If you love seafood, you’ll love the keys. Fresh seafood is easy to cook, you can bake, grill, boil or broil it. You can enhance the flavor with a touch of salt, a few herbs, garlic, a splash of citrus or by coating it in breading. Here are some of our favorite recipes.

If you didn’t catch it yourself…pick up fresh seafood at these locations.

The Fish House – 102400 Overseas Highway, Key Largo
Key Largo Fisheries – 1313 Ocean Bay Drive, Key Largo
The Islamorada Fish Company – 81532 Overseas Highway, Islamorada
Publix in the Tradewinds Center – Key Largo
Publix – Marathon at 5407 Overseas Highway
Easton Street Fish Market – 801 Eaton Street, Key West
The Half Shell Raw Bar Fish Market – 231 Margaret Street, Key West

Perfect Florida Lobster

Start with a large pot of water, season the water with 4 to 5 bay leaves,  2 tablespoons of dried basil,  2 tablespoons of Old Bay seasoning and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice.
Bring the water to a rapid boil.
Place a fine mesh screen over the pot and set your lobsters on top.
Place a lid on top of the lobsters and set a timer for 8 minutes. Don’t peek. After 8 minutes, the lobsters will have turned a bright salmon color.
Serve the lobster with melted butter seasoned with garlic salt or fresh garlic to taste.

Honey Orange Grouper

Ingredients
1 tablespoon of honey
1 tablespoon of orange marmalade
1 tablespoon of orange juice
¾ tablespoon of Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon of light soy sauce
1/8 teaspoon of pepper
1/8 teaspoon of salt
1 pound of grouper fillets

Directions
1.) Preheat broiler.
2.) Combine all ingredients except the grouper and mix well.
3.) Place filets on an oiled broiler pan and brush filets with honey glaze to cover.
4.) Broil fish 5 to 6 inches from heat for 4 to 5 minutes, until browned. Turn the fillets, brush with remaining honey glaze and broil an additional 5 minutes, or until fish flakes easily.

Coconut Fried Fish

Ingredients
1 egg
2 Tablespoons of pineapple juice
2/3 cup flour
1 ½ cups of shredded coconut
1 pound of fish – preferably, snapper,  mahi mahi or grouper

Directions
In a wide, shallow bowl, beat together the egg and pineapple juice. Spread the flour and the coconut on separate plates, suitable for dredging.
Add 2 to 3 Tablespoons of vegetable oil to a sauté pan set over medium heat.
Dry the fish fillets off as much as possible. Dredge first in the flour, and then dip in egg and coat fish in coconut.
Working with 2-3 fillets at a time, add the fish to the pan. When coconut starts to brown, carefully turn over. When fish is cooked, remove from pan. Add more oil to pan if necessary and repeat with the remaining fish.

Beer Battered Coconut Shrimp

Ingredients
1 lb raw shrimp
1 egg
1/2 a teaspoon of baking powder
1 cup flour
1 1/2 teaspoons of salt
1 teaspoon of pepper
1 cup of unsweetened, shredded coconut
1 cup of Panko bread crumbs
3/4 cup Beer

Directions
1.) Peel, de-vein and butterfly shrimp.
2.) Mix together panko bread crumbs and shredded coconut. Set aside.
3) In another bowl, add flour, baking powder, salt, egg and beer; mix together.
4.) Place shrimp in beer batter mixture and then coat with panko mixture.
5.) Deep fry shrimp for 2 to 3 minutes, or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Season with salt.

Fish Matecumbe

Ingredients
1/2 Spanish onion, chopped
One 8-ounce jar capers
5 shallots, peeled and chopped
5 tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup chopped basil leaves
1/2 tablespoon salt
1/2 tablespoon ground black pepper
2 lemons, juiced
1 cup olive oil
8 individual fish fillets of your choice

Directions
In a medium bowl, add all ingredients except fish and stir to thoroughly to combine. Refrigerate until ready to use; it is best to let flavors blend for at least 1 hour in the refrigerator.
Preheat the broiler and position the oven rack so that it is at least 4 inches from the broiler, but no more than 6 inches.
Place fish fillets on a baking sheet and then season fish with salt and pepper. Place under the broiler and cook until done on 1 side. Watch carefully, as it may only take a couple minutes, depending on the thickness of your fish fillets and the proximity to the broiler. Remove from broiler and turn each fish over. Top each fillet with about 1/2 cup sauce. Return to the broiler and cook until fish is done on the other side and fully cooked through in the middle. If you are unsure about doneness, cut into the center of 1 fillet; it should be opaque. (You can cover up the cut with the sauce.) Serve with rice, if desired.

Blackened Red Snapper with Crawfish Cream Sauce

Ingredients
2 lbs red snapper
Chef Paul Prudhomme’s Redfish Magic seasoning
juice from 1/2 lemon

Crawfish Sauce
Ingreidients
1/2 lb crawfish tails
1 tbs butter
1/2 a small onion
5 sprigs of parsley, leaves minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 celery stalk, minced
1/2 small green bell pepper, minced
1/2 tbs oregano
1 tbs paprika
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp thyme
salt & pepper to taste
1 pint heavy cream

Directions
Coat the snapper in lemon juice then blackened seasoning, let it marinate while you prepare the crawfish sauce.
Place a small pot on the stove and turn to medium/low heat. Place the butter in the pot and let it melt. Make sure your vegetables are finely minced then add them along with the seasonings to the melted butter, cook for 5 minutes or until softened. Once the vegetables have softened add the cream and increase to a simmer until it starts to thicken, about 5 minutes. Let it set on low heat while you cook the fish.
Heat 1 tbs of olive oil in a large skillet on medium heat. Once the pan is hot add in the fish. Cook for two minutes then flip and cook for another 3 minutes. If the fish is thicker cook it a little longer on each side.
Place the fish on a plate and top with the crawsfish cream sauce and sprinkle with green onions. This dish goes great with a side of rice or cornbread.

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