Mullet (fish)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- There are other meanings of the word mullet.
- There are other fishes called 'mullets', notably the red mullets of the Mullidae family.
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The mullets or grey mullets are a family (Mugilidae) of ray-finned fish found worldwide in coastal temperate and tropical waters, and in some species in fresh water also. Mullets have served as an important source of food in Mediterranean Europe since Roman times. The family includes about 80 species in 17 genera.
Taxonomically, the family is usually treated as the sole member of the order Mugiliformes, but as Nelson says, "there has been much disagreement concerning the relationships" of this family. The presence of fin spines clearly indicates membership in the superorder Acanthopterygii, and in the 1960s Gosline classed them as primitive perciforms[1], while others have grouped them in Atheriniformes[citation needed]. FishBase follows Gosline in placing the family in the Perciformes.
In North America, "mullet" by itself usually refers to Mugilidae. In Europe, the word "mullet" is usually qualified, the "grey mullets" being Mugilidae and the "red mullets" or "surmullets" being Mullidae, notably members of the genus Mullus, the red mullets. Outside Europe, the Mullidae are often called "goatfish". Fish with common names including the word "mullet" may be a member of one family or the other, or even unrelated such as the freshwater white sucker (Catostomus commersonii).
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The Striped or Black Mullet is a delicacy along the Northwest Florida and Alabama gulf coast. Many restaurants in those areas serve mullet as the mainstay of their menus. Fried mullet are the most popular. Smoked, baked, and canned mullet are also eaten. Mullet are usually fileted. The left over frames are often used to make excellent fish stock. The stock makes superb chowders, stews, and bouillabaisse.
Mullet does not keep well after it is caught. If kept on ice it may remain edible for approximately 72 hours. If kept much longer it begins to lose its freshness and becomes nearly inedible. The sooner it can be eaten after being caught, the better.
When shopping for mullet for consumption, choose only those fish with clear eyes. Cloudy eyes are indicators of loss of freshness.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Gosline, W. A. (1961) "The Perciform Caudal Skeleton" Copeia 1961(3): pp. 265-270
[edit] References
- J.S. Nelson, Fishes of the Worldda:Multe
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