- Fish food should contain essential nutrients like amino acids, fatty acids, and carbohydrates to provide energy, structure, and aid in digestion. High quality fish food will contain fish meal, shrimp meal, squid meal, brine shrimp, soybean meal, spirulina algae, and whole wheat as ingredients. Some high quality fish foods recommended are HBH Betta Bites, veggie flakes, cichlid flakes, goldfish flakes, tropical flakes, and African cichlid sinking pellets.