Fish for Breakfast

A few years ago I had a conversation with a nutritionist. We were discussing ways to lower my carb intake at breakfast time. I figured it meant I’d be eating a lot more eggs.

‘It doesn’t just have to be eggs,’ he said.

‘You can choose any lean protein. Have a piece of chicken.’

It struck me as an unusual twist, but I decided to work with the idea.

Another obvious source of lean protein is fish, of course, and fish is a popular breakfast item, though usually in a high-sodium smoked variety. It’s common to have lox, smoked salmon, smoked trout or even herring for breakfast.

But I wanted to avoid the salt, so that pointed me in the direction of working with fresh fish. I felt that strong-flavored oily fishes could overwhelm a palate that is still half-asleep, so I began to steam and poach various white, flaky varieties that might seem bland at the dinner table. Fish like hake- which is very inexpensive, and flounder. Even striped bass is a great breakfast fish, though it really begs to be drizzled with butter.

I mentioned this fish-for-breakfast habit to my dear friend FoodieFatale and her reaction was something along the lines of ‘I just don’t think of fish as a breakfast food.’ And I fully understood.

So here, pictured above, is my breakfast-friendly flounder fish taco. It’s yummy, healthy and pairs well with coffee.

On top of a corn tortilla that I nuked for 15 seconds, are some pieces of flounder. This time I opted to sauté them, using a wee bit of olive oil to add a hint of crispiness. Then I topped it with some sliced tomato and avocado wedges. I added some pickled jalapeno too, because I like the heat.

To finish it off I added coarsely-chopped cilantro and some salsa verde. 

It’s grrrrreat!