7 Celebratory Seafood Recipes for Spinach Day

7 Celebratory Seafood Recipes for Spinach Day

Written by: Grace Parisi

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Published on

7 Celebratory Seafood Recipes for Spinach Day

You’ve heard it before: spinach is a nutrient powerhouse. It’s a great source of vitamins A, C, and K, as well as magnesium and folate. Better yet, a single cup of fresh spinach is rich in carotenoids that help prevent age-related vision diseases, as well as heart disease and certain cancers. [1, 2]


Spinach is also a culinary workhorse, an incredibly versatile vegetable, and an easy way to add brightness, freshness, and nutrition to a meal. To celebrate National Spinach Day, we’ve compiled our best recipes that use this amazing green. Try cooking spinach with your share, and your body will thank you.

Creole-Spiced White Fish with Cheesy Grits
Creole-Spiced White Fish with Cheesy Grits

This low-effort, 20-minute meal is deeply savory and satisfyingly rich. It begs for a green accompaniment, which is why you’ll stir a tightly packed cup of baby spinach into the cheesy grits.

Pan-Seared Lingcod with Pistachios and Brown Butter, Garlicky Mashed Potatoes, and Sautéed Spinach
Pan-Seared Lingcod with Pistachios and Brown Butter, Garlicky Mashed Potatoes, and Sautéed Spinach

Delicate, mild fish is balanced by sweet pistachios in nutty brown butter, garlic potatoes, and sautéed spinach. This result is greater than the sum of its parts, and the parts are pretty great.

Steamed Halibut with Scallion Butter and Pistachios
Steamed Halibut with Scallion Butter and Pistachios

Don’t let the butter fool you: this simple one-pot dish is packed with vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats, as well as flavor. It comes together in minutes and is so much greater than the sum of its very few parts. Simmering wine wilts the spinach and steams the fish, which is bathed in fragrant scallion butter. It takes more time to describe it than it does to prepare. Top it all off with nutty, toasted pistachios and serve with crusty bread to soak up all the luscious pan juices.

Greek Orzo with Salmon, Feta, and Spinach
Greek Orzo with Salmon, Feta, and Spinach

We’re here to debunk the popular nutrition myth that frozen vegetables contain fewer nutrients than fresh. In fact, frozen veggies are a great way to mainline nutrition, especially when you don’t have time to make a trip to the store or it's the dead of winter and vegetables are not in season. Our Greek Orzo with Salmon, Feta, and Spinach tastes fresh thanks to the bright, acidic flavors of citrus, feta, and briny olives, but comes together mostly with ingredients from the pantry and freezer. Staying healthy doesn’t have to be complicated.

Creamy Salmon Pasta with Spinach and Herbs
Creamy Salmon Pasta with Spinach and Herbs

This quick recipe makes no compromises on flavor. Here, spinach balances the richness of the cream and salmon, transforming an elegant weeknight supper into a hearty and nutritionally varied meal.

Kerala-Style Fish Curry With Tomatoes And Spinach
Kerala-Style Fish Curry With Tomatoes And Spinach

Fresh and aromatic, this flavorful recipe is a one-pot wonder, drawing on an impactful set of spices and herbs as well as fresh tomato and coconut milk. Stir in the spinach at the end for an added boost.

Miso-Ginger Glazed Salmon Rice Bowl
Miso-Ginger Glazed Salmon Rice Bowl

Miso, soy sauce, fresh ginger, and a splash of rice vinegar come together in a flavor-packed, sweet-and-sticky sauce used to glaze delicate salmon. Sushi rice and mild, sautéed spinach are the perfect accompaniments.

Grace Parisi

Grace Parisi

Culinary Director Grace Parisi is a cook, writer and cookbook author. Formerly the Senior Test Kitchen Editor at Food & Wine Magazine and Executive Food Director at TimeInc Books, her work has appeared in Cooking Light, Health, O Magazine, Epicurious, Fitness, Today, Serious Eats, Martha Stewart, and many more. She’s the author of more than 6 books, among them The Portlandia Cookbook and Get Saucy, which was nominated for a James Beard award for Best Single Subject Cookbook.