. Try that, it's absolutely delicious. Also try mixing rices.

Ask Esther

So Mom, Mommy, Mummy, Mumma, Mother, Mama--
Question: Why are you so psycho about NOT eating farm-raised fish? And why do you call ahead to restaurants to ask if they serve wild fish?

Well...because it's heathier.

Ok, why?

A. Because farmed fish stay in one area, they can't get out, they poop in that area, they eat their poop and they just live in the one area where they poop. Like, farmed shrimp don't have taste, ok? Wild shrimp, you can really actually taste the flavor.

Also, you don't know what they feed those fish; they may feed them hormones.

Is it bad for your body if you eat farm-raised fish?

A. I don't know all the facts ok? Don't use me as an authority.


Well this is all good information.

So I found an article, that gives a little more insight into the grossness of farm-raised salmon. I would imagine other farm-raised fish is similar. Here is an excerpt:

"Seven Reasons to Avoid Farm Raised Salmon by Page Remick"

Over 60% of the fish eaten in the United States is farm-raised. What are some of the things that you should know about man-raised salmon?

Farmed Salmon:

1. have seven times the levels of PCB’s (Polychlorinated biphenyls) as wild salmon
   

2. have 30 times the number of sea lice

3. are fed chemicals to give them color

4. are fed pellets of chicken feces, corn meal, soy, genetically modified canola oil and other fish containing concentrations of toxins

5. are administered antibiotics at higher levels than any other livestock

6. have less omega 3’s due to lack of wild diet

7. are crowed into small areas inhibiting movement, and causing disease

I buy slabs of Trader Joe's wild salmon frozen, and it's pretty inexpensive. I usually defrost it, put salt and pepper, a thin layer of dijon mustard, thin layer of breadcrumbs, lemon zest, more pepper, and finish it with thin slices of lemon on top (and maybe a couple thin pats of butter). Then I bake at 425 for about 12-15 minutes. It's pretty flipping delicious.