Melisw McGaw 



Second, "it was 

 a tremendous waste 

 of time, energy and 

 water to cook one 

 meal," Taylor says. 



Those who 

 tried the unusual 

 cooking method 

 claimed they had a 

 moister final 

 product. But Taylor 

 says the same 

 results could be 

 achieved through 

 poaching or 

 steaming, which 

 cooks the fish in a 

 shorter time using 

 far less water. 



But the strange 

 cooking method 

 does point out 

 another of Taylor's 

 pet peeves — 

 overcooking 

 seafood. 



The cooks who 

 turned to the 

 dishwasher were 

 probably overcook- 

 ing their fish using 

 other methods, Taylor says. People 

 often tend to treat fish and shellfish 

 like red meat and poultry, which 

 require longer cooking times because 

 of their thickness and density. 



Overcooking seafood can leave it 

 dry, flavorless and even tough. And, 

 it's a surefire way to ruin an expensive 

 mackerel steak, salmon fillet or pound 

 of shrimp. 



Taylor's rule of seafood cooking 

 is 10 minutes per inch of thickness for 

 fish or until it flakes easily when tined 

 with a fork. For oysters, clams and 

 mussels, the shells should pop open. If 

 these shellfish are shucked, only 

 minutes of simmering in a stew, soup 

 or bouillabaisse will render them 

 done. Shrimp should be pink (cooked 

 no more than three to five minutes) 



Joyce Taylor with several Carteret County Nutrition Leaders 



and scallops white (three to five 

 minutes depending on the size and 

 species). 



If you think Taylor is particular 

 about how seafood is prepared and 

 cooked, then you can imagine that 

 when it comes to seafood safety and 

 kitchen hygiene, she's downright 

 tyrannical. 



She preaches against eating raw 

 shellfish, rails against such unsanitary 

 practices as placing cooked seafood 

 back on the same plate where it sat 

 raw, and lectures consumers about 

 keeping their catch or purchase 

 properly chilled and refrigerated. 



Taylor rages when she watches a 

 certain noted cook who "guarantees" 

 his recipes on television but never 

 washes his hands or his cutting board 



as he moves from 

 working with 

 meats to veg- 

 etables. 



"He's provid- 

 ing viewers with a 

 recipe for food 

 poisoning," Taylor 

 says indignantly. 



All of her 

 safety education 

 isn't aimed at 

 consumers. For the 

 past three years, 

 Taylor has helped 

 the University of 

 North Carolina 

 School of Public 

 Health train county 

 environmental 

 health specialists 

 about seafood 

 safety and quality. 

 These are the folks 

 who inspect 

 restaurants and 

 some retail 

 markets. 



Jim Murray, 

 who heads Sea 

 Grant's Marine 

 Advisory Service, says Taylor's wit 

 and knowledge make her presentations 

 the highlight of the three-day work- 

 shops. In all, Taylor has helped 

 expand the seafood knowledge of 

 more than 300 health specialists 

 across the state. 



But no matter the audience, 

 consumers or health specialists, food 

 editors or seafood marketers, her 

 dedication and devotion to seafood 

 education has always remained 

 steadfast. She has reached thousands 

 of Tar Heel residents with information 

 about seafood preparation, quality and 

 safety. 



She rightfully earned her title as 

 seafood guru. 



May she wear it always — with 

 pride, m 



14 SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 1996 



