Buying
Red snapper is available year-round in all parts of the US. Most commercial fishing is done with baited hooks and lines on electric and hydraulic reels. The fish is sold in several market forms including whole fresh, fresh dressed, fresh fillets, frozen fillets, and frozen portions.
If buying from fishmongers, look for its fresh smell and not fishy, or ammonia-like. The gills should be red, moist, and bright. The eyes should be red, full, shiny, and flush with the head. The skin should be glistening, pearly, tight, and adhere to the flesh. The flesh should be firm and elastic; it should not be marked, retain finger impressions, or separate easily from the bones.
Avoid snapper with a strong fishy odor. They spoil quickly, so always store them in the freezer section of the home refrigerator.
Preparation
Northern red snapper has long been considered one of the most delicious marine fish in the Southern US states of Florida and Texas. Its flesh is firm, white, succulent, and flavorful that can be made use of in a host of imaginative ways of delicious dishes.
If you are buying whole fish, ask the fishmonger to do scaling, gutting, and cutting up the snapper into fillets. You also need to remove stiff bones from the center of the meat.
Red snapper can be served pan-fried, grilled, roasted, broiled, baked, and steamed.
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| Northern Red snapper recipe. Photo credit: dani0010. |
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Baked snapper with sour cream stuffing – combine the sour cream, mayonnaise, green onions, 1 tsp lemon juice, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/8 tsp ground red pepper. Once the fish flakes easily, spoon the sour cream mixture evenly over the fish.
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Sprinkle with the shredded cheese. Bake, uncovered, for an additional 3 to 4 minutes or until the cheese melts and the sauce is thoroughly heated.
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Roast spicy mixture-coated red snapper fillets in a large cast-iron skillet over high heat until the fish is deeply browned. The spice mixture employed here is paprika,
cayenne, black pepper, onion powder, thyme, basil, garlic, and oregano. -
Prepare Spanish style marinated red snapper cooked in a sweet-and-sour and colored with pimentón (Spanish paprika) and other spices.
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It is a popular kind of white fish for fish tacos. However, halibut, tilapia, cod, bass, and catfish can be used as substitutes for snappers.
Safety profile
The mean methyl-mercury concentration in northern red snapper is 0.166 ppm. Accordingly, the U.S. FDA’s final guidelines on how much fish expectant as well as breastfeeding mothers can eat, along with lists of specific options that are safe or should be avoided, place it in the “good choice” category. By this yardstick, they can consume 1 serving (4 ounces) of this fish per week.
Ciguatera toxin poisoning sometimes occurs after consuming red snapper, whose flesh was contaminated by certain toxic algae. Ciguatera toxin does not get destroyed by cooking. Symptoms may include itchiness, diarrhea, vomiting, numbness, dizziness, and muscle weakness. Only symptomatic treatment is possible.
Also read ≻≻-
≻≻- Atlantic cod nutrition facts and health benefits.
≻≻- Channel catfish nutrition facts and health benefits.
≻≻- Halibut nutrition facts and health benefits.
≻≻-Back to Seafood from Northern red snapper nutrition facts and health benefits.
Further reading (Links opens in new window):
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Florida museum-Lutjanus campechanus.
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Omega-3 Fatty Acids: An Essential Contribution.
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New AHA guidelines recommend eating fish twice a week to improve heart health.