Have You Tried Bluefish?

You know you’re a Cape Coddder if…. You LIKE bluefish!

Bluefish is in season locally from June 1 through the fall until the Massachusetts quota is harvested. Bluefish are taken by hook-and-line as well as by strike net. Strike nets get set out in a circle, and then the boat runs in a circle to scare the fish into the net, which is hauled back immediately. The fish are harvested alive. Bluefish are prolific, and their population levels are healthy. They provide an increasingly important income source for local fishermen as the market has grown and more consumers and chefs are turning to bluefish for its great flavor.

Bluefish is one of those polarizing fish. I know some people who won’t touch it and others who only use it for bait. Bluefish can be tricky to work with because it can have a strong flavor. I have found for the best flavor, you must clean the fish as soon as it’s caught and cook it soon after that.

Me? I love bluefish. I can remember my mom’s recipe from when I was a little girl. It was simple: Take a brown paper grocery bag and cut it to fit on a cookie sheet. Place the FRESH cleaned bluefish fillet directly on the brown paper and cover with crumbled Ritz crackers and lemon and pepper. Bake until the cracker crust is slightly browned and the fish is opaque. That’s it! I have a similar recipe I do on the grill, with out the crackers… or brown paper… Just a little lemon and fresh ground pepper.

Here is another slightly more adventurous bluefish recipe from Chef Barton Seaver and our friends at the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance you might want to try:

Thank you to the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance for the information in this article! If you want to support our local fishermen, please think about attending their annual Hooker’s Ball on August 6th!