Sanddabs are far from ranking as one of the gamefish of glory in our local waters. They are the smallest member of the halibut family, and the average size is about that of your outstretched hand (except for you basketball players with huge hands).
A fish of that diminutive size is not going to put up much of a fight, and we often use multi-hook leaders to bring up several at a time. Even with several on the line, hernias are rare on a sanddab fishing trip.
Sanddabs are amazingly abundant in waters from about 150 feet deep on out to hundreds of feet. They are so abundant that there is no limit on how many you can catch and take home.
There are very few pictures posted anywhere of a proud angler with a prize sanddab. On my charter boat, the people who really wanted their picture taken with a sanddab were chefs. There is where the fish becomes gigantic in importance. They are delicious!
I’m serious. Find a restaurant with sanddabs on the menu and you are in for a taste treat that is likely to surprise even the most finicky eater among us. And they are easy to prepare and cook.
A close-knit group of cooks and chefs chartered my boat periodically to target sanddabs and they would each take home dozens of the tasty l’il critters.
Cleaning them is surprisingly easy, requiring just one cut to remove the head and body cavity. Leave the fins and skin on.
Cooking them was a breeze. Most chefs I’ve talked to like to cook them in peanut oil because they can work with it at high temperatures. Folks with allergies to nuts might use another type of oil. All they did was get the oil hot and fry the sanddab for 30 seconds on each side. They could cook up a great number of sanddabs in just half an hour.
While cooking, the skin crisps up nicely and holds it all together. Flake the meat with a fork and savor the taste. A meal of sanddabs and Stove Top stuffing is as close to ambrosia as I’ve experienced. Wine drinkers often pour a glass of their favorite white wine to accompany the meal.
If you have a friend with a boat, or if you charter a boat, just head offshore to find flat sand or mud bottom in a couple hundred feet of water, bait up a multi-hook leader with strips of squid, drop down to the bottom and wait for a tap-tap-tap feeling. Reel up some sanddabs and eat them that night for a magnificent, tasty delight.
— Capt. David Bacon operates WaveWalker Charters and is president of SOFTIN Inc., a nonprofit organization providing seafaring opportunities for those in need. Visit softininc.blogspot.com to learn more about the organization and how you can help. Click here to read previous columns. The opinions expressed are his own.
