Deep Freeze: Salmon, Flounder, And Rainbow Trout

Song:  Clocks (Cover)

Artist:  Jamie Dupuis

A little while ago...

I had my mother buy a deep freezer which I put in one of her garages.

This is a stand alone freezer to store a much larger amount of frozen foods.

I wanted her to get it so I could stock up on all of her favorite foods...

as sometimes when I shop, they are out of what I had wanted to buy.

With a deep freezer holding a large stock of all the frozen fish...

and other items I use to cook for her...

all I have to do when I go to her house to cook her supper...

is ask her what she wishes to eat...

and I can easily retrieve whatever my mother desires most to eat that night.

I cook mostly fish based meals for her.

Not only is it the most healthful of all the meats to eat...

it is what she enjoys eating the most.

My mother had planted these tulips in a pot on her front porch some months ago...

just before winter.

Now that Spring is here...

she enjoys having cut flowers in her house.

Spring has arrived.

Our basic staple fish for our meals consist of these three.

I use a variety of methods to cook the salmon, including inclusion in other dishes.

With the flounder and the trout, I just grill them with salt and pepper.

I buy these frozen fish from the neighborhood Super Walmart.

I love this store.

A two pound bag of salmon costs just under $15.00.

A one pound bag of Rainbow Trout costs a little under $9.00.

And a one pound bag of Flounder costs just under $5.00.

I would have bought more fish...

but I had taken the last that they had for the day.

I had bought this deep freezer off of Amazon for a few hundred dollars...

and it was then delivered to her door.

A deep freezer which has a manual defrost is necessary to prevent freezer burn.

In auto defrost models...

it warms up the walls to shed frost...

which also warms the food...

which partially thaws the meat...

and this forms ice crystals in the meat when it refreezes...

which damages the cell walls...

which then forms the typical freezer burn with such models.

When the food goes low in this freezer...

I will then transfer the rest to the regular freezer in the house...

and I could then manually defrost the freezer when it is empty...

and I would then restock the freezer.

Another thing which helps prevent freezer burn...
is having each fish fillet vacuum sealed.

When there is air in the package...

freezer burn results when...without having to go through defrost cycles...

the ice sublimates (goes from a solid to a vapor without first going to a liquid)...

and this is why there is ice on the inside of the package when it wasn't there

when you put it in.

The meat gets...

essentially, dehydrated...

another form of freezer burn.

When you use these two precautionary measures (manual defrost, and vacuum sealed products)...

you can store frozen foods for many months without product degradation.

On this night...

my mother felt like eating grilled trout.

As you can see...

each is vacuum sealed.

All I do is set the stove on medium high...

and I grill each side until lightly browned...

and I season with just a little salt and pepper

(I cover the pan during cooking).

The rest of the seasoning for the fish comes from our favorite Tonkatsu sauce (below).

We also have a bowl of miso soup to round out the meal.

We will usually start out with a salad during supper...

but on this night...

we just ate the meal without the salad...

as neither of us was particularly hungry.

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My mother loves fish just grilled.

This is a typical Japanese style meal.

I cook using typical Japanese...

and Mediterranean style foods.

These are the two most healthful diets in the world.

Both include fish as the main meats

(with supplemental meats of poultry...

and lighter amounts of other types of meats)...

lots of vegetables, fruits, grains, and nuts...

and with lesser, but healthful, amounts of eggs and some dairy 

(mostly yogurts and cheeses).

I also usually have her drink a full glass of a fruit or vegetable juice at supper.

I use mostly an olive oil based salad dressing

(I mix it myself with a true extra virgin olive oil)...

and I have her sip on a half glass of a concentrated grape wine

as she watches a movie on TV after dinner.

I also cook using a lot of tomato based sauces...

especially when using pasta.

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I reiterated to my mother on this night...

the great importance of how I have styled her diet...

and exercise regimes 

(which she hasn't been able to do for many months due to pain in her knees...

but which we are going to restart tomorrow...

as I had her knees x-rayed).

Although she has mild loss of cartilage in her knees...

it shouldn't be debilitating.

We are going to walk shortly after each supper from now on.

I reinforced the message that most people who die 

from a stroke or heart attack in the hospital...

usually die between the hours of 2 - 3 AM.

A quick funny note:

As soon as I had said this...

my mother's face lit up...

and she actually said...

with a big smile on her face...

that she is a night owl...

and she often stays awake past 3 AM anyways  :)

After removing my hand from my face...

I told her that it was not the time which was the causative factor...

but it was the time which most people are deeply sleeping...

and when their system is at its lowest output.

My rationale:

I believe (it seems reasonable)...

it is because the body is at its lowest ebb in its metabolic stage.

The blood pressure is at its lowest...

everything slows down...

and this is when blood clots have the greatest ease to form...

especially in the legs.

These clots then travel to where they then do the damage.

So...

it is most reasonable to exercise and drink a half glass of wine...

just before bed.

Not only does exercising just before bed increase the metabolic rate

all night long...

which then forces the body to burn fat while you sleep...

it increases the amount of capillaries in the body...

 increases the stroke volume of the heart...

and improves the muscle tone of the legs...

and so, prevents pooling of blood...

especially in the legs...

which will prevent the main cause of mini clots being thrown

from the legs.

A lot of dementia is the result of mini strokes...

which is usually caused by mini clots forming in the legs at night...

especially in those who have a sedentary life style

(and so...the reason that those who stay in a hospital bed for extended periods...

are usually fitted with pressure hoses on their legs).

The legs and hips...

not only have the largest muscles in the body...

 they are the farthest from the heart.

The blood has a harder time returning to the heart...

and so, often times, pools in the legs...

which can then, form clots.

This is not only a danger for a Deep Vein Thrombosis...

but sets the stage for the more often...

and most often silent...

mini stroke.

Exercise just before bed helps in the long term...

as well as for the short.

It also, when coupled with a hot shower afterwards...

greatly reduces stress and excess energy...

which then induces a deep restful slumber.

A half glass of wine also helps  :)

While we all must die...

we should aim to die without unnecessary infirmity.

So, in essence...

our goal is to die healthy  :)