For the Love of Panfish

Friday, June 25th, 2010 | posted by mike

What is a panfish? If you’re a Michigander you’d be talking about fish like bluegill, sunfish, pumpkin seed, crappie, perch, white bass, trout. I think that any fresh or saltwater fish that is small enough to fry in a pan is a panfish. Sardines, croakers, porgy, smelt, butterfish, small snappers, fresh anchovies, bronzini, black bass—so many delicious little fish that are just right for a quick fry. Whole small fish or fillets sizzling in the pan searing in the moisture and flavor with a sweet, crispy crust.

Summertime is panfish time! Time to catch a mess of bluegill or perch, dip em, dredge em, fry em up, nothing’s better. Vacation time on Martha’s Vineyard with a fresh catch (or trip to the fish market) of small flounder, porgy or snapper bluefish in the pan—instant memories.

But isn’t frying unhealthy and messy? Won’t the house smell for weeks? If you use a mono-unsaturated fat like olive oil or mix of polyunsaturated and mono-unsaturated like peanut oil or vegetable-canola blens, you’re only adding a few extra calories and an occasional fried fish meal is still a healthful meal. You would be amazed at how much restaurant foods are cooked in the pan because chefs go for flavor first, so you shouldn’t hold back at home every once in a while. As far as frying being messy, it’s really not so bad, expecially if you’re pan frying with a smaller amount of oil as opposed to deep-frying. Smelling upthe house? Frying good, fresh fish smells great while cooking. Turn on your hood fan (open the windows in the summer) and there’s really not much of a lingering odor. We do quite a bit of frying at our house and unless our friends are just being polite, there’s no “fry smell” problem.

This weekend we’ll have lots of goodies for the pan. gorgeous Monterey Sardines, porgies, bronzini, smelt, lake perch and lots more. Fire up the skillet and fry up some panfish tonight!

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The WHOLE Fish (and nothing but the fish)

Thursday, June 17th, 2010 | posted by Monahan's

Ever prepare a whole grilled bronzini or a whole steamed walleye or black sea bass with ginger garlic scallions and maybe some black bean sauce? How about a whole baked snapper Vera Cruz with the famous tomato, green chili sauce or grilled orata stuffed with fennel? Ever taste the sweet, succulence of a whole grilled sardine with coarse salt and a good olive oil, or laid out a whole poached salmon served at room temperature with a cucumber yogurt dill sauce? Would you like to mix up the flavor and textures of a grilled trout with lemons, herbs and wrapped in pancetta? Have you experienced the satisfaction of whacking a whole salt-encrusted roasted bluefish and savored the moist richness trapped inside?

VIDEO: How to Roast a WHOLE Bluefish in Salt.

Pablo Picasso photographed by David Douglas Duncan

Many of us have “bone phobia” and wouldn’t dream of attempting to prepare the whole fish at home, but a little practice with a butter knife or a spoon and soon you’ll see that the fish will almost fillet itself as you gently slide the meat off the bone. If you pull the fins off the small bones under the fins will follow. The rib bones can be a little tricky but just take your time and the meat between them will be worth the effort.

Here are just a few advantages of serving the whole fish:

Flavor. Ever notice the extra flavor of a whole chicken that comes with roasting along with the fat in the bones and skin? It’s the same for fish.

Value. There’s more to a fish than just the two fillets! The head with the cheeks and collar have lots of extra meat.

Health. The fat in fish is where all the good stuff is. The head and belly are the richest parts of the fish—containing the most goodness, flavor and healthful Omega 3 fats. The bones of small whole fish such as smelt, sardine and anchovies are full of calcium.

Beauty. There’s nothing more beautiful or aesthetically pleasing than a simply garnished and perfectly presented whole fish on a platter.

The Ritual. The process of serving and eating the whole fish is like a special celebration. It forces you to take your time and appreciate, enjoy and savor every part of the fish.

Variety of Flavor & Textures. In China, the lady of the house is often served the cheeks because it really is the best part—firm textured, almost like a scallop. All the meat around the head has lots of flavor and texture going on. There is a nice chunk of firm (often darker) meat under the pectoral fin. The belly is always rich and you can work you way back to the leaner tail section.

At Monahan’s we’re always offering our customers lots of whole fish with recipes and ideas for every cooking method. Whether you’ve been eating fish off the bone your whole life or you’re a novice who wants to enhance your quality of life, we’ve got a fish for you. Come in and we’ll make it easy. We’ll even cook up a whole fish out of the case and serve it on a platter for lunch.

See you at the market!

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Small is Beautiful --The advantages of being a small and independent fish market

Friday, June 11th, 2010 | posted by mike

It’s great to be small! Our little fish market and café has developed quite a heart and soul over the past 30 years! Bernie, our manager of 20 years is a major part of this place. His kid, my wife and 3 kids are all involved. Great friends have worked with us while in school or between jobs. We’ve had lots of wonderful customers—many of whom we love like family. We’ve seen generations pass. The little ones who used to play with the fish and come back behind the counter to watch us cut now come in with their own kids. The combination of seasonal fish and seafood along with the interaction with our diverse and interesting customers make this place an amazing spot to be!

The fact that we are a small business has allowed us to build this living, breathing fish world, It’s also given us lot of advantages over the “big guys”

We’ve developed personal relationships with customers—knowing them by name, knowing what they like, calling them up on the  phone if their favorite seasonal items are in like soft shell crabs, shad roe, etc. Knowing they trust us means a lot. These days, people are signing up for our regular Friday Fish Report to keep on top of the great things that we get in each weekend, as well as a seasonal recipe, and often people we haven’t seen before are stopping by because they found us on the internet.

It’s been great having relationships with suppliers—some of whom we have known for 30 years. They know what we want and pick the best for us. Sometimes we’ll even find surprise fish in our shipment that we didn’t even order. They just know we’d want it.

We love being able to “move on a dime.” Need some Spanish bottarga, live sea urchin? We can move quickly—often having it the very next day. Need a great recipe or suggestion? We don’t have to go through three committees to get things done. Being small and right on top of the products and the people enables us to respond fast!

It’s great being in the old-fashioned neighborhood store on the market floor in Kerrytown to be a real part of the community. We take a lot of pride in our work (and hopefully the town is proud of us).

It’s been so rewarding. Going into work with fish piled high, an old Chinese gentleman picking through the trash for stock fish, Mrs. Idzikowki waiting in the parking lot for a pick up order (and her complimentary shrimp cocktail), calling an old friend and customer to let him know the first Copper River Kings are in, helping people to have great success with any recipe…It’s all because being a small and independent fish market makes things a lot more personal, manageable and fun on a local scale.

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Fresh Narragansett Squid are now in season throughout the summer!

Friday, June 4th, 2010 | posted by wendy

Flashing colors of ultramarine, pearl, ruby red, snow white and sky blue— the squids ranging in size from 1 inch to 70 feet are some of the most beautiful, smartest, most fascinating creatures in the sea. Squid have always been a culinary delight all over the world. 80% of this cephalopod is edible—An amazing yield, even for seafood which pound for pound offer considerably more edible ounces than red meat or poultry and the squid’s lean meat is 80% protein which makes it highly nutritious.  The tentacles — delicate and quite decorative — are a substantial portion of the squid’s edible flesh and should be included whenever possible.  Try it.  they’re a special “frilly” treat you won’t want to miss. It’s sweet and delicious and super-versatile. Even its relatively high cholesterol content is more helpful than harmful. Cooking Tips You may grill, broil, bake, blanch, sauté, stir-fry, deep-fry, braise or eat squid raw.  However you prepare it though, remember:  If overcooked, squid can become chewy.  It should be cooked hot and fast, no longer than 3 minutes.  However, if stewed or cooked in sauce, the muscle will break down and become tender again after 20 minutes. Marinating has a lovely effect on squid’s meat, but should not exceed 30 minutes or the meat will soften and acquire a bitter taste (especially if your marinade contains any lemon or vinegar). Fresh or Frozen Squid is the perfect seafood to freeze.  It freezes so beautifully because it has no blood to decompose and affect flavor.  We carry lovely fresh and frozen squid from small boats out of Rhode Island as well as perfectly lovely frozen Monterey squid, the smaller Pacific cousin.  Fresh is great when it’s available but either way, squid is exceptionally delicious and nutritious. About Cleaning… We’ll always clean your squid for you, but if you want to do it yourself, here’s a little video. Grilled Narragansett Squid with Thai Peanut Sauce Long-Braise Squid Tomato Sauce for Pasta Chinese Black Bean Squid Callemares Rellenos (Stuffed Squid) Squid in Anchovy Sauce Monahan’s Squid Salad

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