Coastal cuisine: bounty of the sea

Mention this silvery fish to good Lowcountry cooks, and their eyes will light up at the thought of pan-seared shad roe. Big-time chefs and country cooks alike rave about this time-honored delicacy. But there's a lot more to the American shad than just its eggs. Next time you go shad fishing, give these recipes a try.

Carolina baked "Boneless" Shad

•1 dressed whole shad

•1 large onion, chopped

•2 quarts of milk

•2 tablespoons of butter

•Salt and pepper to taste

Place shad in a greased roasting pan, then add milk, chopped onion, butter and salt and pepper. Cover tightly with foil and bake in 250-degree oven for 4 to 6 hours. Add roe, if available, for the last 30 minutes of cooking. When done, the bones will be soft and barely noticeable. Makes about six servings, depending on size of shad.

Broiled shad

•2 pounds of fresh shad fillets

•Â¼ cup of butter, melted

•2 tablespoons of horseradish

•2 tablespoons of lemon juice

•2 teaspoons of mustard

•Â¼ teaspoon of black pepper

•1 teaspoon of salt

•Paprika as desired

Cut fillets into serving-size pieces. Combine butter, horseradish, lemon juice, mustard and salt and pepper. Put fish skin-side up in a greased broiler pan. Brush with sauce and broil for 4 to 5 minutes, about 3 inches from heat. Carefully turn and brush with sauce, then broil for 4 to 5 minutes longer until fish flakes easily. Sprinkle with paprika. Makes about six servings.

A tad more about shad

AMERICAN SHAD: American shad are a metallic green color dorsally with silvery sides and have a dark shoulder spot behind the gill cover, sometimes followed by a series of smaller spots. American shad are the largest members of the family Clupeidae (which includes herrings, alewives, menhaden and sardines) in the United States.

HABITAT AND BIOLOGY: American shad are distributed from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to Florida and are most abundant between Connecticut and North Carolina. They are anadromous; that is, they migrate upriver from brackish water to spawn. Upstream migration coincides with favorable water temperatures and typically begins in the spring. In South Carolina, adult migration to freshwater begins in January, peaks in February and March, and ends in April. Similar to salmon, American shad return to the same tributary system where they were hatched.

American shad are primarily planktivores. Juvenile shad feed on small invertebrates, insects, fish eggs, and algae. Adults use their gill rakers (comb-like structures on the gill arches) to filter small planktonic animals from the water for food during the riverine and oceanic phases of their life cycle. Adults do not feed during the upstream migration to their spawning areas.

SPECIES SIGNIFICANCE: American shad are important to both commercial and recreational anglers. Fisheries for American shad have existed along the Atlantic coast since the 19th Century, but have been declining since then due to overfishing and degradation of spawning habitat. In South Carolina, the shad fishery is the single most important finfish fishery.

Since 1987, there has been a continuous decline in numbers of shad landed; however, landings in 1996 were considerably higher than in previous years. Female shad, referred to as roe shad, are prized for their egg mass (roe), which is considered a delicacy. Male shad are popular for their meat.

In South Carolina, a recreational fishery for American shad exists exclusively in fresh water, where fish are taken with dip nets or with artificial lures during their spawning migration.

Source: S.C. Department of Natural Resources