Australia has around 5000 commercial marine species. Almost all of them are beautiful, sporting bright colours, metallic hues, or prismatic patches that play with light in incredible ways. Almost all. The Common Stargazer is a proud exception, with a big square head, perpetually frowning mouth covered with fleshy protrusions, and a scaleless, toad-like body.

On top of that, they bury themselves in sand or mud and simply wait for prey to come within a few centimetres of their face before striking upwards in a terrifying burst, sucking their prey, along with all the water around them, through their flared gills. Prey is usually consumed alive as Stargazers lack the ability to chop or crush.

But if you can get over all that, you’ll be rewarded with one of seafood’s unique fillets. The fillets are often sold as Monkfish and this is due to the similarities in the flesh. In flavour and texture, this is a fish that has more in common with Rock Lobsters or Scampi than any fish. It has a pleasant sweetness and opaque white flesh when cooked which, when the flesh comes apart, resembles the ‘stringiness’ of crustaceans as opposed to the flakiness of fish flesh. Cook a Stargazer fillet correctly (pan-fried or roasted is ideal) and it’s like eating a big, butter-poached lobster tail, at about a sixth of the price.

DIVE DEEPER

COMMERCIAL NAME

Stargazer

Method of Capture

Trawl

Region

Southern Australia

Other names

Monkfish, Banded Stonelifter, Barred Stargazer, Catfish, Eastern Stargazer, Southern Stargazer, Stonelifter

Scientific Family

Euranoscopidae

Seasonality

Available year-round.

Size

Maximum size of 75cm.

Price range

Medium priced.

Alternative Species

Crustaceans like prawns, Rock Lobster, or bugs.

ROLL UP YOUR SLEEVES

SHOPPING TIPS

Always sold as fillets due to its less-than-desirable appearance when whole. Look for bright white, firm fillets, with no oozing water or brown markings.

STORAGE TIPS

Lay fillets in a single layer on a plate and cover with plastic wrap or place in an airtight container. Refrigerate for up to 4 days or freeze fillets for up to 3 months, below -18ºC.

COOKING TIPS

In flavour and texture, this is a fish that has more in common with Rock Lobsters or Scampi than any fish. It has a pleasant sweetness and opaque white flesh when cooked which, when the flesh comes apart, resembles the ‘stringiness’ of crustaceans as opposed to the flakiness of fish flesh.

COOKING METHODS

Pan-frying or roasting are ideal. Treat it like a lobster tail!

Flavour pairings

Butter, fresh herbs, capers, garlic, lemon.

IMPORTS

No.

Find similar species by tag

INGREDIENTS:
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons chardonnay vinegar Salt flakes and freshly ground white pepper, to taste
2 golden shallots, very finely diced Rock salt, for serving
 12 freshly shucked Sydney rock oysters Chervil sprigs, for garnishing