Got a New Zealand shipment today and one of the John Dory had a small bait Madai snapper still in its mouth, hook and all. Cut it out and it was pristine: red gills, sweet and fresh. Butterflied and sautéed it, roasted the head for a stock, and made a soup with some shrimp on the side.
This is by far the most bizarre meal I’ve ever decided to make, out of all the varieties that have come through. John Dory is my favorite fish, and madai snapper is one I thoroughly enjoy, so finding one inside the other, I just had to do it. Has anyone else experienced anything remotely similar? Yes the fish still tasted great. Limit size for madai in NZ is minimum 25cm in any region, so this is a 1/1 experience.

The AC vents really did the trick when I hit a little traffic on my short drive home. Caviar with the dry aged local Wagyu tomahawks. Damn unreal dinner. Took my plate pic before dressing with compound butter and caviar. Dug right in

Butter poached Portuguese percebes, and Alaskan king crab. What a treat 😉 First time trying the percebes, and they were insane. Hammy seafood flavor and super tender. Way easier to handle than crab, and tastier than clams or mussels of any variety. Also had razor clams. That were good but just paled in comparison to everything else.

Tried this guy neat with lunch. One of the best I’ve ever had. Pure silky texture, easy pop but defined texture of each pearl. Nutty, cheesy, and mildly sweet. Perfect

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Absolutely amazing. Super tender, moist but not leaking juices. Scraped clean of meat with gloves, and pulled apart by hand for tacos. Better than the chicken and pork options on the table. Brined 24 hours in heavy salt, sugar, pineapple juice, lemons, herbs, pepper, and spices. Smoked low and slow about 7 hours at 180-190 then cranked for a crust at the end.

Shrimp Flight Breakdown

10 varieties of whole shrimp/prawns, 2 stuffed, 1 grilled in pan, 7 salt roasted

1: White Gulf Shrimp- the only fresh variety tried. The remainder were thawed IQF varieties. Noticeable having a lighter texture, but a very plain flavor. Little sweet, not bold.

2: Royal Red Gulf Shrimp- Boldest “shrimpy” flavor. Firm enough in texture, with no fishiness but bold brine shrimp flavor.

3: Kawaii Hawaiian Shrimp- Bad. Tripoly Mushy and flavor was wrong

4: Skull Island Australian Prawns- I have loved these before marinated, bold enough and firm. Tonight they were very plain on their own, with lackluster texture compared to everything else in the prawn category(aside from the mushy off profiles mentioned)

5: Gambero Rosso Sicilian Red Prawns- I’ve you don’t know, always fire. Had one straight raw during prep time. Sweet shrimp that are so soft and visibly perfect, but wildly expensive. If I had to pay retail, I would, but I’d be broke. I have eaten this shrimp now 7 ways, and it is in my opinion supreme. However it is not priced, or available, or sustainable to the point I would suggest you have to try this sucker. It’s fire and my favorite but there is a better shrimp experience at #6, #7, and #10 for the price and reality.

6: New Caledonia Blue Prawns- my second favorite and the table consensus favorite. Sweetest, plump but crisp texture, and gorgeous handling by the company. No damage to the shells, thawed and cooked with a beautiful shine, with a reasonable midrange for price. Would buy again and again.

7: Argentine Red Shrimp- very good all around shrimp. Price is solid, available peeled or whole, texture softer/ pillowy than the royals and more tender of a bite than white gulf, with a mild sweet flavor. All you can ask for. Grilled these in the basket, and have before to a standard satisfactory yeild. I compare most things to a well prepared Argentine red, so they held up again.

8:Spot Prawns- maybe my fault but these were wrong. Texture was complete mush and they were cooked to a light mild medium. I’ve cooked before 😅 Flavor was trying to stay afloat but texture was as bad as possible. It must also be known that’s not supposed to happen, but it did tonight.

9: Bangladesh Freshwater Prawn- The big boys are so good. Plump, sweet, and the way to go when done right and you get a good even cook. Problem is the suckers are 8-12 oz and do not cook evenly so some people felt they were firm or soft. They got stuffed with a jumbo lump blue crab situation (Stock made from the prawn legs, bread crumbs, seasonin’) and were killer.

10: Nigerian Tiger Prawns- Not definitively the best saved for last, but a close contender up for debate here in the 4th quarter. I’ve never had a bad Nigerian Tiger Prawn, and these were no exception. Priced better than Bangladesh Freshwater, and more manageable size for every dish you can create, this is the best of the biggins.

Learn me up if there is a better “shramp” “shrimpie” “prawn” “shrimp” or “langostine” that you’ve had before.

(Rock shrimp supremist can just smile in silence we all know they are good but you can’t quite get them whole that easy)

Very good eats. Seviche with osetra noir caviar, raw nigiri( the rice is to be ignored we had too many pans going) , and scampi. Delicious shrimp with a perfect sweet flavor raw. No sauce or cooking necessary. Shells delicate enough once cooked to eat in the scampi

1 week on this guy. Nice and nutty but not getting close to funk. Where do you guys find the perfect timing for dry aged salmon, tuna, and most whitefish?

Just got myself a personal coral trout. Going to try to find a good unique charcoal recipe if anyone has a good one. Likely canoe cutting and trying to stuff with vegetables during cook. Can’t mess this guy up for the price

Super unique fish I got to cut today. New Zealand Greenbone. Excited to try it. Has anyone had this before? Seems similar to tautog which I have loved.

Finally got my hands on a case. Need some good seviche or crudo recipes. Doing a “prawns 5 ways” party small plates style. Has anyone tried these yet??