If you’re from Southeast Florida, you already know fresh fish is incomparable.  If you are new to the area, you should experience all the area has to offer. You should at least try to catch and eat what the locals catch and eat. Many of the top fish to catch are regulated by the Florida Wildlife Commission. For current fishing regulations, please visit the FWC Website.

Fish delicacies are a matter of personal preference.  Try many and experiment with different varieties cooked, such as baked, grilled, fried or sushi.  Here are some of the top 5 fish to eat in Southeast Florida!

Wahoo

Wahoo, also known as Ono, gets its name from the Hawaiian word which means “good to eat”. It is a delicious, white flesh delicacy.  It traditionally served as fresh sashimi or as a cooked meal. The desirable fish are usually caught high-speed trolling offshore with brightly colored lures. They are considered an intangible species to aim for. Wahoo is currently an “unregulated species” in Florida, which means the bag limit is two fish or 100 pounds per person per day, whichever is more.

 Grouper

Grouper comes in second preference on a dinner menu from mahi-mahi. They have delicious lean white meat with a distinct yet mild flavor, large flakes, and a firm texture. Gag grouper (or black grouper) as well as red grouper are the most widely distributed in South Florida. Goliath grouper is massive and Nassau grouper are protected from harvest in Florida waters. Grouper is usually speared by divers or caught drift fishing over a reef offshore with baits near bottom.

 Hogfish

Hogfish is also known as hog snapper.  It has a mild flavor with sweet undertones, much like grouper. It’s a bit flakier than mahi-mahi, and one of the best tasting cooked fish in South Florida. Hogfish is found around natural and artificial reefs and mostly speared by divers, however it’s possible to catch them by hook.

Snapper

Some people may argue with me that grouper should be higher on the list than snapper, but the deciding factor for me is that snapper can be fried whole, one of the favorite dishes of the area. Its skin comes out super thin and crispy, and its meat stays super moist and flaky. Snapper has firm lean white meat with a mildly sweet and fresh taste. Mangrove snappers are also tasty, but they’re much smaller filets since they live and feed in the shallow mangroves.

Yellowfin Tuna

Known on a menu as ahi tuna, this world-famous delicacy is the most common sushi eaten in the world. Its meat ranges from dark red to light pink, and it’s usually enjoyed raw with soy sauce and wasabi or sesame-crusted and lightly seared medium rare.  Yellowfin Tuna can be caught on a day trip to the Bahamas. If you’re looking for tuna closer to South Florida, your best bet is to troll for blackfin with tuna darts in the same fashion as you would troll for mahi. Some people argue that blackfin tuna is just as good as yellowfin, but you be the judge.