Sustainable seafood is top notch and plentiful in Canada. These three recipes prove it

After an early October morning spent catching giant Atlantic bluefin tuna on rod and reel aboard the Pelagic Predator, Nova Scotia fisherman Eric Jacquard helped chainsaw off the head of a two-metre-long fish.

Next, using a black, razor-sharp knife, he pulled a narrow, triangular tranche of flesh from the neck – which Spanish chefs call “morillo” – and plopped it on a paper plate.

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With measured strokes, he thinly sliced the striated red-purple hunk. His son Camille, the Pelagic Predator’s captain, steered the ship as curious anglers crowded around, eager for a taste of the fish, which, decades ago, was brought to the brink of collapse owing to sky-high prices and global demand.

As the chartered boat’s paying customers chewed their bites, groaning with pleasure, dozens of 300-plus-pound bluefin jumped and swam in the inky waters, leaping at chunks of creamy butterfish chum Jacquard had tossed overboard minutes before. “Does it look like this fish is endangered to you?” he quipped.

Like many Canadian diners, I’ve long heeded environmentalists’ appeals to “Save the Bluefin,” and avoided eating it. In the early 1990s, some scientists estimated that the Atlantic bluefin population had plummeted by 90 per cent over two decades.

More recently, particularly in schools targeted by Jacquards, and on the other side of the Atlantic, the massive, magnificent fish are teeming in numbers not seen in years. Stricter quotas, bans on fishing juveniles, and crackdowns on poaching and trafficking of the species have resulted in a “spectacular recovery,” according to Francisco Alemany, a leading marine scientist.

And just last November, the international agency overseeing tuna catches even approved new science-based mathematical models, called harvest strategies, to further protect bluefin: good news for those craving red, unctuous maguro from their local sushi joint.

For diners willing to do their homework, Canadian waters provide some of the most delicious and ecologically beneficial seafood available anywhere. And that sustainability is increasingly extending beyond fisheries’ management – how species are regulated and harvested – to the distribution systems, carbon footprint, and local and regional health of people and communities engaged in fishing.

“We’ve lost so many of our fisheries from communities,” says Shannon Arnold, associate director for marine programs at Halifax’s Ecology Action Centre (EAC). “The labour and social issues, how people are treated on fishing boats, are becoming a huge thing. In previous years, people would have said, ‘that’s not environmentalism …’ but now we’re looking at it more holistically.”

Take, for example, the tastes-good, does-good snow crab, a catch that supports many rural fishers in northeastern Quebec and Atlantic Canada. The spindly legged crustaceans are thriving owing to good management and a warming climate. Or trap- and mid-water-trawl-caught shrimp, including B.C. spot prawns, Newfoundland coldwater shrimp, and EAC-endorsed Chedabucto Bay shrimp from Nova Scotia, which are delectable and caught by well-regulated fisheries.

Hand-harvested sea urchin and scallops also boast a low carbon footprint and are industries in which rural-based scuba divers often receive a cut of their boat’s profits for their undersea labours. Mussels and oysters – the latter of which I adore so much I have one tattooed on my right forearm – help filter and clean the ocean as they grow and eat algae, making them one of the tastiest and most environmentally defensible species around.

As recently as a decade ago, many locals doubted chef Dai Fukasaku’s vision of serving sushi made solely with locally caught seafood in Prince Rupert, B.C., a community of about 12,000 year-round residents.

“I knew Prince Rupert was one of the biggest fishing meccas in northwest B.C., but I did not see any of that seafood available,” says Fukasaku.

As with 75 per cent of all Canadian seafood, comprising a nearly $9-billion industry, the bulk of catches in the town are exported abroad. “I was shocked and depressed, but at the same time I thought, ‘Maybe this is my opportunity.’ ”

The Tokyo-born former music student believed he could help protect the ocean for future generations, keep his restaurant’s carbon footprint smaller and save his customers money at the same time, and convinced the CEO of a Japanese-owned local fish plant, Aero Trading in Port Edward, to support his business.

Now, he sources entirely local, traceable catches for his 14-seat pier-side restaurant, where he offers a $65 five-course tasting menu including tuna tataki, pescatarian ramen and miso-glazed black cod. “Imported seafood makes everything so expensive,” he says. “And I can do this because our ocean is still healthy, and because our fishermen are working really hard.”

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As with any human-influenced realm, Arnold warns that it’s vital to consider that – as with the recovery of Atlantic bluefin tuna – best practices often change and evolve.

For many years, for instance, she encouraged diners to opt for small oily fish, including herring, capelin and mackerel. Awkwardly, a recent collapse of those populations means she’s now trying to claw that public messaging back. “That used to be my go-to,” she adds with a chagrined laugh.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch website allows diners to search for species and fishing methods to avoid, she adds, such as trawl-caught cod, longline-caught bluefin, gillnet-caught flounder and dredge-caught sea urchin.

Ultimately, the best thing consumers can do is be curious and conscientious, and embrace asking persistent questions about the fish, crustaceans and shellfish we buy and enjoy. Most importantly, says Arnold, Canada needs to have new and better fish-labelling laws so it’s easier to tell if a species is from near or far, or if it’s wild or farmed. “Where was this fish fished? What kind of fish is it? And how was it fished?” she says.

“Asking that is a huge thing that you can do, no matter what fish you buy in the end. And pushing for that traceability and having that information on the label, that’s the only way we can get to a place where we can help.”

Karen Pinchin is Dartmouth-based investigative journalist specializing in food systems, culinary culture and climate change. Her first book, Kings of Their Own Ocean, will be published July 18 by Knopf Canada.

Three Show-stopping and Sustainable Seafood Recipes

We asked food creator Jessica Emin and Canadian chef Renée Lavallée to share crowd-pleasing dishes made with local delights.

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ShanDaph Oysters with Strawberry Black Pepper Mignonette

By Jessica Emin

This seasonal summer mignonette is as bright and sweet as it is tart and savoury. The fruit-forward garnish pairs perfectly with the umami flavours of ShanDaph’s deep, plump, meaty oysters, from Big Island, N.S.

Serves 1-24, but 3-4 oysters a person is usually a good approximate for an appetizer

2 tbsp rice vinegar

2 tbsp white vinegar

1 tsp cracked black pepper

1/8 tsp kosher salt

1 pinch white sugar

2 tbsp strawberries, minced

2 tbsp shallot, minced

24 oysters, shucked on the half shell

Method

Whisk together both vinegars, pepper, salt and sugar in a small bowl until sugar and salt have dissolved. Stir the strawberries and shallot into the vinegar mixture. Put in an airtight container and let marinate refrigerated until use. Serve the oysters on a bed of ice, with the mignonette on the side.

Tip: For a better shucking experience, equip your oysters station with a shucker, a bowl to discard top shells and a towel to wrap the oyster and grip it while opening. A quick watch of a “how-to-shuck” video, if you’re iffy on the finer points or it has been a few years, will be helpful.

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Summer Crunch Tuna Crudo with Sweet Citrus Oil

By Jessica Emin

The best way to enjoy supremely high-quality fresh fish, such as yellowfin tuna, is to not mess with it, and keep it away from heat. When you place this gorgeous tableau of flavours onto the patio table, your guests will gasp; “You’ve outdone yourself!” But you haven’t, you just worked smarter, not harder.

Serves 6-8 as a light appetizer

½ lb raw yellowfin tuna. Use fresh fish, or fish that has been frozen at peak freshness

2-3 hakurei turnips, shaved thin

For pickle:

¾ cup white vinegar

¼ cup water

1 tsp kosher salt

½ tsp white sugar

1 cup fennel bulb, shaved into thin ribbons

For citrus sauce:

2/3 cup olive oil

½ lemon, ripe and soft, with rind, hard end and seeds removed

⅛ orange, or one one slice, with rind

2 tsp white sugar

½ tsp kosher salt

For garnish and to finish:

2-3 tbsp finely cut chives

¼ cup fresh mint, whole small leaves or coarsely chopped

1 handful fennel frond, ripped into small pieces (optional)

2 tbsp chive blossoms (optional)

1 tsp espelette pepper, dehydrated powder

kosher salt, to finish the dish

Method

In a small sauce pot, mix together white vinegar, water, salt and sugar, then bring it to a boil. Place the shaved fennel in an airtight, heat-proof container such as a mason jar, and pour the vinegar over the fennel, then set aside and let cool. Once the liquid is cool, keep the fennel refrigerated.

In a high-power blender, combine oil, lemon, orange, sugar and salt. Please note that the lemon and orange includes the meat of the fruit, and also the rind or peel. Blend until puréed and emulsified. Set aside.

Slice the tuna against the grain, into ¼-⅛ inch pieces. Sprinkle with salt.

Assemble the dish by first spooning a layer of the citrus oil over the bottom of a large serving plate, then playfully layer and lay out the tuna, hakurei, fennel, chive, mint, chive blossom (optional) and fennel fronds (optional). Sprinkle the dish with espelette and salt to finish.

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Crobster Roll

By Renée Lavallée

East-coast tourists and locals alike have a hankering for lobster rolls, but chef Renée Lavallée’s Crobster Roll makes it even more crave-worthy with a mix of coldwater snow crab and lobster from Victoria Cooperative Fisheries in Cape Breton. Served in a buttery toasted bun with a helping of aioli, the Crobster is now a famous staple of Lavallée’s restaurant, The Canteen in Dartmouth.

Serves 4

For the seafood:

10.5 oz snow crab meat

10.5 oz lobster meat

For homemade aioli:

6 eggs

1 tsp Dijon mustard

6 cups canola oil

½ cup lemon juice

½ tbsp truffle oil

1 tbsp grainy mustard

salt and pepper to taste

For garnish and to finish:

¼ cup chopped fresh dill

zest of 2 lemons

1 cup iceberg lettuce shredded

4 soft rolls or brioche buns

butter, for rolls

Method

Place eggs and Dijon in a food processor and mix until incorporated. Slowly add in the oil until it thickens to a mayonnaise consistency. Add salt and lemon juice. Blitz for a further 30 seconds and add truffle oil and grainy mustard. Mix for 10-15 seconds until combined. Season to taste. This will make extra and will keep in the fridge for a week.

Strain lobster and snow crab meat with hands or carefully through a strainer.

Chop dill and zest lemons.

Mix seafood with aioli, dill and lemon zest.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Butter the buns on the outside and toast in a pan on medium heat until golden brown.

Into each warm bun, add shredded lettuce and 1/4 of the lobster and crab mixture.

Serve with a side of pickles, French fries or chips.