21 replies to this topic

[WreckWench]

Have you eaten lionfish before? If so how was it prepared? Was it good? Would you eat it again? Where did you eat it? Did you catch it yourself?

Sound off in this fun and entertaining thread...if you dare...

and let us know if you think Lionfish are the OTHER white meat??? Or at least the other 'white' fish!!!

[Mermaid Lady]

Haven't yet but I would like to try some. Sounds yummy!

[TexasDiver]

Haven't yet but I would like to try some. Sounds yummy!

They are yummy! We caught and ate them during my trip to Roatan. Pan fried, they were light, delicate, flaky, and not at all fishy tasting.

BTW, perhaps I'm doing something wrong, but with my new iPad2 I can't post on any forum ... not only here but on other similar bulletin board type sites.

[shadragon]

Lionfish is light and very tasty. Simpler preparations work best. Poaching with lemon juice.

All we have to do is convince the Chinese it is more of an aphrodisiac than shark fin soup.

[Landlocked Dive Nut]

All we have to do is convince the Chinese it is more of an aphrodisiac than shark fin soup.

I like the solution you came up with!

[ScubaTex]

All of us on the 2011 Mayagiana were treated to lionfish, through the efforts of WreckWench, Orcaman, and ScubaVazz. Two of them received the badge of pain and swelling after being 'stung' by their prey. We were fortunate to have a chef onboard, who cleaned and cooked them for us. While the lionfish is light & tender, it has no taste. Personally, I'd rather have a fish with taste. What's the point of eating salmon, if it didn't have its characteristic taste.

Bill

[Greg@ihpil]

Better yet,Get the Food channel to do a bit on it..It's the NEW MCfish,I don't think anyone would notice...just sayin

[TexasDiver]

Lionfish is light and very tasty. Simpler preparations work best. Poaching with lemon juice.

All we have to do is convince the Chinese it is more of an aphrodisiac than shark fin soup.

That is an excellent idea! SD needs to recruit or sponsor a China dive club to meet SD dive club at a spot where lion fish in the Caribbean are out of control. I'll go.

[Landlocked Dive Nut]

From my Undercurrent magazine received yesterday:

A New Lionfish Hazard to Worry About

For a couple of years, conservationists have been saying that one way to reduce the population of the destructive renegade lionfish on Caribbean reefs is to spear it and eat it. Maybe not. Conservationists in St. Maarten are warning islanders not to eat lionfish after November tests found a naturally-occurring toxin in its flesh. Those findings deal a blow to the island’s efforts to contain the spread of the venomous predator. Following the lead of other Caribbean islands, St. Maarten had hoped to promote the species as batterfried or grilled entrees to slow their spread. But Tadzio Bervoets, chief of St. Maarten’s Nature Foundation, said nearly half the football-sized lionfish captured in local waters were found to have a biotoxin that can lead to ciguatera poisoning, which has serious symptoms. Ciguatera poisoning is caused by eating some subtropical and tropical fish predators, including grouper, snapper and barracuda, which live by reefs and accumulate the toxin in their flesh from eating smaller fish that graze on poisonous algae. Human symptoms are abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, tingling and numbness. Most patients recover in a few days. Some never recover. The worst-case scenarios are paralysis or death. No one has become sick from eating lionfish in St. Maarten, but more than a dozen cases of ciguatera poisoning are reported each year from people eating barracuda and jacks. St. Maarten’s waters have long suffered from high levels of ciguatoxin, so Bervoets said the test results on lionfish were not a complete surprise. Nonetheless, “this means that we cannot safely promote lionfish as an edible species” in St. Maarten. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration have had no official reports of illness associated with the consumption of lionfish. “But in endemic areas of ciguatera, toxins have been detected at levels exceeding FDA guidance, and could cause illness if consumed,” said FDA spokesman Douglas Karas. “The Virgin Islands is one of those areas.” In recent months, the U.S. agency has collected more than 186 lionfish from the waters around the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. Of these, scientists have tested 74 fish to date, with 26 percent confirmed to contain ciguatoxins at levels exceeding FDA guidance. William Coles, chief of environmental education with the U.S. Virgin Islands Division of Fish and Wildlife, said fishermen there know well where ciguatoxins accumulate, and avoid catching fish in those areas. “So we have about the same level of concern with lionfish that we do with any other fish, but it’s still a major concern.” Across the Caribbean, it remains to be seen exactly how much impact fishing and marketing of lionfish can have. For now, it’s the only hope in sight. “They are definitely multiplying,” said Bervoets. “That’s why it’s such a shame we can’t eat them here.”

[Greg@ihpil]

Tammy,what was interesting in your information.I wasn't aware of the toxins in Grouper & Snapper.Two fish I'll have here & away.They must be in the lighter side of toxin's.Truely a large impact to the battle.....Unless we arm every diver with a spear gun,which is not reccomended..Plan C ??

[Landlocked Dive Nut]

I'll carry my lionfish-killing spear anyplace in the Caribbean that allows it, and I will continue to kill lionfish and try to feed them to eels, groupers, sharks, or whatever else shows an interest. If Wenchie wants me to put big kills into her catch-bag, I'll do that.

But I'll only ever have a single bite-sized taste....because I don't really like to eat fish! Growing up in a desert will do that to ya....

[WreckWench]

We had a number of delicious Lionfish in Belize this past week that we caught! And I am happy to report no problems except for the fish of course.

[Landlocked Dive Nut]

Excellent! I wonder if there is a report out there somewhere that will tell us exactly where the high levels of poisonous algae are in the Caribbean....or if the levels fluctuate?

[Jo Canuck]

Haven't yet but I would like to try some. Sounds yummy!

BTW, perhaps I'm doing something wrong, but with my new iPad2 I can't post on any forum ... not only here but on other similar bulletin board type sites.

Had the same problem with my iPad and a friend suggested" there was probably an app for that "

Try using the app Tapatalk. It was a few dollars but now I can reply to the discussion. Good Luck