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Abalone Shellfish found in the coastal waters of the United States, should be cooked either very quickly or very slowly. Lends itself to Asian preparations, particularly Japanese. Anchovy A staple of Mediterranean cookery, fresh anchovies are simply cooked with olive oil, garlic and lemon. Usually found salted or preserved in oil for use in sauces, salads and meat dishes. Barracuda Found mostly in S.E. Asia and Northern Australia, can be fried, steamed or curried. Serve with noodles or steamed greens. Barramundi A round fish used to great effect in Australian cooking, very versatile and easy to cook. Snapper would make a suitable alternative. Bass Sea Bass, Stone Bass, Black Bass and Striped Bass. From the south coast of Britain to the Bay of Biscay and Chesapeake Bay in the States, whatever the variety it is a wonderful fish. Filleted and cooked skin side down or baked whole in good olive oil, keep it simple. Blowfish A notorious fish associated with Japanese food and sudden death! Certain varieties are known as Fugu and are prepared by highly skilled Japanese chefs. Bream Red Sea Bream, Black Bream or Porgy as it is known in the US and Daurade in France. Can be baked whole or filleted and poached or grilled. Brill Underrated flat fish known as the poor relation to Turbot. Fillet the fish and keep the bones for stock. Do not overcook and serve in a similar way to Sole, Turbot or Halibut. Carp A favourite of the Chinese, French and Germans. Caviar The salted hard roe of the Sturgeon. Famed equally for its price and exclusivity as well as its taste there are three main types; Beluga, Osetr and Sevruga. Eat it on toast or blinis, nothing else is required. Char Native to the North Atlantic, cook it in the same way as Salmon Trout. Best of all, hire a boat on Lake Windermere and cast a fly a unique experience. Clams Cod Excellent coldwater fish in season from June to February. Very versatile, can be steamed, baked, poached or pan fried. Coley Also known as Saithe and often used in fish soup. Use as a cheap alternative to Cod and Haddock. Crab From Brown to Blue Swimmer, Spider to Snow, whatever the variety they are used in many countries, each with their own signature dish. Try Maryland Crab cakes, Singapore Black Pepper Crab or simple English Potted Crab with toast. Crawfish Sometimes known as Rock Lobster and can be cooked in the same way as Lobster although only the tail meat is used. Crayfish A freshwater crustacean with a similar body to a Lobster although much smaller. The main ingredient for the classic sauce nantua with Sole and Salmon Dab Small, flat fish similar to Plaice. Cook them whole and serve with herb butter or deep fry and serve with Asian vegetables, ginger and chilli. Eel - Elver Unlike other fish, Eels migrate from freshwater to spawn in the Sargasso Sea. Try smoked eel with a simple salad of chicory, lardoons of bacon and croutons. Flounder Also known as Fluke, a flat fish with little appeal. Grouper A warm water fish also known as Coral Trout. Firm textured flesh which is suitable for recipes using Snapper. Gurnard An essential in fish soups, there are three types; Red, Grey and Yellow which are found in the Mediterranean and around the British Isles. Haddock A member of the Cod family, they are wonderful when naturally smoked, particularly the Scottish Finnan. Smaller than Cod and less flaky, cook the fillets whole. Hake Much underrated in the UK but widely used by the Spanish and Portugese, try it cooked in wine with tomatoes, saffron and oregano. Halibut Excellent quality flat fish that grows to a huge size, wild Halibut are available May to March. Poach in white wine with mushrooms or mussels, do not overcook as it has a tendency for dryness. Herring Found across the North Atlantic, suitable for pickling or frying in oatmeal as Scottish recipes recommend. Kippers can be poached in bay scented milk or cooked in butter. John Dory Also known as St.Pierre, an unusually large head means the fish is best filleted. Although the ratio of flesh to bone is quite poor it is, nonetheless delicious. Langoustines Also known as Dublin Bay Prawns and Norwegian Lobster. Forget Scampi, just cook them as part of a ‘fruit de mer’ and serve with lemon mayonnaise or tossed with tagliatelle, good olive oil, garlic and basil. Lobster For many the epitome of luxurious eating, Native Lobsters are found in the coastal waters around the UK with the season running from April to November. Stick with classic recipes such as Americaine and Thermidor then use the shells for stock, soup or a rich and bright coloured oil to use for dressings. Mackerel Silver-blue skin, rich in Omega-3 and taste it works well with piquant flavours-try it with beetroot, vinaigrette or slow cooked onions. Very good pickled with onions and lemon rind. Monkfish An unattractive specimen, its head accounts for half its body weight but the meaty flesh is great for cooking with. Monkfish can withstand strong flavours such as garlic, chilli, saffron, rosemary and oregano. Mullet Red Mullet is best in the summer months and cooked with the flavours of the Mediterranean. Take the scales off carefully then bake them whole with some fennel, lemon and olive oil. Grey Mullet from the Cornish coast is best during late summer and early autumn. Mussels Steamed open with wine and garlic or Asian flavours, mussels make a wonderful starter or light main course. Rope grown mussels tend to be meatier and cleaner than dredged ones, remove the beard and cook very simply and quickly-eat at once. New Zealand Greenlip Mussels are larger and suitable for baking or steaming. Octopus Octopus benefits from being cooked either very quickly or very slowly. Unless you have some large rocks to beat it against like the Greeks try dipping it in boiling stock then shocking it in iced water three times before gently braising in wine, olive oil and tomato. Oysters Native Oysters are generally regarded as the best with the season running from September to April. Try them raw with lemon juice, a little cayenne pepper, finely chopped shallots and a glass of dry white to wash them down. Pilchards Pilchards and Sardines are one of the same with the latter being smaller and younger. Found off the South Coast and the Mediterranean. Plaice Covered in orange spots (the brighter, the fresher) it lacks the quality of Soles and is best eaten as fresh as possible as the flavour tends to fade with age. Pollack
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