FISH STOCK:

A PROSPECTUS

FOR COOKS

WHO MEAN

BUSINESS

By

Chef Henry M. Summers

Today's taste- and nutrition-conscious hosts and homemakers are serving their friends and families more fish and seafood than ever before. Delicate in taste and texture, light and easily digested, seafood satisfies without leaving you with that overstuffed feeling.

Low in calories and cholesterol, rich in desireable fatty acids, trace minerals and other micronutrients I call Vitamin Sea, fish is our closest link to the natural world, arriving at our tables free from dyes, growth-stimulating hormones, and chemical preservatives.

THE BATTERED FISH SYNDROME

Sadly, much of our rich harvast of seafood falls into the hands of misguided cooks who batter it to death, then send it for its last swim in oil that is either too hot or too cold–and all that delicacy and goodness goes up in a geyser of greese, smoke, splatter and smell. Poor fish.

Happily, not every denizen of the deep is destined for such an indelicate demise. Some will be simmered to sublime succulence in a wine- and herb-scented gravy. Others will go to glory in a steaming chowder, or be poached, steamed or broiled to flaky perfection, then enrobed in a silken sauce. Once you have the fish stock, the rest is easy.

THE COOK'S MOST VALUABLE LIQUID ASSET

Beef, chicken, and fish stocks are the lifeblood of cookery. In the language of food, they are often referred to as Les Fonds de Cuisine–the foundations of cooking.

Fish stock is equally important in the caldeiradas of Portugal, the paellas of Spain, the zuppa di pesca of Italy, the waterzoois of Belgium, the vis filets met kaas saus of the Netherlands, the grüne krabbensuppe of Germany, the chlodnik z ryby of Poland, the solyanka and ukha of Russia, the gefillte fish of Lituania, and fishgrateng and fisksupper of Scandanavia (to name just a few). For re-creating the chowders of Canada, New England, and the Middle Atlantic coast, the chioppinos of California, and the gumbos, jambalayas, court bouillions, and other Cajun and Créole seafood specialities of Southern Louisiana, fish stock is indispensable.

TIME AND SPACE–THE FINAL FRONTIER

Before Seabags, cooks made fish stock the old-fashioned way–they earned it. Flesh, heads and bones from the day’s delivery of fresh fish were simmered in water with wine, aromatic vegetables, garden herbs and spices. When the heady, appetizing aroma told them it was done, they strained out the solid ingredients, squeezing them to extract every last bit of flavor and goodness, then discarded them. The resulting liquid was fish stock.

Now you can have superb fish stock instantly–no shopping, no chopping, no straining, no squeezing. And best of all, their are no bones about it.

*”Superb Fish Stock in a Bag” was the headline of Jane Witty-Gould’s 11/14/83 article in the Daily Journal. The nationally syndicated, Cordon Bleu-educated Ms. Gould goes on to say “ . . . it was immediately clear that Summers (the inventor of Seabags) had scored a culinary triumph.”

BETTER LIVING WITHOUT CHEMISTRY

Please take a moment to read the ingredients on my label. Familiar? Old kitchen hands will recognize it right away–it’s Escoffier's recipe for fish stock. Now you know why Seabags instant fish stock tastes just like the wholesome, old-fashioned kind . . . because it is.

I am equally proud of what is not in Seabags. No added salt (of course, you can add your own if you want to. But when you taste Seabags instant fish stock without it, you may forget to). No sugar. No animal fat. No cholesterol. No MSG. No GMOs. No hydrolyzed plant protein. No artificial flavors, colors, or chemical preservatives. Because such things have no more place in your stock than, well . . . than an elephant has in your pajamas.

WHAT’S THAT ELEPHANT DOING IN MY PAJAMAS?

Perhaps you are one of those irritating individuals who can eat a kilo, and not gain a gram. Or maybe you don’t wear pajamas. But if you are like most of us, there have been times when things (last summer’s bathing suit, this season's theater seats) have gotten a little . . . snug.

If the problem was merely cosmetic, you might learn to live with it. But obesity goes cheek by jowl with that constellation of contemporary killers: heart and coronary artery disease; high blood pressure; and diabetes. The following quote is from “Healthy People," a report on health promotion and disease prevention by C. Everett Koop, the thirteenth United States Surgeon General:

           '. . . Americans would probably be healthier, as a whole, if they consumed

          only suffient calories to meet body needs and maintain desirable body weight

          (fewer if overweight);

          less saturated fat and cholesterol;

          less salt;

          less sugar;

          relatively more complex carbohydrates such as whole grains, cereals, fruits

          and vegetables;

          and relatively more fish, poultry, legumes (e.g., beans, peas, peanuts);

          and less red meat.'                                             .          

We would all do well not just to read these recommendations, but to take them to heart.

Though formulated with these guidelines in mind, Seabags is not a magical elixir that can make you thinner, healthier or more beautiful. However, by providing a clean, convenient, very low sodium alternative to more common and calorific cooking methods, fat, cholesterol, sugar and additive-free Seabags can help you serve more frequent, nutritious, and above all, delicious seafood meals.

YOUR SUCCESS IS IN THE BAG

And now, Seabags in hand, you stand ready to embark upon a journey of adventure and discovery. Bon voyage, and eat in good health!

BASIC PREPARATION

Prepared according to the following instructions, Seabags instant fish stock may be used in any recipe calling for fish stock. In addition, it may be used by itself, with or without added salt, as a hot, wholesome, low-calorie beverage.

Basic preparation: Put cold water, or a mixture of water and dry white table wine into a saucepan. For each cup of liquid, add 1 tablespoon of Seabags dehydrated fish stock. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, stir, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes. If desired, add salt, pepper, and lemon juice to taste.  

Ingredients: fish (cod and/or haddock), organic onion, organic parsley root

*Information on fat and cholesterol content is provided for individuals who, on the advice of a physician, are modifying their daily intake of fat and/or cholesterol.

Distributed by Seabags LLC

69 Edgewood Avenue

Clifton, NJ 07012

Seabagsmail@gmail.com

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