What this book is all about

A collection of recipes and stories encompassing culture,  and the beauty of sustainable seafood. Each recipe threads the past and present together to demystify seafood for institutional and home chefs. 

Driven by California Sea Grant and project partners, with contributions from San Diego historians, fishing families, artists, scientists, at-home chefs, and celebrity chefs like Davin Waite, Travis Swikard, Natalie Sawyer, and Drew Deckman, this has been a collaborative local-community effort from the start.

The production and design stage of the book is complete!

Now we ask you, San Diego’s community, for your support in publishing and printing San Diego Seafood: Then and Now. Let’s get this celebration of multicultural heritage and seafood into San Diego’s kitchens by early 2025! 

What's in the book?

The cookbook is divided into 9  chapters spanning San Diego's history with seafood.

1. Demystifying Local Seafood
2. The Kumeyaay: Original Stewards of Our Lands and Sea
3. Spanish: Colonial Cuisine in Alta California
4. Chinese Fishing Community in San Diego
5. Japanese Community in San Diego
6. Portuguese Community in San Diego
7. Italian Community in San Diego
8. Mexican Fishing Community: Cannery Lives Along the Waterfront
9. San Diego's Multicultural Seafood Community

First Printing & Giving Back

After covering printing costs, campaign fund proceeds will go to three San Diego-based charitable causes that represent themes throughout the book:

• San Diego Fishermen's Working Group 
• MAKE Projects
• Indigenous Futures Institute, UC San Diego

Why a Local Cookbook?

Providing this book to the San Diego community will elevate awareness and appreciation of California’s sustainable and nutritious seafood and its contributions to our community's health, well-being, and sense of place.

What’s more, this book will give back. Complimentary copies will be gifted to institutional kitchens in San Diego- including hospitals and schools- and proceeds will be donated to the three local charities listed above.

Other Ways You Can Help

Share it! Go to social and tell everyone how excited you are about this book.