October 2, 2013 — The mild, flaky white fish is common in Europe, so tourists are delighted when they — rarely — find it here. But the goal for Cape fishermen and chefs is to get local folks asking for the spiny dogfish shark that is so plentiful regulators recently increased catch limits.
You can save a pretty penny buying fish and chips made with dogfish — rather than cod or haddock – at the Chatham Pier Fish Market, but you have to ask for it on a day when the market has it on hand.
The mild, flaky white fish is common in Europe, so tourists are delighted when they — rarely — find it here. But the goal for Cape fishermen and chefs is to get local folks asking for the spiny dogfish shark that is so plentiful regulators recently increased catch limits.
"The limit isn't the problem, the price is the problem," says John Tuttle of Chatham, owner and operator of the Cuda. Casting long lines with hooks from his 40-foot vessel, Tuttle brings in dogfish and earns 13 to 14 cents a pound — about 20 times less than the going price for cod.
Tuttle, a fisherman for 35 years, says, "In the past, I haven't really brought (dogfish) in because cod and haddock were more profitable. But in the past few years, 8 out of 10 of my hooks are dogfish."
"Dogfish fillets are very mild, but if you cook it with spices, it's very good. The texture stays together well. It's a nice white, flaky fish you can bake, stir-fry or deep fry," Tuttle says.
Last week, Lyric Restaurant chef Toby Hill cooked for Tuttle and about 75 others at a reception the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen's Alliance hosted to promote the use of dogfish and skate, another underutilized fish found in Cape waters.