Your mom used to tell you all the time: Eat fish – it’s good for you.
But what about all the toxins? In this day and age, where can you get healthy, sustainable seafood from a trustworthy source? Keep reading to find the answers – and to learn how to enter a fantastic fish giveaway from Vital Choice Seafood & Organics. Oh, and I have a discount code for you, too!
Everyone knows the importance of incorporating more seafood into your diet. Still, most of us don’t do it ‘cause: (1) we’re worried about toxins, and/or (2) we can’t find reliable sources of healthy and sustainably-caught seafood. I’ll admit that I used to be terrified about the high levels of mercury in fish, and avoided eating it for a few years. I didn’t want to turn into a “human thermometer” like Jeremy Piven.
But after some digging into the matter, it turns out that I was wrong to avoid fish. Smarty-pants like Chris Kresser have found that the benefits of eating fish far outweigh the small risk of toxin intake. In his recent podcast, The Truth about Toxic Mercury in Fish, he explained that
mercury causes harm by damaging selenoenzymes in the body that protect against oxidative damage. As long as a fish contains more selenium than mercury (which the vast majority of both ocean fish do), and as long as background selenium intake is sufficient (which it is in most industrialized nations), then there is no reason to limit consumption of ocean fish.
In other words, we can stop freaking out about serving fish to our families. We just need to be smart about choosing the right fish.
But where can a seafood lover source great seafood?
Obviously, if you have access to fresh, wild-caught seafood, you win. For instance, if you’re a fellow resident of the San Francisco Bay Area, you can join Siren SeaSA , an awesome CSA that does weekly drop-offs of the finest sustainably caught local seafood.
Of course, most home cooks are more likely to shop for seafood at the local supermarket. A handy-dandy Seafood Watch card will help you decide what to buy – though you need to exercise caution, because you can’t always count on seafood being labelled correctly.
Lately, my go-to source for healthy, sustainable seafood has been Vital Choice Wild Seafood and Organics. I first encountered Vital Choice at the Wise Traditions conference a couple of months ago, when I joined the swarms of people clamoring for free samples. What caught my eye was that the crowds weren’t just sampling and bouncing; instead, after sampling, they were actually buying boxes and boxes of seafood. It took just one bite of Ventresca – canned albacore tuna belly in organic extra virgin olive oil – and I was hooked. This was the BEST CANNED TUNA I’D EVER TRIED.
Next, I sampled the Traditional-Style Wild Red, and happily discovered my favorite canned salmon. Remember? Bones and skin are good for you.
Loyal readers know that I’ve tried a lot of different brands of canned fish, but Vital Choice’s taste and quality are unrivaled. I couldn’t stop myself from hauling home tons of cans. (And don’t worry, they’re BPA-free.)
I’ve been using the Ventresca in my Whole30-friendly Tuna and Avocado Wraps recipe, but the salmon and tuna are just as delicious straight out of the can. These days, I keep a can o’ fish in my purse at all times for emergency protein. I’m nothing if not prepared.
What I like even more about Vital Choice is that it’s a family-run business that stresses purity and sustainability. Still nervous about the amount of mercury in fish? The fish sold by Vital Choice contains some of the lowest levels on the market.
Lest you think I’m a paid shill for Vital Choice, know this: They’re not paying me to promote their product. I pay for my own Vital Choice fish because I love the stuff. But because I was so smitten with their fish and their business, I hit up Warren Hartnell, the daughter of the founder, to sponsor a giveaway for you, dear readers. Yeah, I’m shameless, but I really want you guys to have the opportunity to taste this fish.
What’s up for grabs?
- Wild Salmon Sampler: Two six-ounce portions EACH of Sockeye, King, Ivory King, and Silver salmon. That’s THREE POUNDS of salmon!
- A two-ounce gift tin of Organic Salmon Marinade!
- Becky Selengut’s beautiful cookbook, Good Fish!
- A six-pack of canned Ventresca (albacore tuna bellies in organic extra virgin olive oil)!
- Sign up for the Vital Choice e-mail newsletter by clicking here.
- Add me to your circles on Google+ OR like my Facebook fan page. (Either is fine – but I’d love it if you did both!)
- Leave ONE comment at the end of this post telling me you followed steps 1 & 2 by Wednesday, 1/9/13, at 9:00 p.m. PST
- I will randomly choose a winner on Thursday. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to my email or I’ll pick another winner.
(UPDATE: The contest is OVAH! Congrats to Karen C. from Texas!)
(Sadly, Tumblr – which hosts my site – restricts this contest to U.S. residents over the age of 18. Apologies to my super-incredible international readers!)
And don’t be bummed if you don’t win the prize package, because we’re all winners! Remember the discount code I mentioned earlier? From now until 1/31/2013, you can receive 10% off your order at Vital Choice. Just use the discount code NNPALEO when checking out. (They also sell 80% cacao organic dark chocolate that you can eat post-Whole30!)
Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes on my iPad® app, and in my cookbook, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel, December 2013)!
