We enjoyed the freshest fish in Singapore – cooked gently with a little peanut oil, ginger and light soy sauce. We gave them Malay names, and I had to look long and hard to find similar varieties of “ikan” when I moved to Sydney …

I chose flathead and snapper, bought at Sydney’s Paddy’s Markets; bones were removed, and they were much cheaper there than at fish outlets in shopping centres.  

It must have been 10 years ago when we were lucky to spend a few days in Pulau Langkawi, on the west coast of West Malaysia, with our food-savvy Singaporean friends, Clarence and Kym. We didn’t dine at our hotel, but drove to a restaurant not far away. It was on the side of a dark, dusty road – seemingly in the middle of nowhere. Brightly lit lanterns, hawker-stall tables and chairs, staff scurrying to and from the kitchen carrying platters of fish.

Clarence knew exactly what to order: whole grouper, steamed rice, Chinese vegetables, sliced bird’s-eye chillies in soya sauce and a little oil. The grouper was cooked exactly like our fish in Singapore; but somehow it had a more exquisite taste. The difference! On this island, everything was fresher. Drinks? Bottled water of course. All for under AUD20 a person. We were there for every night of our holiday, ordering the same dish. No frills, delicious 5-star dining at its very best.

We hear a lot about salmon these days, and how good the wild variety is for you. My first taste of it was in Toronto, Canada in 2014. Our cousin Keren bought and cooked beautiful bright red salmon cutlets, seasoned only with salt, pepper and lemon. The taste was INCREDIBLE! 

Back in Sydney, I made sure we had salmon once a week. It was off to Paddy’s again. Although labelled “Fresh Atlantic Salmon”, I suspected it was commercially farmed even then. And it still isn’t cheap, currently priced between AUD33–37 a kg for cutlets and fillets. Farmed barramundi is also plentiful, with Murray River cod and Kingfish in the pipeline. (You might want to try “wild caught” Pacific pink or Sockeye canned salmon – but check the labels to make sure.)

Praised for its high protein content and Omega-3 fatty acids, salmon is now commonly consumed, and eaten in many cultures around the world. It’s a fantastic alternative to protein sources such as chicken or beef – providing ample protein with far less saturated fat content. It’s therefore an ideal protein source to maintain weight loss or a normal-range BMI (body mass index).

BUT: While salmon aquaculture is the fastest-growing global food production system, you would have heard the bad press Tasmanian salmon-farming has been getting. This article from The Guardian suggests New Zealand King Salmon is a better alternative. But good or bad, most of us may be stuck with eating it farmed. (The wild Pacific variety is available at AUD50 a kg, if money’s no object.) I’m pretty much resigned to digesting the antibiotics, red dyes and higher calories, and salmon’s still on the menu once a week.  

If farm operators are doing it right, and Australia’s CSIRO says it’s OK, our salmon should still be:

• rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, to keep our hearts healthy and our brains functioning 
• high in selenium – a vital nutrient involved in DNA synthesis, thyroid hormone metabolism and reproductive health
• a good alternative to meat protein, with far less saturated fats to help with weight loss.  

Bored with my old ginger-soy sauce-spring onion approach, I now add Indian spices like curry powder and cumin to the fish (okay, just a little “thick” soy sauce before I turn the heat off). Garnished with coriander and lemon wedges, plated up with rice noodles or rice, vegetables and chillies, it’s DELISH. Give it a go if you’re planning on salmon this week!