Jack Hexter
08-29-2010, 10:01 PM
My son and his girlfriend arrived Friday afternoon for out annual scalloping trip to Homosassa. WE have done this trip every year for the last 6-7 years. We went out to dinner at one of our favorite local restaurants, which Corey paid for as a belated birthday dinner. We left for Homosassa at 8:00 on Saturday AM, arriving at about 9:00. launched the boat and started the run out the river. It's about an hours run out the river and out to the scallop grounds, which are marked by a fleet of boats (That's why I don't try to get an early start as I let the other boats show me where the blue eyed morsels are located) generally in 4-8 feet of water.
It was overcast with a 10 MPH East wind so the waves/chop was not significant, but we've had rain every day for the last couple weeks so the water was a chilly 82*, but donning fins, mask and snorkel, in we jumped looking for the buggers who tend to camouflage themselves.
http://research.myfwc.com/images/subcategories/20090331_110640_29938.jpg
Gathering scallops is like an Easter Egg Hunt with a snorkel. Not real hard work, and a lot of fun. Limit is 2 gallons of whole scallops per person, up to a max of 10 gallons per boat. Some years are better than others but we usually limit, and this year was no different. They were not as plentiful as I've seen in the past, but with 3 short moves, we limited at our 6 gallons by 2:30. I did not participate in the last dive as I pulled a leg muscle while attempting to get in the boat after move #2. The ladder collapsed on me as I tried to hoist myself over the gunnel and I pushed too hard on one leg while trying to get my other leg over the side, popping the muscle. Corey ended up getting in the boat and pulling me up.
With a limit of scallops, we rode back home and jumped in the pool to relax before starting to clean them. Cleaning took 1 1/2 hours with 2 people cutting them open, one using a shop vac to suck the guts away and Pam cutting the clean muscle off the remaining half of shell. The first time I did this, there was 4 of us (8 gallons) and it took longer to clean them than it did to catch them as I did not learn the shop vac trick until the following year. Unlike clams and oysters, you only eat the muscle of the scallop that holds the shells together http://www.hamptons.com/gallery/article/2189.jpg
After cleaning them, I made a picatta, a white wine - lemon sauce with capers, and the scallops and served them over pasta. These are not the big sea scallops that you see wrapped in bacon, but bay scallops. A big one is about the size of the tip of your pinky. The 2 gallons equals about a pint ziplock of meat, which is good for one or two meals. You cannot beat the fruit of the sea.
It was overcast with a 10 MPH East wind so the waves/chop was not significant, but we've had rain every day for the last couple weeks so the water was a chilly 82*, but donning fins, mask and snorkel, in we jumped looking for the buggers who tend to camouflage themselves.
http://research.myfwc.com/images/subcategories/20090331_110640_29938.jpg
Gathering scallops is like an Easter Egg Hunt with a snorkel. Not real hard work, and a lot of fun. Limit is 2 gallons of whole scallops per person, up to a max of 10 gallons per boat. Some years are better than others but we usually limit, and this year was no different. They were not as plentiful as I've seen in the past, but with 3 short moves, we limited at our 6 gallons by 2:30. I did not participate in the last dive as I pulled a leg muscle while attempting to get in the boat after move #2. The ladder collapsed on me as I tried to hoist myself over the gunnel and I pushed too hard on one leg while trying to get my other leg over the side, popping the muscle. Corey ended up getting in the boat and pulling me up.
With a limit of scallops, we rode back home and jumped in the pool to relax before starting to clean them. Cleaning took 1 1/2 hours with 2 people cutting them open, one using a shop vac to suck the guts away and Pam cutting the clean muscle off the remaining half of shell. The first time I did this, there was 4 of us (8 gallons) and it took longer to clean them than it did to catch them as I did not learn the shop vac trick until the following year. Unlike clams and oysters, you only eat the muscle of the scallop that holds the shells together http://www.hamptons.com/gallery/article/2189.jpg
After cleaning them, I made a picatta, a white wine - lemon sauce with capers, and the scallops and served them over pasta. These are not the big sea scallops that you see wrapped in bacon, but bay scallops. A big one is about the size of the tip of your pinky. The 2 gallons equals about a pint ziplock of meat, which is good for one or two meals. You cannot beat the fruit of the sea.