Monkfish is a fishery product that does not belong to poor fish and even less to blue fish. Some classify it in the group of white fish, which however mainly hosts creatures of the Sparidae biological family such as: sea bream, snapper, white bream, sea bream, sea bream, sea bream, pagro etc., but also mullet and sea bass. The monkfish, on the other hand, like the redfish, is a creature with totally different habits compared to the sparidae, mullet and sea bass, because it spends most of its time stationary on the seabed - almost all year round at abyssal depths. Note: others creatures improperly defined as white fish are grouper, moorhen, turbot and sole.
Monkfish belongs to the 1st fundamental group of foods - foods rich in proteins with high biological value, vitamins - especially vitamin D and many vitamins of the B group - and specific minerals - especially phosphorus and iodine. It is also an appreciable source of omega-3 semi-essential polyunsaturated fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and iodine. It lends itself to most diets, with a few exceptions usually characterized by the presence of metabolic diseases.
The vast majority of consumers, buying it already clean, totally ignores the true aspect of the monkfish. It is a particularly unpleasant creature to the eye, provided with a huge mouth garnished with numerous sharp teeth and with an undersized body - edible part. In fact, the monkfish or monkfish is a fish characterized by a very large inedible or discarded portion; on the market it is available above all in an already decapitated and eviscerated form, often deprived even of the skin and fins - the shape is reminiscent of the tiny toad's tail.
, specific vitamins and minerals.
Monkfish is a lean fish and therefore low in calories. Energy is supplied above all by proteins, followed by lipids and by insignificant quantities of soluble carbohydrates. The peptides have a high biological value, that is, they contain all the amino acids in the right proportions and quantities. The fatty acid profile is characterized by the excellent presence of EPA and DHA, polyunsaturated essential seeds of the omega 3 family.
Monkfish contains reasonable amounts of cholesterol; instead it is free of fiber, lactose and gluten. The levels of the amino acid phenylalanine and purines are more than relevant. If well preserved, this fish is almost histamine-free.
Monkfish is rich in water-soluble B vitamins, especially thiamine (vit B1), niacin (vit PP), pyridoxine (vit B6) and cobalamin (vit B12). However, there are also fat-soluble substances, in particular calciferol (vit D) and equivalent retinol (vit A and / or provitamins A). As for the mineral salts, the monkfish shows discrete levels of potassium, phosphorus, zinc and iodine.
The monkfish lends itself to slimming nutritional therapies, which must be low-calorie and normolipidic. Being very lean, it can be cooked using extra virgin olive oil even in the diet against obesity. The abundance of proteins with a high biological value makes monkfish ideal in the diet of malnourished, defected or with an increased need for essential amino acids. This type of food is recommended in the case of very high intensity motor sports, especially in strength disciplines or with a very important hypertrophic muscle component, and for all particularly prolonged aerobic disciplines. It is suitable - again due to the abundance of essential amino acids - even in the case of breastfeeding, pathological intestinal malabsorption and in old age - in which the eating disorder and decreased intestinal absorption tend to create a protein deficit. It should also be remembered that eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic, essential but biologically active omega 3 seeds, are very important for:
- The constitution of cell membranes
- The health of the nervous system and eyes - in the fetus and children
- The prevention and treatment of some metabolic diseases - hypertriglyceridemia, arterial hypertension, etc.
- The maintenance of cognitive functions in old age
- The reduction of some symptoms of neurosis - depressive.
Due to the absence of gluten and lactose, monkfish is relevant in the diet for celiac disease and for milk sugar intolerance. The abundance of purines makes it unwanted, in considerable portions, in the nutritional regimen for hyperuricemia, especially of severe entity - with gouty attacks - and in that for kidney stones or uric acid lithiasis. As for the "intolerance to" histamine, on the other hand, if perfectly preserved, it has no contraindications. The massive presence of phenylalanine precludes its massive use in the diet against phenylketonuria.
The B vitamins have a mainly coenzyme function; this is why monkfish can be considered a good source of nutrients that support the cellular functions of all tissues. The D, on the other hand, is crucial for bone metabolism and for the immune system. Note: remember that food sources of vitamin D are very rare.
Phosphorus, hardly lacking in the diet, is one of the main constituents of bone (hydroxyapatite) and nervous (phospholipids) tissue. Iodine is necessary for the proper functioning of the thyroid gland - responsible for the regulation of cellular metabolism after secreting the hormones T3 and T4.
Cooked - to avoid the risk of contamination by parasites, bacteria and viruses - monkfish meat is allowed in the diet during pregnancy; the recommendation is always to choose safe sources and medium-sized creatures avoiding, as a rule, large specimens - richer in mercury and methylmercury. In this case it would still be a good idea to limit their consumption to a one-off time. Wanting to consume it raw, although it is not one of the fish that lends itself more to this preparation, the monkfish must necessarily be reduced in temperature - in order to eliminate the possible presence of Anisakis simplex.
The average portion of monkfish - as a dish - is 100-150 g (65-100 kcal).
such as liver and tripe, the monkfish or monkfish also has a large head that is very suitable for packaging comics, broths and soups.
As a rule, monkfish is served boiled, steamed, grilled, baked or cooked in a pan, with numerous variations and different ingredients - such as cherry tomatoes, saffron, potatoes, etc. - or in stuffed pasta.
, while the average commercial size is about 20-40 cmIt has a flat head, wide and, on the transversal plane, oval in shape; from the same point of view, the body has a triangular section, but observing it on the three-dimensional plane it seems conical. The mouth is the widest point of the whole body and the jaw is remarkably prognate (protruding); the teeth, robust, sharp and retroverted, are arranged in a single row on the jaws and in two rows on the mandible. The eyes are placed at the center of the apex of the head and the whole skull is studded with numerous spines.
The monkfish has two dorsal fins, moreover, the first spine of the first dorsal fin is very developed and mobile - called illicio, it is used to attract small prey. The caudal fin is smaller than the two pectorals; the ventral and the anal are very small.
The dorsal livery of the monkfish or monkfish is brown, characterized by a remarkable ability to mimic; the torso is instead white.
which undermines by means of an "aspect" technique. Using the "illicio" as "fake bait", the monkfish or monkfish lets its prey approach and, only at a safe distance, with a lightning bolt it devours them. To optimize its hunting technique, the monkfish exploits the pectoral fins to obtain a "loop in the sand or mud, in which it sinks almost completely. Hiding almost completely and exploiting the mimicry of the dorsal livery, the fish becomes almost totally invisible.
The monkfish has an extremely late reproductive cycle; the male specimens mature sexually at about six years while the female even at fourteen. Reproduction occurs in the winter and spring seasons, during which it is possible to sight it at lower bathymetric depths (15-20m). When the eggs hatch, the larvae - tiny and very different from the adult individual - assume a pelagic behavior. The appearance, reproduction and behavior give the monkfish ancestral peculiarities.
Monkfish is fished both with small coastal fishing - gill nets, bottom longlines, etc., especially in spring - and with large trawling. Obviously, it can also be threatened by amateur anglers with rods - for example with bottom fishing - or occasionally by freediving fishermen - always in the spring, when it tends to rise towards accessible bathymetry.
The massive collection of monkfish due to the great commercial value, given and considered the late sexual maturation of the species, could lead to a rapid decrease of the specimens.
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