Sustainable sushi is a buzzword these days. Trevor Corson is writing book about it, Casson Trenor has written a book about it and there are now several sushi bars that are only serving sustainable fish. Great!

“Fish stocks are suffering locally and globally, causing some Americans to feel guilty about eating sushi. But short of giving up on seafood altogether, there are ways to eat sushi without feeling badly about the indulgence.” NPR reported in their story on this the other day. (Click on the image to go to NPRs radioshow.)

But - what kind of fish should you eat? It is quite hard being a conscious consumer. Usually the sushi restaurants are not helping; many places do not know where their fish is coming from, how it is farmed or that the kind of fish they are serving are endangered. But then YOU can turn to guides to find out. According to the Monterey Bay Aquariums “Guide to sustainable sushi” there are fish that are best choice, good alternatives and fish to avoid.

Fish to avoid:
- Ankimo/Monkfish liver
- Ankoh/Monkfish
- Ebi/Shrimp (Imported farmed)
- Ebi/Shrimp (Imported wild-caught)
- Hamachi/Yellowtail (Australia farmed)
- Hamachi/Yellowtail (Japan farmed)
- Hirame/Flounder, Soles (Atlantic)
- Hirame/Halibut, Atlantic
- Hon Maguro/Toro/Tuna, Bluefin
- Ikura/Salmon Roe (farmed)
- Kani/Crab, King (Imported)
- Maguro/Toro/Tuna, Bigeye (Worldwide except U.S. Atlantic longline)
- Maguro/Toro/Tuna, Yellowfin (longline)
- Sake/Salmon (farmed)
- Shiro Maguro/Tuna, Albacore (Worldwide except Hawaii longline)
- Tai/Snapper, Red (U.S. Gulf of Mexico)
- Tai/Snapper, Red (Imported)
- Tako/Octopus (sushi)
- Unagi/Eel, Freshwater
- Uni/Sea Urchin (Maine)

Check out what they recommend and give you as good alternatives either via their iPhone app or from the link to the sushi guide.

Another way to go about it is to visit only sushi bars that states that they serve only sustainable sushi. San Francisco’s Tataki Sushi and Sake Bar claim to be the first sustainable sushi restaurant in the world. Their sushi plates are not any less mouth watering than other sushi bars. Looks delicious!

This is their “Tataki roll”, which tops an Alaskan crab and pollock mixture with six different kinds of sustainable fish and multi-colored Icelandic masago.

Sustainablesushi.net is a website that wants to encourage and inform about sushi restaurants that are sustainable:

“As the sushi industry begins to wake up to the damage that it has caused, one can hope that some chefs will change accordingly. Part of the mission of Sustainable Sushi is to identify those restaurants that are actively working to preserve our oceanic ecosystems and to leave a smaller footprint on our planet.
Restaurants reviewed on this site will be evaluated not on terms of food quality (although it certainly may be mentioned in the review), but rather on the sustainability of the seafood offerings on the menu and the perspective of the chef. Does he/she acknowledge that sustainability is an important issue? What kind of fish and shellfish are served? Does the restaurant promote eco-friendly options, or does it sling bluefin tuna without compunction?”

A great initiative. Take a look at their website too.

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