Vancouver, British Columbia-based chef and sustainability enthusiast Ned Bell has released his first seafood-focused cookbook, “Lure" – what the Ocean Wise associate and Chefs for Oceans founder called "a dream come true."
Since taking a 8,700-kilometer journey by bicycle across Canada promoting seafood sustainability as a part of the Chefs for Oceans project, Bell – who was recently awarded the SeaWeb Seafood Champion for Advocacy Award in Seattle, Washington at the SeaWeb Seafood Summit in June 2017 – has been eager to take “the natural next step” and publish a cookbook to reach even more consumers in their homes on the “front line,” the chef explained in a news release.
The pages of “Lure” include 80 simple recipes that can be cooked with 40 different sustainable seafood species native to the North American West Coast. The cookbook is broken out into four categories, including whitefish, fatty fish, shellfish, and sea greens, and encourages consumers to both incorporate more seafood into their diets as well as learn more about sustainability.
"It's simple. As an excellent source of protein, sustainable seafood can be the real fast food in our homes. We need to feed our families more clean, healthy and delicious ingredients from our lakes, oceans, and rivers. 'Lure' will help you do that," Bell said.
The cookbook can be purchased on Indigo, Cook Culture, Amazon, and Target, and Bell has invited readers to post their “Lure”-inspired cooking adventures on social media using the official hashtag #LureCookbook.
Reviews of Bell’s cookbook note the important sustainability message at the heart of “Lure”:
- "A chef's mission is to create dishes that are, above all, delicious. When the opportunity is also used to communicate a message, the work is complete. 'Lure' transports readers to a sea universe and helps them to discover ways of using sustainable seafood. The ocean is a finite resource with infinite possibilities." – Alex Atala, Michelin-starred chef and owner of D.O.M.
- "This might be the ultimate summer dish. "Planked Wild Salmon with Nectarines, Thyme, Honey, Almonds, and Ricotta" combines summer's prize of wild local King salmon with some of the season's most luscious stone fruit - all co-mingled on a cedar plank that imparts a ravishing smokiness on the backyard grill. Best yet? You can devour it all in good conscience because it's all sustainable." – Carolyn Jung, Food Gal on Planked Wild Salmon recipe
- "Ned's passion for sustainable seafood is infectious, and this book is irresistible. Bringing Ned's recipes into your home is a great way to support healthy oceans." – David Suzuki, award-winning scientist, environmentalist and broadcaster
- "Ned Bell is one of that laudable cadre of young chefs who has taken the trouble to learn not only the names of his farmers but also his fishers. If, like me, you're committed to sustaining the health of the oceans, you'll grab this book that shows you how to cook all the responsibly harvested gifts of the sea." – Tom Douglas, American executive chef, restaurateur, author, and radio talk show host
- "When it comes to preparing delicious fish and seafood dishes, Ned has a gift for combining flavors that speaks to our minds and our bellies." – Eric Ripert, Michelin-starred chef and co-owner of Le Bernardin
Bell has been hosting a variety of book launch events, with another tour stop coming up for the Visa Infinite Lure Book Launch in Vancouver, scheduled for 23 October for Visa Infinite cardholders. Lure Cooking Classes at Cook Culture – located in the Lonsdale Cooking School in Vancouver – with Bell have been sold out for November and December.
