November is probably one of the most stingy months with regards to seasonal fish. And yet, there are exceptions. November is in fact one of the favorite months for fishing at sea ​​bass or sea bass. That is one of the most appreciated by Italian consumers, despite the increasing use of breeding products. Despite being present all year round in the immediate coast, the larger sea bass in fact approach the ground especially at the beginning of the cold season, at the beginning of the reproductive period. The sea bass is one of the most sought after fish for its excellent meat. Together with the sea bream, turbot and St. Peter's fish, it belongs to the so-called category "White fish", very valuable and suitable for simple cooking, roasted or in a pan. The wild sea bass are decidedly of high quality, even if the taste varies according to the fishing area and the size: for example, where the salinity goes down (like at the mouth of the rivers, in theUpper Adriatic) the taste is much more delicate; while those of the Sardinian ponds are particularly tasty. Also with regard to sea bass d'breeding, their organoleptic characteristics depend on the environment in which they are reared (earthen tanks, concrete basins or net cages), the type of feeding, the density of the fish in the tanks and the size: this also explains the price difference between various products; and why some producers mark their sea bass one by one, to make them recognizable to the consumer compared to others. Italian productions, concentrated in Sardinia and in the Laguna d’Orbetello, are generally the best, with a quality far superior to the low-cost sea bass coming from Greece is Turkey. In the kitchen the sea bass is so versatile that it can appear from the appetizers (a carpaccio or asea ​​bass salad with mango and dried fruit) to the first (spaghetti with sea bass and zucchini flavored with mint) and of course the latter, where among the many classics it is worth to try the Ligurian sea bass, prepared in the oven with potatoes, tomato, bay leaves, rosemary, sage and Taggiasca olives.

The clams

The autumn period, together with the spring one, is also that of the maximum growth for the clams. Both for those fished, especially in theAdriatic, than for those bred. Clam fishing is constantly retreating compared to those bred: just think that in 1982 the clam ships had caught 120 thousand tons of clams in our Nation, while in 2014 they were only 20 thousand. The problem, it must be said, does not concern breeding clams, where the most represented species is the Filipino clam (Tapes Philippinarum), of which Italy is the second world producer with 50 thousand tons a year.

The croaker

Along with the spring months, November is also the favorite month for fishing.umbrine, particularly widespread near the cliffs of the Gargano he was born in Salento and, to a lesser extent, at the headlands Tyrrhenian. A prescription? Try thecroaker with crazy water with confit tomatoes (caramelized) and saffron.

From anchovies to red mullet

Among the other seasonal fishes appear anchovies, anchovies, baby squid, squid, mullet, grouper, snapper, catfish, shrimp and baby octopus. But there are also hake, sea bream, panocchia, octopus, turbot, sardine, cuttlefish, sole and mullet.

Our recipes with sea bass