Week of October 24, 2022 Small World Seafood Update

Hello, everybody!! Is it just me or did anyone else just have the feeling in their gut that we (and I mean the Phillies) were going to win Sunday night somehow? Or that Harper would smash a homer one run down in the 8th? I mean, honestly, San Diego, you deserve to lose just for throwing strikes to the guy. What a bunch of bananaheads. Whatever...4 more wins, baby!! 

Okay, anyway, onto the fish sitch. So, just as some seasons end for certain types of fish such as halibut and tuna, others begin. The migratory cycle that brings black seabass, striped bass, fluke and others up from the Carolinas to Long Island and the Cape in the spring is completing its loop as these fish have made their way back down throughout the summer. 

The key thing here is that while we love black bass, striped bass and fluke for the summer months, the reality is that as they cross our area, they are in full migration mode and are, consequently, not very meaty. Would you eat a skinny fish? Not me. But now, they are just coming into the estuaries of Virginia and the Carolinas and eating and eating and fattening up which means more meat on the bone and fattier meaning more flavor. These 'summer' fish are truly better in the winter months. And cheaper. What a win.

The first feature this week we will feature black seabass fillet. This fish is the favorite of almost every chef I know. It has a beautiful skin with a crisscross pattern. It has a firm sweet meat. It cooks up incredibly quickly and it plates up in such a gorgeous way. Now, black bass gets graded by size and we usually  look for an intermediary size that generates a nice 5-6oz fillet. Sometimes, the cost difference on the different sizes can be so large that we can find value somewhere else. In this case, the smaller fish are considerably cheaper so that's what we will go with. Hey, it's all about value right now, people. These fillets will be closer to 4oz each but just as flavorful and meaty. 

One more thing about black bass fillets. The fillets are skin on and boneless meaning the skeletal bone is removed. They do have a few pinbones that remain. Now, first of all, don't freak out. Please. We don't remove the pinbones in these fish because it would take us forever to do the quantity we supply to you guys and we don't want to charge more for that. So, there are two easy solutions. First, check out my video on how to make a v-cut to remove pinbones. It literally will take you 5 seconds to do it yourself with a paring knife and you will learn a useful skill. Or, cook the fish and afterward, the pinbones will slide out easily. Whichever you chose, don't be afraid. It'll be worth it, I promise. And at $13 a pound versus the $15 and up it usually cost, I mean, come on!!

Also on the menu this week will be fresh fluke fillet. Fluke is our area's version of flounder even though the fish is more related to halibut than it is to soles we more commonly know as flounder. Either way, this fluke is also from further south and is glistening right now. Just beautiful stuff. Some of you took my suggestion of stuffing your trout a couple of weeks back with a fish cake. Well, how about a stuffed flounder that way too!!! A nice butter sauce to top off and yum!!!!

Salmon this week is still Faroe Island gorgeousness. Sushi grade, melts in your mouth good roasted. Once you go Faroe, you'll know...

Littleneck clams are the shellfish of the week. Oysters will be Northern Belles from PEI. Also, by popular demand, we managed to get hold of more of that gorgeous frozen Barramundi fillet. Everyone who had it raved and rightly so. This is no chem added, wild barramundi fillet that is way tastier than the farmed version you see in fancy supermarkets. Individually vac packed too. All the other usual suspects will be around as well so get your seafood on!!

Fun time of the year. We have a lot of cool stuff in the works for next month with Thanksgiving coming before we know it.

And that's it for today. I know, I know, lots of words. But, hey, lots of info too, no?

Look out for the order form Thursday at 9am.

Peace

Robert Amar
Small World Seafood
Owner