PANAMA CITY — Grouper is a common sight on the menus of local seafood restaurants, but its preparation is as varied as its types and cuts.
“I have throats already cleaned and skinned,” said Capt.’s Table owner Mitch Holman, who had recently returned from the last big catch.
Holman serves grouper cheeks, throats and fillets at the St. Andrews restaurant, 110 Beck Ave., on the same block where he grew up. With 55-foot and 43-foot commercial boats, he said he tries to catch most of the fish himself. He also leases boats to bring in big catches.
“I don’t plan on going fishing anytime soon with the weather like it is,” admitted Holman, whose latest catch included 800 grouper. “We got it on the 31st (of December), the last day of the year. In the fish world, that’s brand new. I go by IFQs (Individual Fishing Quotas). Each boat has a certain amount of grouper to last them the year. I came in at the last of the year to unload a certain amount. If you don’t catch at the end of the year, you lose them. They issue new fish on the first.”
The latest catch also included 3,000 snapper.
“Grouper seems to be more popular than snapper even though years ago snapper seemed to be. Twenty years ago, it was snapper people wanted, but it became harder to catch and not as available. As the snapper population deteriorated, it started to go to grouper, more available. Now when we go out, we catch 10 snapper to one grouper,” said Holman, who is able to fall back on local seafood markets, including Tarpon Dock Seafood Market and Buddy Gandy’s Seafood, during the height of the summer season.
I stopped by Capt.’s Table late Friday afternoon, just after Lee, aka “Leroy,” Cronwell had picked up a Gag Grouper from Tarpon Dock Seafood Market, 234 East Beach Drive, so he could show me how the process works.
“To me, it’s fun — doesn’t feel like a job,” he said. “I’ve been here 12 years and was with Greg Abrams (owner of Greg Abrams Seafood and Tarpon Dock) 15 years before that. When the boat comes in, we sell fish there, keep half of what we have. What we fish is the Gag or Black Grouper.”
Other types also include Red, Yellowfin — Cronwell’s favorite, Yellowmouth — Rock Hind, Red Hind and Scamp. The Black Groupers are usually bigger and fatter than the milder Red. The popular Gag Grouper are smaller in weight and size than the Black. Part of the Black Grouper catch includes Scamp, priced slightly higher on menus.
Cronwell gutted the Gag Grouper, set up the head and sliced through the bone to get the white meat throat out. He then made an incision through the skin on its cheek and peeled it back before slicing off two round nuggets.
“You just need a really sharp knife,” said Cronwell, who continued skin and fillet the rest of the fish within minutes.
We had grouper throats, cheeks and fillets ready to fry and grill.
John McCrory, who has been frying at Capt.’s Table for the past 10 years, dipped some of the grouper throats and cheeks into a seasoned flour mixture before setting them in a fryer basket.
“It’s salt, pepper, Zatarain’s and flour,” McCrory said. “It usually fries three and a half minutes, but depends on what it is.”
Holman admits the restaurant sells more fried grouper than grilled.
“People are more Southern here, but it’s good both ways,” he said.
Cronwell prefers cleaning the fish over getting the catch.
“I’ve been fishing out twice with them, but I’d rather be around here,” Cronwell said. “If I do eat’em (grouper throats), I eat’em grilled.”
Grilled Grouper Throats are seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic salt and grilled for five to six minutes, depending on the thickness.
“The butter sauce — wine, sugar, secret seasonings — is brushed on during cooking,” Cronwell said. “After it’s grilled, we throw sautéed red onions and green bell peppers on top.”
The sauce also is served on the side for dipping.
“That’s all I get here,” said Mary Syler, who was sitting at the bar. “I love the atmosphere here. We prefer to sit at the bar. Conversation is good and you learn what’s going on, get the feel of the place.”
Though Syler divides her time between Andalusia, Ala., and Panama City Beach, she has become a regular at Capt.’s Table for the Grilled Grouper Throats.
“Lee told me how good they were,” said Syler, who first recalled hearing about them a couple of years ago. “The flavor is just wonderful. I like the bones, the process of getting it off. The meat is very sweet close to the bones. The peppers and onions gives it a great flavor. In the past, I had gotten mahi-mahi, but this is better.”
The meat on the grilled throats glides off the bone with a move of the fork, enhanced by a dip in the rich butter sauce. The throat is firmer and chewier than the flakier fillet. Cronwell, who also shucks oysters at the bar, compared the Fried Grouper Throats to eating Fried Chicken because of the two large bones.
“You have to pick it up and get your hands dirty. It’s kind of like chicken, finger food. You get to take the fish off the bone,” he said.
The firmer fried grouper cheeks resemble chicken nuggets in texture.
Just around the corner, Uncle Ernie’s, 1151 Bayview Ave., serves Grouper Imperial, a grilled grouper fillet and shrimp topped with lump crab meat, as well as sautéed, broiled or chargrilled topped with mushrooms. One grouper dish even gets honored with the family name — Grilled Grouper Pigneri with Shrimp, a grilled grouper fillet topped with mushrooms, onions, bell peppers and shrimp. Uncle Ernie’s was opened by Mary Lou Parrish and Jim Pigneri in 1993 in Historic St. Andrews.
On Sunday, Saltwater Grill Executive Chef Rob Burgess prepared a special of Sweet Pepper Glazed Scamp with Ginger Jasmine rice, stir fried snow peas with carrot and mint, and finished with a peach beurre blanc for the restaurant, 11040 Hutchison Blvd. Though Pan Seared Scamp with Gulf Shrimp & Angel Hair is not on the restaurant menu, Burgess made it during a cooking demonstration in Panama City.
“It was a dish I did for a demo at Somethin’s Cookin’ a couple years ago,” said Burgess, who serves Grouper Macadamia and Grouper Imperial at Saltwater.
Though you won’t find grouper on the menu at the award-winning Firefly, 535 Richard Jackson Blvd., which “dares” to be different in Panama City Beach, Executive Chef Paul Stellato shared his recipe for Almond Crusted Grouper during a cooking class at Somethin’s Cookin,’ 93 E. 11th St. in Panama City.
Italian-born chef Antonio Pasulo, who ran Pasta Grill on Front Beach Road in Panama City from 2004 to 2012, will be making his Grouper Francaise at 6 p.m. Jan. 17 during Date Nite at Somethin’s Cookin.’
Boar’s Head owner Barry Ross prefers the Black Grouper over the Red.
“It’s more tender,” said Ross, who also serves Scamp at the Panama City Beach restaurant, 17290 Front Beach Road.
Boar’s Head serves grouper pan-fried and topped with lump crab meat and Béarnaise, stuffed with crabmeat stuffing, fried, boiled or chargrilled — Ross’ preference.
“Simply the chargrilled fish with lime, onion and butter sauce speaks for itself — simple and just classic,” he said.
And for a little spice, Hammerhead Fred’s, 8752 Thomas Drive in Panama City Beach, serves filet of grouper lightly breaded and fried, topped with Parmesan sauce of green onions, chopped garlic, plum tomatoes, black pepper, Tabasco and Parmesan.
Pan Seared Scamp with Gulf Shrimp & Angel Hair
4 scamp grouper, 5 ounces each
12 each 16/20 Gulf shrimp
16 ounce package of angel hair pasta
4 ounces seasoned flour (all-purpose flour, salt, white pepper, granulated garlic)
1 tablespoon fresh minced garlic
½ tablespoon shallots
½ pound unsalted butter, cubed
4 ounces extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt to season
2 tablespoons lemon oil
4 ounces Parmesan-Reggiano, fresh grated
3 sprigs fresh basil (chiffonade)
Place large skillet with 4 ounces olive oil over medium heat. Season Scamp with salt and dredge in flour. Place scamp in skillet, flip once to brown both sides, then transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In same skillet add ½ pound butter, minced garlic and shallots. Over low heat, sauté shrimp while being sure not to burn garlic.
While shrimp is cooking, place scamp in oven to finish cooking. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add angel hair and cook to al dente; drain.
In large mixing bowl, toss pasta and shrimp, and basil together, divide contents equally among four serving bowls, place scamp on top of pasta and finish with a drizzle of lemon oil, and grated Parmesan-Reggiano.
Makes 4 servings.
Source: Executive Chef Rob Burgess
Almond Crusted Grouper
1 grouper fillet per person
1 cup chopped almonds
1 cup flour
Salt and pepper, to taste
Egg wash
Honey
Worcestershire
Olive oil
Combine almonds and flour, season with salt and pepper. Dip fish in egg wash and then almond mixture. Add olive oil to a pan, heat and place fish into oil. Brown on one side, remove all oil from pan, lower heat and turn fish, fish should finish cooking on low heat. Mix honey with Worcestershire, just enough to flavor honey. (Try not to thin the honey.) Pour sauce over cooked fish.
Source: Executive Chef Paul Stellato