Reeling in Speckled Trout

As a kid who spent a lot of time on the Gulf coast of Alabama, Adam Evans wasn’t a big fan of seafood, even when he was the one who reeled it in. “My uncle has a boat down there, so we fished a lot,” says the Muscle Shoals native, who’s now the executive chef and owner of Automatic Seafood and Oysters in Birmingham. “I wanted to like seafood because my dad ate it a lot, so I kept trying it.” It wasn’t until stints at seafood-heavy restaurants in New Orleans and New York that he fully came around. “That was at a time when everyone was into cooking the whole pig,” he says. “I was more interested in the whole fish, and I just fell in love with seafood.” One of his favorites to catch and eat in the fall is spotted sea trout, a.k.a. speckled trout. Evans loves it grilled with the skin on, particularly when paired with citrus to brighten the flavor (see recipe). But it also holds up well to frying, or simply roasting with a little lemon. “It can even be put in a ceviche if the blood line is cleaned out,” he says. “The flavor is really like no other, with a delicate white meat that flakes big like a redfish yet with enough oil content to give it a slightly more complex taste compared to a snapper or a grouper.” If you’re getting fillets from your local fishmonger, the meat should look translucent and be firm to the touch and dry (water breaks down the flesh). At home, store the fillets in the refrigerator, wrapped in paper towels to protect them from excess moisture, and eat them within a couple of days. But don’t miss out on catching a few if you can. “The first time I caught a sea trout was in the Alabama River with my uncle,” Evans says. “They’re fun to catch because they’re so aggressive for their size. Plus, they have two really interesting fang-like teeth!”