Florida's seafood and aquaculture make up a large part of the state's economy. This contributes greatly to the flavor of its local cuisine, as well as to that of the entire United States. Because Florida is brimmed by both the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, and also has several freshwater lakes throughout the state, fresh catches are plentiful in this extremely popular vacation destination.
Facts About Florida's Seafood Industry
Each year, Florida fishermen harvest an average of over 103 million pounds of seafood, which had a dockside value of more than $185 million(USD) in the year 2004. With such a large yield of seafood, Florida ranks in the top 12 states in the U.S. in seafood production. In fact, Florida fishermen catch over 90 percent of America's supply of grouper, pompano, mullet, stone crab, pink shrimp, spiny lobster, and Spanish mackerel, and each year Florida provides the U.S. with about 200 million seafood dinners.
Because Florida has been so successful in the seafood industry, there are more seafood processing plants in Florida than in any other state in America. Some of the kinds of seafood that are processed at these plants include amberjack, American alligator, blue crab, blue fish, cannon ball jellyfish, farm-raised catfish, clams, flounder, golden crab, king mackerel, mahi-mahi, oysters, scallops, shark, red and yellow tail snapper, striped bass, swordfish, tilapia, tile fish, and yellow tuna.
Florida's Popular Seafood Dishes
Seafood dishes have become some of the most popular components of Florida's regional cuisine. There are countless ways to prepare the catches. For example, the spiny lobster is a native crustacean of Florida's waters. It can easily be differentiated from its cousin, the Maine lobster, because all ten of its legs are the same size, whereas some of the Maine lobsters' legs are bigger than others. The spiny lobster also has no claws, so all of its sweet tender meat is found in the tail. Spiny lobster can be served in various different dishes including boiled lobster, lobster divine, and Florida lobster roll.
Another shellfish that is found on many seafood menus in Florida is the stone crab. Stone crabs are considered delicacies for the white sweet meat from its claws. Because of this, fishermen usually remove the crab's claw, then throw it back into the water. While this may seem inhumane to some, the stone crabs' claws usually regenerate after about 18 months. The succulent meat is obtained by cracking the shell of the claw with a mallet, then taking the meat, which is usually chilled, and dipping it in a delicious sauce. Stone crab recipes became popular about 80 years ago at Joe's Stone Crab Restaurant in Miami Beach. The restaurant has now become a historical landmark.
One of Florida's most unusual seafood recipes calls for the meat of one of its most ferocious aquatic animals: the American alligator. At one time, alligators were on the endangered species list, but now the aquatic reptiles are plentiful throughout the state. They're used in delicious meals like smothered alligator, fried alligator, crocked gator, gator jambalaya, and several other gator dishes.
To accommodate such an abundance of seafood, Florida has a smorgasbord of seafood restaurants, ranging from high-priced fancy establishments to small seafood vendors by the seaside. So if fresh seafood is what you're craving, Florida is the perfect vacation spot for you to sample some of the most delicious recipes around.