Red Mullet ? Any ideas for cooking ?

[portinfer]

Hi
I just landed a nice two and a half pound red mullet (under trip reports : Guernsey).

How do you cook them ?

Do they need to be left for the flesh to relax ? How long ?

What is your favourite recipe ?

Cheers
Ed
(I skipped lunch to go diving so it might not last long enough to be cooked...)

 

[Freediver81]

This is a recipe which I usually use for grey mullet (I guess its the same)!

1.gut the fish
2.chop red hot chilli pepers, corriander and garlic together and add a few drops of olive oil on them, cumin, red paprika, salt and white pepper curcum!
3.stuff the stomach with the above mix
4. cut a few stripes along the sides of the fish and stuff some of the stuffing inside as well
5. Add a few stems of rosmarine in the stomach and the stripes on the side!

Put the fish on a teflon tray and put it in the oven!

lovely dish of fish!

 

[Huan]

That is a big Red Mullet, congrats! I concur with freediver81's recipe.
although I find that fish are usually best left for 24 hrs to relax as you put it before cooking.
Oh and if you have any charcoal they are fantastic BBQ'd

 

[Murat]

Fried, BBQ especially with charcoal, electric oven this fish is so good that any recipe works for it.I like to eat them as fresh as possible.

 

[dend76]

Up my way, we generally use the mullet we catch for bait. Anyway, I have a friend from the south who tells me that the best way to cook them is on the grill w/ BBQ sauce - just like you would do a piece of chicken. I don't know about BBQ sauce w/ fish, but he swears by it.

 

[Sealdiver]

Its a good tasting flaky fish so not too much to complicate the flavours
1. slit a few gashes along the side of the fish
2. rub in pretty much what freediver81 said or even just corriander, lemon and chilli
3. put them in a tray wil oil and put it on the webber or the bbq
4. or just grill them on the bbq

Well caught
peace

 

[greendiver]

Considered one of the tastiest fish in Spain!! They are really good...overhere they put them on the grill, little bit of olive oil..bit of salt....there you go...
Enjoy!!!

 

[Shadowkiller]

What do you guys call Red Mullet?

Is it a fish with barbels, or the long grey fish?

see below...

 

[portinfer]

Red eyes, barbels, couple of yellow stripes down the side and erm... sort of red. The grey mullet unfortunately share the same surname but they have to be a totally different fish !

Grey mullet eat unmentionables. Does anyone know a bit of info on red mullet ? What is their behaviour ? I hear they are nocturnal ? What do they eat ?

What sort of size are they usually ?

 

[Murat]

they genreally found on sandy bottoms. Genreally they live in shallow water but can be found at deep as well. Adults here does not get bigger than 200 gr, even 200 gr considered huge and they are very rare fish to find to reagardless the size so they are not common hunt for spearos here. Because of their meat value (one of the most expensive fish) they are over hunted by commercial fishermans with nets or some other ways.

 

[Freediver81]

Oh!!! In arabic this fish is called SULTAN IBRAHIM!!! one of my favourite fish!
we usualy prepare it by seasoning it with, cumin, salt, paprika and a bit lemon juice! After we season it we dip it on both sides with flour and fry it in deep oil! Delicacy!!!
but for a fish as big as you got my first recipe would be more apropriate!

Said

 

[Huan]

Shadowkiller, the European red mullet is Mullus Surmuletus as opposed to the indo pacific goatfish, although I believe the two families to be very close.
I would have to do a sensory analysis to be sure

 

[greendiver]

Over here...south of spain, Gibraltar they are common, like Murat said..you can find them on a sandy bottom, or just in between some rocks and sand..I find them starting from about 8 meters, and I have seen them over 2 kg,s..(fish market),...
I catch them doing an espetto, nothing else comes towards me except them... rofl , no serious, sometimes, they come swimming towards me like madmen....
I sell them to a fish restaurant, just around the corner...or I eat them myself...

 

[portinfer]

Had it last night ! Wow I even prefer it to bass. Off now to search for a few more of the little blighters.

 

[greendiver]

Had it last night ! Wow I even prefer it to bass. Off now to search for a few more of the little blighters.

Good luck and enjoy!!!

 

[Shadowkiller]

The Goatfish, as we call em here, belong to the Mullidae family and eat detritus living organisms.

The Blackspot Goatfish which I often get grows to around 2kg. Nice fish to eat.

Now the "true" Mullets, belong to the Mugilidae family. Not so nice fish to eat...

Portinfer: I had no idea Grey Mullet ate female underwear... rofl

 

[Freediver81]

Had it last night ! Wow I even prefer it to bass. Off now to search for a few more of the little blighters.

Which recipe did you use?

Said

 

[foxfish]

Ha, an interesting thread from the past, personally I think they taste like fresh water fish & definitely not for my taste.
However they do look good a plate, leaching red oil, but there are other problems too like they rip off a spear real easy & we only catch them at night.
Any other opinions?

 

[Marwan]

in Alexandria, red mullet is a traditional starter...its fried whole, you squeeze a lime on it, some parsley, maybe chilli powder and yummy yummy! i love it

 

[Magpie]

Still looking for some support with the "red mullet are rank" eh Mart? rofl

They're still probably my favourite fish, I like to sliced the fillets into chunks then melt a load of butter in a wok with a load of lemon juice and lob the chucks in, swirling round till just cooked and flaking then bung in a load of tagliatelli and serve with chopped parsley. Yum Yum.