Yes! You Can Buy Sustainable Seafood Online

If you enjoy fresh swordfish, live Dungeness crab, fresh salmon, abalone, diver scallops and other quality seafood, you’ve probably heard a lot about “sustainable seafood” lately. It’s a hot topic on all the Food Network and Cooking Channel cooking shows, and you can’t miss the labels on the restaurant menus. Whether you buy swordfish, crab and diver scallops in your local fish department or buy seafood online from a reputable online seafood market, you can make sustainable seafood choices that will help maintain the supply of seafood and reduce damage to the environment caused by overfishing in general and particular fishing methods. These tips can help you make sustainable seafood choices so that you can continue enjoying fresh king salmon, fresh swordfish, fresh albacore tuna and all your other favorite seafood for a long time to come.
Buy from Someone You Trust
There are lots of places you can buy seafood online, but many of them are wholesale suppliers that sell lots of frozen, imported, low-quality fish, often passing them off as higher-priced domestic and sustainable fish. If you decide to buy seafood online, look for an online seafood market that is an actual, physical market located near the ocean. Check them out online – not just their website, but on websites where their customer reviews will tell you all you need to know about their quality, service and trustworthiness. When you find swordfish for sale or buy king salmon from a trustworthy online seafood market, you can rest assured that you’ll get exactly the fish and shellfish you order.
Check a List
There are a number of organizations that maintain sustainable seafood lists to help consumers make choices about the seafood they buy. They include the Monterey Bay Aquarium-Seafood Watch and the Blue Ocean Institute Seafood Choices Guide.  You’ll find a list of seafood guides at the URI Sustainable Seafood Initiative.
One of the best ways to use a sustainable seafood list is to look up the types of seafood you most enjoy and learn about its sustainability. When you buy king salmon, for example, you’re buying a Good Alternative, according to the Seafood Watch. While some species of salmon are endangered, king salmon are carefully managed to ensure that the population of king salmon remains stable or increases. Ablacore tuna is another sustainable seafood choice with a high, stable population and well-regulated fishing industry.
It’s easy to buy sustainable seafood online when you take the time to research each online seafood market you consider. Once you find a market you can trust, learning whether or not a seafood choice is sustainable is as easy as asking.

What Are Dry Scallops and Other Interesting Seafood FAQs

What are dry scallops? It’s a question that any online seafood market hears frequently. Knowing the answer to that question can mean the difference between a seafood recipe that’s absolutely amazing and one that’s barely passable. In fact, understanding a lot of seafood terminology can help you choose the best seafood for your recipes and meals. These simple answers to frequently asked questions about seafood will help you pick the right fish and shellfish for your recipes.
What Are Dry Scallops?
In a word, awesome. In more specific terms, dry scallops are wild, natural scallops that have not been treated with any chemical preservatives. When you buy diver scallops from an online seafood market, they will most often be dry scallops.
Okay, so What Are Wet Scallops?
Wet scallops – and you’re not likely to see them advertised that way – have been treated with sodium tripolyphosphate, a preservative that makes them absorb water. Wet scallops weigh more than dry scallops – and while you’ll be paying for that added water, you probably won’t be eating it. It evaporates when you cook the scallops, taking a lot of the flavor and succulent texture with it.
How Can I Tell the Difference Between Dry Scallops and Wet Scallops?
For starters, if it doesn’t say “dry scallops,” they’re probably soaked in preservatives. Most seafood lovers will happily pay a premium for wild-caught seafood without preservatives, so if an online seafood market is selling dry scallops, they’ll definitely market them that way. Color is another giveaway. Treated scallops tend to be snow-white and look almost opaque. Dry scallops are darker, closer to a natural vanilla color, and they tend to be more translucent than opaque.
So What Are Diver Scallops?
It’s pretty self-explanatory. Diver scallops have been brought up from the ocean floor and cliffs by – you guessed it – divers. Having divers harvest scallops is a lot more labor-intensive than dredging the ocean floor with nets, but it’s far friendlier to the environment and to other critters that might get caught up in the nets.
So… They’re Sustainable, Right? Is There Any Other Reason I Should Care?
The best reason of all, of course. Dry scallops – and nearly all diver scallops are dry scallops – cook better and taste better. Wet scallops won’t sear properly, and they tend to get stringy and dried out very quickly when you cook them. Dry scallops, on the other hand, stay plump, juicy and succulent and are the perfect choice for any scallop recipe, cooked or raw.

Buy King Salmon and Fresh Albacore Tuna for Sushi and Sashimi

Are you a lover of raw fish dishes like sushi and sashimi? You can make your own at home, if you follow some safety guidelines for buying seafood online or off. For example, did you know that you can buy king salmon from an online seafood market and get sushi-grade fresh king salmon delivered right to your door? If you decide to buy king salmon or other delicious seafood online, make sure you take these precautions for safe eating.
Always Buy Fresh King Salmon and Albacore Tuna
Freshness is vital to both taste and health. Fish can spoil rapidly, and carry nasty bacteria that can make you very sick. If you decide to buy seafood online, make sure you buy from a reputable online seafood market with a reputation for delivering high-quality fresh fish.
Understand the Risks
When eating fresh fish raw, there are two dangers to worry about: bacteria and parasites. Careful handling and choosing the right fish will protect you from both risks.
Ask for Sashimi Grade Seafood
In the United States, fish sold as “sashimi grade” must be handled and treated in a way that reduces the chances they’ll carry parasites. That means that they are flash-frozen at a minimum of -4 F and kept at that temperature for seven days, or flash frozen to -31 F for at least 15 hours. In either case, the freezing will kill any parasites, and will not compromise the texture and flavor of the fish because it freezes so quickly. Much of the king salmon sold as “fresh” salmon has been flash frozen at sea because it preserves the freshness, but it’s always best to ask.
Check the Shipping Method
Before you order seafood online, call the online seafood market and ask about their shipping method. Only order from markets that ship seafood overnight in insulated coolers packed with cool-packs to keep it at a safe temperature. Keeping the fish cold is essential to food safety because it prevents bacteria from breeding.
Keep Your Fish Cold
When your albacore tuna or king salmon arrives, immediately remove it from cooler to inspect it for freshness.  If it smells fishy at all, don’t use it for sushi or sashimi. If it passes the sniff test, either freeze it or place it in your refrigerator on a bed of ice to keep the temperature below 41 F until you’re ready to serve it.
Practice Clean Food Handling
Always wash your hands, utensils and any cooking surfaces before you touch fish. Wash your hands and utensils again after handling fish and before handling any other foods. Keep raw fish away from hot cooked foods.
Refrigerate Immediately
As soon as your sushi rolls and sashimi are prepared, get them back into the refrigerator and keep them on ice until you’re ready to serve.
You can buy king salmon and fresh albacore tuna for sushi from an online seafood market as long as you take the proper precautions in preparing and serving your treat. 

Fun Facts About Seafood: Why You Should Buy King Salmon

Why should you buy king salmon and add it to your regular repertoire of healthy foods? Fresh king salmon may be one of the healthiest, most health-giving foods you can eat. In fact, the more you know about fresh salmon, the more you’ll understand why nearly every nutritionist tells you that you should be eating more of it. Here are some fun facts about king salmon – also commonly called Chinook salmon.
King salmon is the largest of the salmon species – you don’t think they call it king for nothing, do you? The royal fish is also known as Tyee salmon, Columbia River salmon, black salmon, chub salmon, winter salmon, blackmouth and hook bill salmon. It’s one of the most highly regarded fish, both for sport and for eating. The succulent bright orangey-pink flesh is everything that makes people love to eat fresh salmon.
The largest king salmon on record was caught on May 17th, 1985. The 97.4 lb. beauty was nearly 5 feet long. While that particular fish was exceptional, it’s not at all unusual for fishermen to bring in fresh king salmon weighing between 10 and 50 lbs., and king salmon of 100+ inches are not uncommon in some waters. That’s an awful lot of king salmon fillets.
King salmon are strictly West Coast fish. You won’t find them hanging out off the boardwalk in Jersey or lazing around the Florida shores. They’re native to Alaska, British Columbia, California, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. In other words, if you’re not from the West Coast and you want to buy king salmon, you won’t find fresh king salmon in your local fish markets. Luckily, you can buy king salmon from an online seafood market on the West Coast.
While the king salmon is the least abundant of all salmon species, the population is carefully managed to ensure that there are abundant stocks of salmon, as well as other Pacific fish. That means that when you buy king salmon, you’re making an ecologically responsible choice – it truly is sustainable seafood.
Much of the fresh king salmon available is caught in the pristine northern waters off the Pacific Northwest coast. Wild-caught fresh king salmon is a treasure trove of heart-healthy omega-3s. High in protein, low in saturated fat, king salmon packs a whopping 1,700 mg of omega-3s in a single serving.
Cook it or eat it raw, you can’t beat fresh king salmon for flavor. The high fat content makes them the ideal candidate for grilling, broiling, baking or sautéing. If you decide to buy king salmon for sushi, make sure you only buy the freshest fish available. Check out an online seafood market to get the freshest king salmon steaks and king salmon fillets possible without living on the wharf.

Nothing says 4th of July weekend like a clambake – but why not give your clambake a decidedly West Coast flavor this year with fresh Dungeness crab, diver scallops and abalone? You don’t have to live on Fisherman’s Wharf to enjoy fresh swordfish, live Dungeness crab, albacore tuna and other delectable Pacific seafood. Thanks to the Internet, you can easily order seafood online from some of the best seafood markets on the West Coast. Looking for ideas for your 4th of July shindig? Here are a few ways to turn your New England Clambake into a Pacific Jamboree.
Substitute Dungeness Crab for Lobsters
You can buy Dungeness crab online from a reputable West Coast seafood market and have it delivered to your doorstep, still live and ready to cook. Live Dungeness crab is as easy to cook as lobster, and has a buttery, sweet flavor that’s delicious in just about any recipe calling for lobster meat. Buy it live for a clambake, or picked to make crab cakes, lazy crab pie or crab fritters.
Supersize Your Mussels
Forget those tiny steamers. Find an online seafood market that has abalone for sale and upgrade your clambake experience. Abalone are not actually mussels, but they can take a similar place in your menu. Clean and prep the abalone in advance and then let the kids pound it tender with a hammer. Grill sliced abalone on the grill, or fry up fritters to serve on the side.
Grill It Up
Fresh king salmon, fresh swordfish and fresh albacore tuna are all incredibly grillable fish. You can buy swordfish steaks, tuna fillets or king salmon fillet from an online seafood market and know that they’ll be fresher than anything you find in your grocer’s freezer or seafood case. The simplest preparation is often the most flavorful. Brush the grill with olive oil. Sprinkle the steaks or fillets with salt and pepper and brush with olive oil, then grill over hot coals just until the flesh is opaque.
Spice Up the Fixings
Give the sides a decidedly Pacific flavor as well by tuning up the seasonings you use. Add a salsa – with lime and cilantro, of course – to the table, and spike the potato salad with a hit of cayenne and some diced jalapenos.
Fresh salmon, whole Dungeness crab, swordfish steaks and fresh king salmon can tune up your 4th of July clambake and turn it into a West Coast party. Just order your seafood online by midweek to have it for the weekend.

Buy Seafood Online Because Freshness Matters

There are lots of great reasons to add seafood to your diet, especially fresh salmon and shellfish like live Dungeness crab, which are high in omega 3 fatty acids, but there are also some great reasons to buy seafood online rather than from the supermarket or your grocer’s freezer. One of the most important reasons to buy from an online seafood market is because the best-tasting seafood is the freshest seafood you can get.

Freshness Matters

When it comes to seafood, freshness matters. Even a few hours can make a difference in the flavor of king salmon or delicious swordfish steaks. Most fishing boats these days are outfitted with cooler compartments to keep the fish they catch fresh on ice until they get to port – but there’s not as much control once the fish or shellfish leaves the dock. Unless you’re on the coast where the fish was caught, your seafood has to travel across the country to get to you. Your supermarket fish made the trip crowded in with hundreds of other fillets, steaks and whole fish, generally in a solidly frozen block. It could have taken as much as a week – or longer – to reach your grocer’s freezer, and in that time, there’s a significant chance that it partially thawed at least once.

When you buy seafood online from a reputable online seafood market, your fish still has to travel to reach you, but that’s where the similarity ends. When you buy king salmon, for example, your order will be picked from today’s catch, packaged in a Styrofoam cooler with ice packs to keep it cool and shipped to you via overnight UPS or FedEx. In other words, you’ll get your king salmon days – if not weeks – sooner than the grocer gets his. Which fresh salmon fillets would you rather eat – those that had a cushy, air-conditioned ride to your front door or the ones that bumped over the rails and roads for as much as a week?

For decades, the only way to really enjoy the freshest abalone, live Dungeness crabs, king salmon and Pacific swordfish was to live on – or travel to – the West Coast. These days, thanks to the Internet and next day delivery services, you can enjoy the fresh taste of Pacific seafood no matter where in the country you live. Don’t settle for albacore, diver scallops and king salmon that’s been dragged all over the country on the open rails. Buy Dungeness crab, swordfish and other Pacific delicacies from a California seafood market that sells online

Fresh Abalone for Sale Online Improves Your Health and Tastes Great

If you’ve never had properly prepared fresh abalone, you’re missing out on a unique, tasty treat from the sea. The edible mollusk, found along the U.S. Pacific coast, as well as off the coast of Mexico and Japan, is a delicacy, but it does have to be prepared properly. While you can buy canned abalone, it’s not always easy to find fresh abalone for sale unless you live on the coast. If you’re not lucky enough to have a fresh seafood market nearby, though, you can sometimes find fresh abalone for sale at an online seafood market on the West Coast.

Availability of Abalone

Abalone season runs from April to July, and again from August to November. During those months, divers with a license can dive for fresh abalone in the waters off the California coast. It is, however, illegal to sell wild-caught abalone in California. All of the abalone for sale at a seafood market is harvested from one of several long-running abalone farms. Farmed abalone from these closed-system California farms top the list of the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s sustainable seafood best choices list.

Preparation

Abalone is a tough, chewy mollusk with a rich, unmistakable flavor. The edible part of the shellfish is the adductor muscle, generally called the foot, that helps it cling to rocks. After removing the abalone from the shell and cleaning away the guts, the skirt and the mantle, the foot must be tenderized to reduce its toughness. The most common way to tenderize abalone is to slice it thinly and pound it with a heavy object. Marinades can also help break down the tough flesh.

Cooking

Abalone can be eaten raw or cooked in a number of ways. In Japan, it is often served raw in thin strips with wasabi and soy sauce. Abalone can also be stewed slowly to tenderize the meat, or cooked very quickly in a stir-fry. It may be served pan-fried, steamed or poached, but one of the most popular ways of eating abalone is in minced and mixed with batter to make abalone fritters.

Abalone meat has a texture that absorbs other flavors well, making marinades a delicious way of adding more flavor, and because its strong flavor stands up so well to other flavors, it can take flavors like ginger, wasabi, citrus and garlic.

Nutrition

Abalone is a good source of omega-3 EPA and omega-3 DHA, as well as omega-6 AA. Three ounces of abalone provides 89 calories, of which 6 calories are from fat, nearly all of it polyunsaturated or monounsaturated. It also provides 14.5 g of protein and 15% of the DV for iron.

If you’re lucky enough to find fresh abalone for sale, it’s a treat that’s not to be missed. Check at your favorite place to buy seafood online for availability of fresh abalone, abalone steaks and abalone skirts.