Technology, Party Trays and Petrale Sole

Dear Fish Fanatics,

Let's start with a joke.  Why do fish love salt water?  Keep reading to find out.

It's All About Communication
When I was a little girl I had pen pals.  They were called pen pals because we actually sat down with a pen and wrote out letters to our friends who lived far away. If I needed to engage my local friends, I could risk passing them a note during class or I could make a phone call from the community phone at my house with my entire family listening in.

When I was in my twenties, the company I worked for installed a "mobile" phone in my car.  It mounted on the floor board of my car and had a long pole that brought the receiver up to within arms reach.  When I left the car I could always be reached by the fashionable black pager attached to my waistband.  My husband's company was much more sophisticated.  He had a 30 lb mobile phone in something like a suitcase that he could tote with him whenever he left the car.

For written documents there was always the high-tech fax machine.

With the nineties came the personal computer with instant messaging and email.  I can only shake my head with wonder at what means of communication will exist when my grandchildren grow up.

In keeping with the times I am beginning a new method of communicating to you:  a blog (which sounds to me like what follows a beer when you drink it too quickly.)  We're calling it On Deck with Kathleen's Catch and it will replace my old-fashioned weekly email.  You will have the opportunity to also hear from some of the others at the Catch as well because they are young and know all about technology.Simply sign up at the top of the page at

www.kathleenscatch.blogspot.com 

and you will receive email notification when there is something new to read.  

Speaking of new technology, texting!  I know texting isn't new, but it is new to Kathleen's Catch.  We've been using our weekly email to tell you about what's happening in our store, but the seafood business changes daily! Sometimes I don't know until 12 hours in advance that I can buy some cool fish that everyone is always looking for, e.g. trigger fish last week.  Therefore, I have engaged a texting service that will allow me to send you really fast, up-to-the-minute news about what's in my store and what's coming in tomorrow.

All you have to do is send a text with the word Catch to this number: 51660. 

 You will receive a confirmation text back which you should answer with YES.  

That's it.  Whenever I feel like telling you that I have fresh softshell crabs, or live crawfish or 10 lbs of pompano, I can drop you a quick text and you can rush over to my store before someone less cool and connected than you drops by and snags it.  

Please Let Me Introduce You To

Colin Kopel, our new Store Manager!  Colin comes to Kathleen's Catch from the Buckhead Life Restaurant Group.  As the Service Manager of the Fish Market in Buckhead for 4 years, Colin knows all about fish and all about service.  He has lots of ideas on how to make your shopping experience at the Catch even better!  Say hello next time you are in and, as Colin is also a sommelier, ask him to recommend a wine with your next fish purchase.!" 

Sushi This Weekend
It's a sushi weekend at Kathleen's Catch. We are bringing in a great assortment of high quality seafood ready to eat as sushi. Our staff is also preparing great sushi-making baskets for all your home preparation needs.  Contents of basket include:

Sushi rice

Sushi quality panko

Soy sauce

Ginger

Wasabi

Sesame

Bamboo rolling mat

Recipe cards

 Starting Saturday, buy a basket...get a free piece of fish!  We are limited on the number of baskets so get up early, bring your coffee and folding chairs and get in line in front of the store.   We open at 10:00.

Fish for sushi this weekend are:

Verlasso salmon

Yellowfin tuna

Hamachi

Kampachi

Cobia

Duck for Dinner

Do you prefer water fowl over land fowl?  We have Magret (duck breast) available by special order.  They average 2 lbs. each and are what food people call double loaf.   These are all natural (of course) and are $15.00/lb.

Holiday Party Trays

Shrimp Platter

Beautiful domestic shrimp
 (not Asian shrimp like you get at the grocery) 

Extra large!!  16 to 20 shrimp per lb.
with cocktail sauce and lemon 

Small - (1.5 lb) - $49.00  (serves 8-12 people)

Large - 3 lb - $79.00 (serves 16 to 20 people)

Smoked Salmon Platter

1.5 lb Cold Smoked Salmon

by Woodsmoke Provisions

with cream cheese, capers and red onion
Serves 8-12 people

$59.00

Hot Smoked Seafood Platter
1 lb Hickory Roasted Smoked Salmon
1 lb Pecan Smoked Trout
8 ounces Smoked Whitefish Salad
with lemons, tartar sauce and spicy mustard
Serves 16-20 people
$75.00

Alaskan Snow Crab and Shrimp Platter
with cocktail sauce and lemon

Small - One lb of each - $69.00 (serves 8-12 people)

Large - two lb of each - $129.00 (serves 16-20 people)

Jumbo Jumbo Jumbo Royal Shellfish Party Platter

1 lb. jumbo crab meat

1 lb. jumbo lobster meat 

1 lb. jumbo shrimp
with cocktail sauce and truffle mayo
Serves 16 to 20 people
$129.00

.
Caviar for Thanksgiving
(pre-orders only please - order by Tuesday for Thanksgiving)

Farmed Beluga - $120 - one ounce jar
Golden Russian Ossetra - $150 - 30 grams
UGA Ossetra Baeri - $80.00 - 30 grams
American Paddlefish - $28.80 - 1 ounce jar
American Hackleback - $36.75 - 1 ounce jar
Golden Whitefish - $11.00 - 1 ounce jar
Trout Caviar - $16.25 - 2 ounce jar
Smoked Trout Caviar - $25.45 - 2 ounce jar
Salmon Roe - $12.70 for 1 ounce jar

We sell mother of pearl serving spoons too!

This Week's Special
Do you love fluke flounder?  Then you will love this week's special - petrale sole!   $11.99/lb,
Petrale is a higher quality fish than the very popular west coast Dover.  A flat fish in the flounder family, petrale is the west coast's alternative to fluke flounder.  It's mild-tasting, kid-friendly fish .

Sautéed Petrale Sole in Herb Butter Sauce Recipe

Serves 4.

Ingredients

1.25 to 1.5 pounds fresh petrale sole fillets

Salt, to taste

2 T olive oil

3 T minced shallots

1/4 c dry white wine

2 T, cut into 4 pieces, cold, unsalted butter

Fresh thyme leaves (or any fresh herb for flavor)

Minced fresh chives

Lemon wedges

Method

1 Pat the sole fillets dry with paper towels. Lightly salt the fillets on both sides.

2 Heat oil in a large, stick-free skillet on medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, carefully add the fillets to the pan. Brown the fillets gently on both sides. Fish is cooked when it flakes easily and is no longer translucent. Sole fillets will cook up very quickly, no more than a few minutes on each side, so don't walk away from the pan while cooking. Once done, remove the fillets from pan and place on a warm plate.

3 Add shallots to the pan and sauté until soft. Deglaze the pan with white wine and scrape up the browned bits at the bottom of the pan. Add butter and gently swirl to make a sauce. Add herbs, and squeeze a little lemon juice into the sauce. Spoon over the sole.

Serve immediately.

Steamed Sole Asian Style

Layer the following ingredients in a large frying pan

Fennel- thinly sliced

Onions- thinly sliced 

Fresh ginger and fresh garlic - sliced thin or chopped
Lots of fresh baby spinach washed and dried.

Place fillets on top and sprinkle with salt and pepper. 

Sprinkle on top of fish - all to taste:

Fish sauce

Chili oil

Soy sauce

Be generous with the flavors - they will mix with the liquid from the fish and vegetables and will make a delicious sauce.

Put lid on pan cook on medium to low heat, steaming until fish is cooked through and spinach is wilted.

Serve  with jasmine rice seasoned with cilantro.

This Week's Catch to Go

Cod with Roasted Sweet Potatoes

and

Catfish with Apricot Chili Glaze over Rice and Baby Spinach

Thanksgiving Hours
We will be open regular hours on Wednesday the 26h and Friday the 28th.  Closed on Thanksgiving.

Tuna Rolls

Oh my goodness.  The tuna salad was wonderful!  I had been away all day and decided to let it be my ‘dinner’ before heading out for the Wine Extravaganza at Johns Creek Wine and Crystal.  It was fabulous!  I wasn’t sure how I was going to like the Granny Smith Apples, but it gave it just that ‘something’ special.  It’s the best tuna salad I’ve ever had and I’m a big fan of tuna salad.   

Millie Thompson

We've added to our lineup!  Besides our soon-to-be world famous lobster rolls and shrimp rolls, we have come up with our favorite - tuna rolls.   We serve it up just like the lobster rolls and shrimp rolls.  And it can come with a cup of our crazy-good soups or on a bed of greens.   Also available by the pound,   Give it a try!

And Finally
There are many opportunities to enjoy seafood around the holidays.  Maybe a light dinner the day before or the day after the big feast, oysters for the football fans, smoked fish or seafood spreads as appetizers.  Whatever you choose to eat, enjoy it with friends and family and do your best to be thankful for it all.  Spend a little time in gratitude for how much better our lives are than those of much of the world's population.  Every day should be Thanksgiving around here.

I'm thankful for you.

Blessings,
Kathleen

P. S.  Why do fish love saltwater?  Because pepper makes them sneeze.  (Thanks, Susan)