How to Start a Pescetarian Diet

Written by Fred Decker; Updated December 02, 2018

There are a number of roads to healthy eating, and cutting out red and processed meats is one common choice. If you're not prepared to give up animal proteins entirely, starting a pescetarian diet might be your best option: It means eating a largely vegetarian diet, but adding in fish and seafood as protein options to complement the eggs, dairy and plant-based foods. It's a viable long-term dietary plan in its own right, or you can treat it as an intermediate step toward a fully vegetarian lifestyle.

Pescetarian Basics

Fundamentally, most pescetarians eat the same way lacto-ovo vegetarians do: They shun meats and poultry, eat primarily plant-based foods, and usually supplement those with eggs and dairy. The difference is that pescetarians also eat fish and seafood products, which provide nutrients that are difficult to obtain solely through plant foods.

If you want to begin eating the pescetarian way, your first step is to substitute fish for one meat or poultry meal a week. Then continue phasing out meat and poultry, until most of your protein sources are eggs, dairy, fish and seafood.

Health and Balance

Consider zinc, a vital trace nutrient that's difficult to obtain from a vegan diet, which is strictly plant-based, without eggs or dairy. Just six medium oysters, a common appetizer portion, contain over five times the daily value of that mineral. They also contain well over double the daily value of vitamin B12 and two-thirds of the daily value of vitamin D, two other nutrients that can be problematic for strict vegetarians.

A 3-ounce serving of mussels provides three times the daily value of vitamin B12, and a third of the day's requirement for iron. Fin fish are similarly nutritious, and they're high in heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids as well. The equation is relatively straightforward: If you start with a healthful base of plant-based foods, eggs and dairy, then add the positive health benefits of seafood, you'll end up with a fundamentally healthy diet.

The Mercury Question

One potential downside to eating more fish is the risk of mercury accumulating in your system. The metal is a neurotoxin that enters the marine food chain through aquatic plants and then migrates up the food chain, as herbivorous creatures are eaten by predators who in turn become prey to larger species. Some species -- mostly large predators, such as tuna -- are quite high in mercury, while others are relatively low and therefore may be safer options.

Small children, and pregnant and nursing mothers, need to be especially careful in their choices. High fish consumption during pregnancy is associated with excellent brain function in babies, but mercury has the opposite effect. Therefore, it's recommended that pregnant women avoid high-mercury fish such as orange roughy, swordfish, shark, Gulf tilefish, marlin, king mackerel, canned tuna and bigeye tuna used in sushi. The lower-mercury choices include salmon, shrimp, scallops, sardines and tilapia.

Choosing Your Favorite

Opt for unprocessed fish and shellfish, the freshest you can find. Good-quality frozen products are a valuable option as well: They're usually blast-frozen immediately after they're caught, and can be fresher and better-tasting than "fresh" fish that's been sitting in the display case for a few days. Pale-fleshed fish such as catfish, cod, sole and haddock are all versatile options that lend themselves to a wide range of recipes.

Oilier fish such as salmon, herring, mackerel and sardines are the highest in omega-3s, and aren't prone to drying out if you overcook them slightly. Fresh fish should never smell "fishy," but have a clean, briny scent. Crabs and lobsters should be lively in their tank, and mollusks such as clams and mussels should close if they're tapped with a finger.

A Few Preparation Options

Fish and seafood comes in a broad range of flavors and textures, so no single cooking method is appropriate for them all. Besides, variety is, as they say, the spice of life. Most shellfish and crustaceans are good when steamed or cooked over the grill, and crustaceans can also be boiled. Most fin fish can be cooked in a steamer, Asian-style, on a bed of aromatic herbs or vegetables.

Firm-textured and oily fish, such as salmon, halibut, mackerel and tuna, are excellent on the grill. You might need to use a fish-grilling basket to keep them from breaking up and falling through the grate, but the end result is well worth the effort. Most fish can be baked, either on their own or in a sauce, and oily fish can be broiled as well. Delicate fish can be prepared in parchment pouches, a technique known as cooking "en papillote."

About the Author

Fred Decker


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