Many people love to eat seafood but are loath to prepare it at home. It can be difficult to get fresh fish at markets, and it is expensive, particularly for those not blessed with seafront residences. Seaver follows up his lauded American Seafood (2017) with another comprehensive catalog of both finfish and shellfish and how to cook them. Although familiar seafoods appear (cod, salmon, flounder), Seaver is anxious that people become familiar with less well-known fish such as grenadier, which is an abundant and relatively inexpensive species. For each entry, Seaver summarizes the fish's characteristics and follows with a few recipes that range in complexity from simple trout almandine to sophisticated lobster thermidor. For the truly timid seafood cook, there's even a recipe for tuna-noodle casserole, and he lists ways to use imitation crabmeat. To emphasize the culinary adaptability of seafood, he offers a section on compound butters, sauces, and spices that can readily enhance any piece of fresh fish. Some freshwater fish appear (trout, tilapia), but not lake perch or bluegill. For reference collections, too, this offers comprehensive and easily retrievable information on all sorts of seafood cookery.--Mark Knoblauch Copyright 2010 Booklist

Chef Seaver (For Cod and Country) distills his vast knowledge of seafood in this encyclopedic work. Noting that today's technology allows for frozen fish to be just as good as, if not better than, the fresh seafood in stores, Seaver shares the best preparations for over 100 species. Each entry opens with an overview of a species and its aliases (Acadian redfish is sometimes sold as rosefish or ocean perch), along with preparations --grilling, roasting, poaching, and others--and acceptable substitutes for when you can't find a specific fish (e.g., jack and tilapia can be substituted for meaty grouper). There are 15 recipes for shrimp, 19 for oysters, 25 recipes that call for canned anchovies, and more than 30 for salmon. His selections are smart: fried haddock en adobo, halibut gravlax with dill, and sauteed sablefish with rosemary and Madeira wine. For down-to-earth comfort food, there's also pasta with imitation crabmeat and fennel cream sauce, as well as a tuna melt and tuna casserole. This superb collection conveys Seaver's experience, enthusiasm, and creativity. (Oct.)