Summer Schedule:
Thursdays The Historic City Market 9am – 5pm (downtown Roanoke)
Fridays South County Seasonal Market 9am – 5pm (on 419 at the Shoppes at West Village)
Saturdays Grandin Farmers Market 8am – 12pm (Behind the Co-Op)
Dear Friends,
Last week we hit the trifecta…
3 days of rain in a row! I want to thank everyone that came out to the markets this past weekend. Hey, at least it wasn’t rainy AND cold. I’m completely used to being in all the elements (rain, wind, snow, hot sun) during the course of a season. But I understand it’s not easy for everyone else to brave the elements. Thank you again for supporting the farmers markets even when it’s not all rainbows and puppies.
Going to be another brief newsletter this time as we continue on cruise control. Moving right along! Gearing up for trip 8.6 (year 8, week 6). We are getting into the heart of the season coming up in June. That means fresh Shrimp and a wide variety of local fish.
Big news in the section below for all your Crabmeat lovers…
All About Seafood
*Remember when placing an order, it helps to mention a “Second Choice” in the comments section. That way, if your first choice doesn’t come in, I can substitute it for your first choice*
The big news is…Fresh Crabmeat is back! Picked from NC Blue Crabs. Prices are up slightly from last season, but they actually aren’t as high as they were even a week ago. This is coming after a shortage of Blue Crabs on the East Coast. For several months, the crab houses in Carolina were importing crabs from Venezuela to pick for Lump and Jumbo Lump Crabmeat. Now we are back to the ones we know and love – fresh, NC Blue Crab.
All the rain we got last week, they got it too on the coast. That is going to affect our depth (quantities). Still a decent week for local variety. No Flounder this week, been very slow the last two weeks.
Striped Bass AKA Rockfish keep popping up in different states along the East Coast. The ones this week will most likely be from Maryland where their season is still going. Season is currently closed in NC, but different states open their seasons at different times up and down the coast so there are more opportunities to get this delicious, meaty fish!
We’ve been in touch with a Shrimper from Florida who will be trucking fresh Shrimp from the Atlantic ocean to us this week. The truck should arrive in time for me to snag on Wednesday. At this point, we don’t know how many Shrimp are going to be on the truck, but I should have enough to satisfy our market orders. Also don’t know what size they will be yet. We’ll just have to see when the truck comes in. Feel free to order though! I’m going to list them on the website as 21-25 count tails, but that could change. NC Shrimp are close to coming.
The Scallops we have been getting are top of the line! Dry-Pack means they do NOT go through the chemical preservative bath. They WON’T shrink up when you cook them. Pure Scallop! NomNom.
Will also have Halibut from Nova Scotia and Salmon from the Faroe Islands.
Salmon – Our Salmon from the Faroe Islands is raised under superior conditions and is one of our most popular fish each week. They come from a boutique supplier (meaning they don’t produce so many so the price tends to be slightly higher). Only four companies in the world are allowed to distribute Faroe Island Salmon, and we use a company called Bakkafrost. Almost everyone of my customers prefers the taste of the Faroe Island Salmon, fatty and rich. This is a very good fish on the grill, in the oven, or in the pan. Please learn more about our Salmon here.
Dry-Pack Sea Scallops – From New Bedford, Massachusetts. The Sea Scallops are large – about 12 Scallops to the pound. The Dry-Pack Sea Scallops DO NOT go through a chemical preservative bath. That chemical bath (also called a Wet-Pack) helps preserve their shelf life and pumps them up with extra water weight. They shrink down when you cook them, though. Grocery stores like them because they are cheaper and they have longer to sell them. I don’t even carry wet pack. Dry-Pack all the way! They are very easy to pan sear in butter and lemon juice for a 3-5 minutes each side until golden brown on medium-high heat. Garlic goes well with them if you like garlic
Lump/Jumbo Lump Crabmeat – This Crabmeat is fresh and not pasteurized in a tin can from an Asian Red Crab. It’s the real thing – real North Carolina Blue Crabs! They come in one pound containers and make great crab cakes! The Jumbo Lump sells for $30/lb at the dock itself, and can go as high as $37/lb for Jumbo Lump in Baltimore. So, $33/lb to buy fresh from me, in town is a great deal!
Recipe: Mix together in bowl: 1 egg, half cup Mayonnaise (or slightly less), tablespoon of Dijon Mustard, teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce, 1 lb Crabmeat.
Patty them out into desired size. I usually make 6-7 which are kind of small but they cook more evenly. Sautee in butter in a pan on medium heat for about 4-5 minutes each side. Add more butter if needed during cooking process. They will be golden brown as shown here. For years I used a few crushed Saltine crackers to hold it together, but it’s actually better if you don’t. Going a lighter on the Mayo helps with not having to use crackers. Easy as can be.
Grouper – Another great grill fish! If grilling, I like to season the Grouper, the place skin side down on the grill. Without flipping them! Some people like to finish off the top of the Grouper using a broiler. Especially if the fillets are thick. A general rule to follow is to grill your fish for 20 minutes per inch of thickness. Another way (especially if you’re from the South like me, and love to fry things), is to remove the skin, cut them into chunks, and coat and fry them. Always good to have a very sharp knife in the kitchen when working with seafood
Red Drum – Red Drum is out there. Very plentiful actually. But, it’s a matter of regulation. Fishermen are required to have a certain amount of Flounder for each Red Drum they catch. While there may be plenty of Red Drum, it’s not landable without a minimum amount of Flounder. They are coming in, but not in large quantities. I really like Red Drum so this is personal! I’m on a mission to bring them back. A skinless fillet and made famous for blackening down in New Orleans. Also called Redfish.
Striped Bass AKA “Rockfish” – A mild fish with a somewhat thicker meat. Not quite as big as Grouper, but thicker than most. You’ve probably seen pictures of your friends catching these at the lake. It’s Virginia’s state saltwater fish. A versatile fish that can be cooked almost any way! One of the meatier fish we will have available this week.
Pink Snapper – Similar in taste, texture to other types of NC Snapper. Pink Snapper are somewhat small fish, about the same size fillet as a Vermilion or Yellowtail Snapper. A mild, white-meat fish that is great in a hot pan. Fried or pan-seared. I usually season my Snapper with Cajun spices, or something Creole. Then, saute the fillets in a pan with butter on medium/medium high heat for about 5 minutes each side. Who doesn’t love a Snapper?
Black Seabass – Skinless, white-meat fillets. Very mild. Thin and delicate, very easy to pan sear for a couple of minutes each side in butter and seasoning. One of the easiest fish to cook in my opinion since they are thin, skinless, and don’t take long to cook.
Halibut- Thick, white meat fillets from Nova Scotia Canada. A very mild fish, and easy to pan sear or broil in the oven. A delicate, flaky meat with the skin on. Easy to take the skin off before cooking, or it will peel easily after cooking. As with most of my fish, especially mild white meat fish, I like to pan sear in butter and lemon juice. Check out our friend Jesse filleting a huge 100+ lb Halibut at the dock.
Yellowfin Tuna – We can get fresh, whole Yellowfin Tuna from our suppliers out of Miami during weeks that we don’t have them locally. The Yellowfin is caught in South American countries such as Panama, Ecuador, etc. and almost always in the Pacific Ocean. Our Tuna is always sashimi grade. 2+ to be exact. I like to pan sear my Tuna for about 45-60 seconds on each side, on high heat. Depending on how thick they are. You can definitely leave them rare in the middle if you like.
Chilean Seabass – This fish literally melts in your mouth. Skinless, thick, white meat fish that comes from Chile and are vacuum sealed and frozen as 8oz portions. Literally one of the best fish I’ve ever had. They used to be highly unregulated about 15-20 years ago, but have come a long way since. Check out this informative FAQ. Here’s another article I found informative – From “Take A Pass” to “Take a Bite”.
Order online on Mondays and save 2.5% on your entire order! The tax portion of the order form is how much you are saving since sales tax is calculated at 2.5%.
You can still order Tuesday till midnight, but won’t receive the discount. Also, orders placed after midnight on Tuesday will go to the next week! Then it’s first come first serve at the markets, so come early!
Charlie
Your Local Seafood Man
Follow this link to our selection page. Fill up your cart and checkout, it’s that easy! No credit card required. Our selection is not in this newsletter! It is now on our website.
