Taste it share it
WHERE TO FIND OUTSTANDING LOCAL
PRODUCE IN THE UAE
BY MATTHEW BRODERICK
A
s a passionate Biology
teacher, any nod towards
sustainability and reducing
the
carbon
footprint
immediately piques my interest when
dining out. The desire to attract the
Michelin Guide is building but will
only ever take effect when Dubai
builds on home-grown concepts and
local produce rather than imported
ingredients and ostentatious celebrity
names.
So, what is happening in the UAE
right now? A combination of my three
main passions – biology teacher, food
critic, and author – were combined
on a recent school trip to Jebel Ali
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May - Jun 2019
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Fish Farm. Fish, such as salmon, sea
bream, and seabass are farmed locally
to produce the freshest, tastiest, and
potentially healthiest fish in the region.
The carefully controlled conditions
keep fish safe from predators and
disease, as well as increasing levels of
Omega-3.
I had the pleasure of tasting such fresh
fish at the Spinneys media launch and
found myself eating salmon that was
swimming on the farm less than an
hour before. Not only did it taste great,
but it had a natural colour that scored
high on the Salmon Fan; a tool used to
measure the pigmentation of salmon
flesh. Salmon has a naturally beautiful
After The Bell
pink colour, but most Atlantic-caught
salmon is greyer, due to the lack of
movement for the fish. Knowing that
the organic salmon had not travelled
thousands of miles from Norway /
Ireland / Scotland, will make a big
difference to my consumer habits.
The next day, I tried freshly-caught sea
bream at home. A quick fillet and two
lovely pieces of bream were cooked
simply in turmeric and coriander on
the BBQ and were a hit with my guests.
Again, the conversation centred
around the ethos and philosophy
behind the fish farm, as well as other
food producers of the UAE that are
providing the region with access to
fresh, flavoursome, organic crops.