Turmeric is a powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. So not only does it help prevent our diseases of inflammation (heart disease, arthritis, and just about everything that’s a disease), but it protects cells from damage by fighting off free radicals. When I first heard the term “free radicals,” I thought they must be good things – they’re “free” and they’re “radical.” But actually, they damage cell membranes, tamper with DNA, and even cause cell death.[1] Antioxidants are heroes that destroy evil because they’re “anti” (against) “oxidation.” You want to protect against excessive oxidation and free radicals because cell damage speeds up aging, and the scariest of cell damage diseases, cancer. There are multiple ongoing studies using turmeric (curcumin) in the prevention or treatment of cancer, Alzheimer’s, various other diseases, and even kidney transplants.[2]
Now I’ll explain how to invent recipes in case you’d like to do that, by using tilapia as an example. Say I want to rub some stuff on the fish, and I already decided turmeric would be in the mix. I imagine my fish on a plate with 1 teaspoon of turmeric next to it. Does that look like enough turmeric to rub on this much fish? No. Next I imagine 1 tablespoon of turmeric next to the fish. Does it look like way too much? No. One tablespoon it is. What if you want to use something else instead of turmeric, say cilantro, and you don’t know if it “goes” with tilapia?
- Who cares? It’s a free country and you like cilantro, so go for it.
- If you really care – or you’re having guests who might care – do a web search on it (cilantro tilapia) and if there are any recipes, which there will be, then you know it must go together.
I’d like another flavor in the mix, ginger sounds nice but I don’t have fresh ginger, so garlic is an easy choice. Now imagine just turmeric and garlic mixed together. In my mind, it looks like it would be too dry to easily rub on the fish so what could add moisture? Oil, melted butter, lemon or some other juice, a vinegar, soy sauce or another Asian sauce, etc. Then just decide what you’re in the mood for – good fats, acids, or something ethnic? It doesn’t matter which one you pick – you could choose a couple – but I decided not to have anything competing with the turmeric, and some of the sauces would need time to marinade, so I went with lemon juice.
After the fish has some spice and moisture you could grill it, but I decide to put a little crust on it. What to use? You could use bread crumbs, flour, panko, crush some nice crackers – doesn’t matter. I decided to use corn meal and flour. And herbs are always a bonus – usually dill goes well with fish but I don’t have any fresh – so I go with some chives and parsley. Now that there’s a crust I could pan fry, bake, or broil, and I go with broiling in an effort to move away from depending on too much cooking oil. So there’s a brand new recipe and what a way to celebrate real food!
Now in reality I’m sitting in the body shop waiting for my car, so I call my 13-year-old and explain to him how to do the rub. (I didn’t think to tell him to do it on a plate.) Then I call him back ten minutes later and explain the corn meal mix and, of course for the blog, remind him to take pictures! I told him to set it aside because it doesn’t take long to broil, and in the car on the way home I called and gave him directions on how to start a side dish. When I got home I realized I have a lot of leftover parmesan so I added that to the top of the fish.
Turmeric Tilapia
3-4 tilapia filets
1 T turmeric
1 crushed clove garlic
1 T lemon juice
¼ C corn meal
¼ C flour
2 T fresh chopped parsley
2 T fresh chopped chives
¼ C fresh shredded parmesan per filet (3/4 cup for 3 filets, etc.)
Preheat broiler. Whisk the turmeric, garlic, and lemon juice. Coat tilapia filets with the mixture. Mix corn meal, flour, and herbs. Press filets into corn meal to coat both sides well. Place filets on a baking pan covered with sprayed parchment paper. Broil for 3 minutes on each side. Put ¼ C fresh shredded parmesan on top of each piece and broil 2 more minutes to melt.
[1] “Complementary and Alternative Medicine Guide,” University of Maryland Medical Center, May, 2011. http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/turmeric
[2] “Find Support and Treatment,” Cancer.org, Dec. 2012; http://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatmentsandsideeffects/complementaryandalternativemedicine/herbsvitaminsandminerals/turmeric
