Lionfish, The New Bahamian Food!

Altantic Lion Fish - NOAA image

If you are a fisherman, or know of anyone who is a fisherman, chances are you have either heard or seen the Lionfish for yourself. For those of you who have never heard of the Lionfish allow me to fill you in.

Quite simply, these marine monsters live on our reefs and spend their days and nights eating whatever they can fit into their mouth, which means for us that soon our corals reefs will be bone dry of grouper, snapper, grunts, crawfish and crabs. Think of how much of your diet is based on these animals and envision one day life without them. As hard as it is to stomach this fact, the sooner we embrace it the sooner we solve the problem.
 The solution is easy; Lionfish are yummy to eat so let's have a glorious feast! Already there are restaurants in the Bahamas, including Sip Sip in Harbour Island, that have Lionfish on their menu.

I know you are all excited to save our reefs, but before we start inviting our friends and family over for a Lionfish feast, lets first learn more about these amazing creatures.

 Lionfish resemble a lion with their 'mane-like' fins. They come from the Pacific Ocean and were imported for their stunning beauty to become aquarium showpieces. After devouring all the other fish in the tank, they were soon regarded as pests. It is a popular theory that lionfish owners decided to get rid of their pets by releasing them into the Atlantic Ocean, where they now thrive. Studies show it is Common Lionfish, Pterois Volitans, that made it to our Bahama shores from Florida.

Now a predator in the Atlantic waters, Lionfish are eating our fish supply at astronomical proportions. They prey on young fish and smaller marine animals, which means we will be experiencing shortages in the near future, especially if we do not act now. Reef Foundation, a non-profit organization based in the US, suggests that eighty Lionfish can eat fifty thousand other fish in one year!

In addition, Lionfish are reproducing fiends. Our warm waters allow them to spawn every month year round, releasing 30,000 eggs at a time! Just ask your local fisherman how fast they are multiplying!

Therefore we must eat quickly; the goal is to eliminate Lionfish, before they eliminate all the seafood we love to eat. The race is on and it is an easy one to win. Believe it or not, Lionfish are incredibly easy to catch, clean, cook and are delicious to eat! Daily, more and more people are 'catching' on to this secret.
 Some people might not agree with me. They will jump right out of the chair and argue that Lionfish are deadly and should be left alone. There is nothing farther from the truth.

Although the spines (not the flesh) of Lionfish contain venom, unless you are really careless handling the fish there is absolutely nothing to worry about.
 Even so, being stung is painful but short-lived. Immersed in very hot but non-scalding water, like that of the bilge from a boat engine, the pain can last anywhere from fifteen minutes to three hours. There could be some swelling, dizziness or nausea. Not bad. Lastly, if a spine does get lodged into the skin get it removed professionally to make sure there is no piece of the spine left in the skin.

So how easy is it to kill lionfish? Lionfish consider themselves 'top dogs' of the ocean and barely move as you try to kill them. Therefore, spearing Lionfish is extremely easy. The best type of spear to use is a three-prong. You can also help out by going to www.reef.org and entering any research information such as body length, location, date, temperature and depth. It will help us to better understand and manage the Lionfish populations.

Filleting lionfish is even easier! Cut around the edge of the skin and it easily peals right off! The best technique is to lay the Lionfish flat and keep it that way as you fillet, and the spines stay towards the ground as there are no spines on the side fin, only the top and bottom fins.

And for those readers who still aren't completely comfortable about the process, you can watch it being done on video at www.lionfishhunter.com.

You can fry, bake, grill and even create a sushi dish out of the Lionfish fillet! Lionfish tastes like a mixture of grouper and chicken, and has a very rich juicy flavour.

Just consider; "You are saving the world with every delicious bite!!!"