Summer may be over, but that doesn't mean you have to stop enjoying seafood! Many Australian species come into their prime in Autumn, and paying attention to seasonality is guaranteed to get you the freshest seafood and the best prices.   

We chatted to our Seafood Trading team to get you the latest autumn recommendations – try one of these species over the next couple of months to discover the best seasonal seafood Australia has to offer.   
 

Moreton Bay Bug  

These delicious crustaceans are available year round, however they’re usually caught as bycatch in northern prawn fisheries, meaning that supply therefore peaks alongside these prawns in Autumn. They have a reddish-brown shell, broad flat head with eyes at either edge, a short narrow tail, and 5 pairs of small legs.  

Bugs can be cooked on the BBQ in the shell, or removed from the shell and pan-fried, poached, or baked. Chef Joel Bickford from Shell House in Sydney's CBD makes a delicious tomato pasta topped with pan-fried bug meat, and a sea vegetable called Samphire (for an extra hit of saltiness). 
 

Wild-Caught Barramundi  

While farmed Barramundi is available year-round (thanks to Australia's fantastic aquaculture sector), wild-caught Barramundi peaks in supply between February and May. Large Barramundi is usually sold as fillets; when purchasing these, look for lustrous, firm, moist white-pinkish flesh without any brown markings or oozing water, and with a pleasant fresh smell. Small Barramundi is mostly sold whole; here, look for firm flesh which springs back when touched, and a pleasant fresh smell.  

Barramundi is great barbecued or baked, wrapped in paper or banana leaves to protect the delicate flesh. Great Australian Seafood has a fantastic collection of Barramundi recipes on their website: click here to explore. 

 
Yellowfin Bream  

Autumn is the absolute peak season for Yellowfin Bream, meaning they are regularly seen on special in Sydney Fish Market retailers around this time of the year. They are usually sold whole (gilled and gutted), and occasionally in fillet form.   

Bream are great plate-sized fish cooked whole, and their flesh also works well steamed with Asian flavours. Don’t be daunted by the idea of cooking a whole fish – it is deceptively simple and infuses it with incredible flavours. Try this recipe from Sydney Seafood School for Steamed Whole Bream with Green Chilli and Coriander.    
 

Sea Mullet 

Sea Mullet (also known as Bully Mullet) is a fish for the true seafood lovers. Your favourite fish’s favourite fish, Mullet have been loved by those in the know for tens of thousands of years in Australia, everywhere on the east coast.  

This hardy fish is at home in the freshwater upper reaches of estuaries as it is in the ocean and will take on a corresponding estuarine or marine flavour. As a rule of thumb, the further up an estuary a mullet is caught, the stronger the flavour, with sea run Mullet having a more neutral, briny flavour.  

However, all Mullet share an uncommonly high levels of omega-3 in their generously distributed fat, and it is flavour in this fat that is the secret to their appeal. To get the most out of this fish, work with the fat. Use methods that are likely to char the skin - barbecuing, roasting or placing skin-side up under the grill for a few minutes. Let the fat render down, dressing the flesh as it goes.  

Due to Mullet’s wide distribution as well as their schooling nature, Mullet are easy for our fishers to target, and cheap to buy. At the peak of the autumn Mullet run on the NSW coast, the price can get as low at $2/kg, though they usually retail for closer to $5 to $8/kg for whole fish.   
 

Ocean Jacket 

These weird-looking fish are by far the most valuable commercial Leatherjacket species, and are caught mainly in the Great Australian Bight in traps or by demersal trawlers. Being part of the Leatherjacket family, they lack scales and instead have a distinctive, sandpapery skin (hence the name).  

Ocean Jackets are sold as trunks – meaning gutted and skinned, with their heads removed - which makes them super easy to handle in the kitchen. As their flesh is firm, they hold their own well in soups, curries and casseroles – perfect for the cooler weather. 
 

Blue Swimmer Crab 

Blue Swimmer Crabs are one of the few Crab species not sold live, and are instead available cooked or green (uncooked) – a bonus if you’re squeamish about purchasing live crustaceans.  

The flesh of these crabs is translucent when raw and white when cooked, and has a mild, sweet, nutty flavour, and low oiliness. Their meat is generally moist, evenly textured and firm (claw meat is firmer than that found in body and legs).  

Some people enjoy the stronger tasting ‘mustard’ or brown meat in the body. We recommend serving boiled Crab with Asian dipping sauces such as nam pla, or mayonnaise (flavoured with 'mustard', garlic, or herbs) or hot melted butter with a squeeze of lemon juice. 
 

Smooth & Spikey Oreodories 

Although widely spread across Southern Ocean deep-seas, the fact that this fish can live up to 2km deep means that there’s still a lot to learn about it. What we do know is that the Oreodories have an extremely protrusible mouth which allows them to feed on a variety of deep-sea prey, such as crustaceans and small cephalopods.  

This diet, coupled with their extremely cold ambient temperature, make for a particularly fatty, rich fillet, while maintaining a mild flavour. They are always sold as fillets (we freely admit that this fish, while adorable as a juvenile, is not classically handsome) of around 100 grams in weight, making them perfect as a single serve, either deep-fried or grilled.