Eat Lionfish, Save The Reefs
We humans are pretty good at eating fish until near-extinction; these days, we're constantly inundated with information about collapsing populations and warnings about what we shouldn't eat. Well here is one fish you absolutely should eat: lionfish. In fact, the goal is to eat it to extinction, at least in the Atlantic, where it is invasive and currently devouring reef fish populations.
The simple solution, of course, would be to get humans to develop a taste for the fish, which is exactly what the Key Largo-based Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) is trying to do. In the Bahamas, where the waters are inundated with lionfish, several chefs have gotten creative, frying it, baking it and slicing it into ceviche.
"We don't have them in the Keys yet, but as soon as the current brings them around the Gulf, we'll get them. They're already along the whole east coast, Deerfield and north," said REEF's executive director Lisa Mitchell.
The problem may be working around federal regulations. Chefs in the Bahamas are currently supplied with lionfish by divers who spear the fish, according to Mitchell. It's easier to get restrictions loosened to allow for spearfishing of lionfish when dealing with a small island government; the US government promises many more layers of bureaucracy, which is one reason why it may take a while longer before we see the fish on restaurant menus in Florida. They won't respond to a hook and line; the fish need to be speared or trapped.
Lionfish are popular in aquariums because of their distinctive beautiful spines. But, like in the case of most exotic pets (see also: pythons, iguanas), they grow too big and often end up dumped into the ocean by exasperated owners.
In the water, the fish delivers a sting with some venom, but according to Mitchell, the flesh is completely safe to eat. "There's a sac of poison on either side of the dorsal spine," Mitchell said. "All you have to do is fillet it and make sure you don't spear yourself."
This has got all of the current "in" buzzwords covered: you could eat fish (healthy!) caught in nearby waters (local!) while helping to save the reefs (green!). So here's hoping the group can get some local chefs to step up to the plate.
REEF: Lionfish Research Program [Official Site]
Lionfish devastate Florida's native shoals [The Times]
Photo: jrotunda85/flickr
Comments
I wouldn't try filleting a lionfish on my own - but you can get scorpionfish (a catch-all category for the beautiful, venomous fish) served a number of ways at Marumi Sushi.
www.marumisushi.com
Posted by: John L. | January 8, 2009 09:09 AM