Holy Mackerel! Tasting New Foods.

Yesterday, I took a Japanese friend of mine to my favorite fish store, Tom's Seafood in Lakewood (near Denver). My friend loves seafood--and so I knew she'd love Tom's. She did.

While she was looking at all the fish, I decided to make my purchase.
"How's it going Tom? I'll have the boneless trout fillets, please," then added, "and 20 shell-on shrimp."
I'm not afraid of a few shells, after all. Well, not very afraid. Tom wrapped up my order in shiny white paper and taped it with narrow masking tape.

Then, Tom turned to my friend. She said she was going to get a whole mackerel. (You know, as in "Holy Mackerel!)
"What are you going to do with that?" I asked her, sounding like a snotty 8-year-old, but unable to mask my disgust.
"Eat it!" was her answer.
"But it's whole." I pointed out. "You'd have to, I don't know, scale it and stuff. There's going to be bones. And there could be guts." I finished in a whisper.
My friend laughed. "No! You just chop, chop, chop. Then cook it up. The bones soften."
"Oh, she knows her fish." Tom nodded approvingly. "Do you want a mackerel, too?" he asked me.
"NO! I mean, no thank-you. I'll stick with my trout and shrimp."

I was surprised at my reaction. It's been a long time since I was grossed out by the mere thought of a food. Or, in this case, the thought of just preparing a food. But the experience reminded me of how it feels to be a kid faced with a new, weird food. When a food seems suspect, very strong instincts kick in. And those instincts are screaming "NO!" not "No thank-you" and certainly not "It'd be fun to try a bunny bite."

But, I am not a kid. And I have agreed to take a bunny bite of the mackerel today. I'll let you know.

Meanwhile, my kid's loved the trout and so did I. Here's the recipe:

Plain (Kid-friendly) Fish Serves 2 Smart
To make plain fish more appealing, buy a very fresh, mild fish like farm-raised trout. Then flavor it with a familiar spice your children like and serve it with ketchup. It’s not gourmet, but it sure is healthy!

• 1/4 pound (or more) boneless, farm-raised trout fillet per person **
• Olive or canola oil
• Seasoning mix (lemon pepper, garlic salt, seasoned salt, etc.) that your family is already familiar with and likes
• Ketchup (optional)

Cover a cookie sheet or baking dish with foil. (Covering it with foil makes cleanup much easier.) Place fish skin side down. Drizzle about 1 teaspoon of olive oil on each piece. Sprinkle with seasoning mix. Broil fish for about 10 minutes per 1/2-inch thickness. To see if it is done, dig into one piece with a knife. It should look white and not be at all rubbery, but it should be flaky. Serve the fish with ketchup for dipping!

**Be sure to ask the person at the fish counter if the fish you are buying contains any bones. If it does, use tweezers to remove the bones before serving it to your kids. (Or just buy a different type of fish that doesn’t have bones.)

Variations:

• Try other types of fish. Ask the person at the fish counter to recommend some mild, boneless types to try.
• If you have a countertop two-sided grill, grill the fish for about 5 minutes per 1/2-inch thickness of fish.