As of 1:00am this morning (delayed flight followed by dead car) I am back from Chicago. It was a wonderful trip. The highlight was a half day “Fish School” workshop we held at the Washburne Culinary Institute, which you may know as the place they filmed Top Chef Season 4. The workshop was all about the culinary side of seafood. Since most all the attendees were dietitians, the “seafood is healthful” message is pretty familiar to them. But the tastes and textures of all the different species are less so.

To remedy this, we started with a blind tasting of 16 different fish and shellfish. The participants took a few bites of each and made tasting notes. Then at the end, we revealed what was what. It was fun, and I was thinking, would also be entertaining at home on a smaller scale. What a great way to introduce kids to different kinds of seafood – with all the options out there, every family member is bound to happen upon at least one they like.

Here are some tasting adjective ideas…

Taste

delicate peppery oceanic briny starchy earthy boldautumnalnutty sweet bitter spicy buttery seaweed potatoes saltychicken stock dill

Texture

small flakes rapid moisture release firm fibrous juicy large flakes crumbly oily sticky crisp dry mouth-feel silky creamy melting slippery