Seafood and Me

Born and raised in landlocked Indiana, we grew up on on chicken, beef and pork. 

At one time or another we had raised each of them on our vast five acre "farm". 

What we didn't have was any type of seafood. Occasionally someone would catch some freshwater fish and that was a huge treat.  Nothing like fresh trout or crappie fried up in a cast iron skillet. Yumm. 

One day a friend of my dad's brought back fresh shrimp back from Florida. These weren't baby sized shrimp, they were probably 5 inches by 2 1/2 inches after they were butterflied and fried.   I can't even find shrimp that size in Florida. 

There's no way my carnivore brothers would have touched the stuff and my sister was probably out doing whatever irritating grouchy older sisters do.  It was some random afternoon and I remember sitting in the kitchen when mom just put a huge fried shrimp in front of me. 

Actually since I seemed to not like anything back in those days, I'm surprised I even tried it. 

One bite and I was hooked. 

I didn't taste lobster until I was in my twenties and my then mother in law, originally from Maine ordered the live Maine lobster at Red Lobster. 

Oh Indiana how I hate your lack of even a foot of oceanfront. 

The first scallop and the first calamari was also a Red Lobster experience.  It's hard to screw up fresh lobster, it's not so hard to screw up scallops and calamari.  Just ask Red Lobster. 

Both were like eating rubber bands. 

Then one day I was in Pittsburgh for work with about 10 co-workers.  We went to an expensive Italian restaurant.  That was back when corporations didn't pay much attention to expensive reports.  Now only non-profits or government employees get away with that kind of extravagance. 

The most senior guy of the group ordered several appetizers for the table.  

I would have skipped the scallops and calamari, but hey, it's free to me and they all looked pretty appetizing.  

That's when I learned that the image of a rubber band or chewing on a popped balloon should not be going through your head when you are eating these wonderful sea creatures.  

Cooked properly, neither should be tough or chewy.  

It took me abut 35 years to find that out. 

Now if you ask my 7 year old granddaughter her favorite foods, she'll tell you filet and calamari.  

She's going to be an expensive date.  Her mother prefers chicken over all other meats. 

What kind of 7 year old even knows what calamari is?