Florida is often referred to as the fishing capital of the world, making it unsurprising that Floridians eat nearly twice as much seafood as consumers in the rest of the nation. However, like the rest of the country, most of Florida’s seafood is consumed in restaurants. While markets and catches provide lots of options, consumers tend to shy away from cooking seafood at home.

UF/IFAS Extension Florida Sea Grant and Family and Consumer Science agents aim to help consumers overcome the barriers to cooking seafood at home. To do so, agents will present a series of seafood-centric Facebook Live cooking demonstration videos.

Florida seafood consists of over 80 products that range from lobster to crabs, from flaky, mild snapper to firm, grillable grouper! The products vary in taste, texture, ease of preparation, and of course, price! Each agent will prepare some of their favorite foods that include but are not limited to crab cakes, shrimp appetizers, fish entrées, pasta, and salads.

“Seafood at Your Fingertips LIVE” will provide step-by-step guidance for selecting and preparing seafood. Viewers will learn about smart seafood choices, sustainable fisheries, and the health benefits of eating a diet rich in seafood. Agents will also teach about the seasonality of Florida seafood and what can be substituted if a certain product is not available at your local market.

The “Seafood at Your Fingertips LIVE” series begins at 6 p.m. EST on Wednesday, May 13, and can be found on the Florida Sea Grant Facebook page at www.facebook.com/floridaseagrant.

Agents will post blogs with recipes and ingredient lists one week prior to their presentation for viewers who want to cook along with them. These blogs and an ocean of additional information — including recipes, nutrition facts and videos — can be found on the Florida Sea Grant website at flseagrant.org/seafood/SeafoodAtYourFingertips.

This blog was written collaboratively by Libby Carnahan, Rhett Register, and Armando Ubeda.

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