GIANT SEAFOOD on Africa’s Biggest Island! Catch and Cook with Primitive Technology!

Good morning everybody. We have finally made it here to Manakara. We are on the beach because today is all about seafood in Madagascar. Manakara is a coastal fishing town in the beautiful country of Madagascar. In the distance, a giant stone pier. A reminder of the French occupation in Madagascar not so long ago. This was built during the colonial time. Now it's broken and they don't use it anymore. The huge ships that once docked here are in stark contrast to the primitive technology still used by locals today. Now people are using those small canoes so when they're landing they just like go through the beach directly. The Malagasy people still approach fishing the same way they would have hundreds of years ago. Small wooden boats. Many carved by hand, sent forth into the sea with one mission. Bring home as much seafood as possible. Today we're joining local fishermen on the beach. How long have you been fishing on the beach in this way? Since I was born. Getting a look at today's catch. It tastes like a shark. And cooking a giant seafood feast fit to feed a village. I kind of get why some of the adults want to eat first. So grab a coffee and your two best fish friends. Today we're doing seafood Madagascar style. What are we doing with that guy right there? What's the plan? We put it here in front of us. In front of us? Pulling sea life from the ocean is a daily routine here and almost all of it will go to market. Your daily wages are directly linked to your daily effort plus a whole lot of luck. So right down here they've just brought in a net on this whole part of the beach. They're not even fishing. This is just like the netting section. Let's go see what they got. You can see over here they are uncovering the net but inside you see tons of these tiny fish. So I mean since they're so close to the shore I think they just get kind of a small return. Which ones do you try to save for yourself to eat? They just try to sell all of it first. If there is some left over then that's the one that they're gonna eat. Though the specimens are small, the variety is huge. Jellyfish, crabs, tiny minnows, and these smiling skates. The second option, deep sea fishing. Some fishermen leave around 1 or 2am, paddle into the darkness, set hooks, and wait. The fishermen start rolling back in around 9am and the result, usually much bigger fish. Wow, what a catch you got here. There's a lot of lobster in here, there's some shrimp. Are they still alive? They are like really have the way to kill it because of the way jumping out of the boat. What time did you go out this morning? At 2am. How far out are they going? At least 4km and they can go further. So can they still see the shore when they're out there? They can see but not really clear. Wow, that sounds a little scary. Do you ever worry one day you'll just wash up on a different shore and have to start a new life with a new family? Ah, she's got an open mouth. No, you have to come back. Okay, okay. I think your family would be pretty pissed if you didn't. This is Alan. I've agreed to buy everything he's caught today. And he's agreed to invite me to his village where it all gets cooked. We've got a big family to feed, so I want to see how the other fishermen fared this morning. Right where the beach meets the river, returning fishermen park their boats and display their catch. Look at this. This is the most insane crab I've ever seen. It is like a felt material all around this crab. He's still alive, but he's kind of given up the fight. Please don't be endangered. We are going to buy it and maybe we eat it or maybe it's a new pet. There's a little like mini stop right here, a little convenience store. This pop-up beach cafe offers weary seamen some coffee and fried bread. Salamat. How'd you do today? Oh, look at this. They got some big fish. Looks good. Seafood economics 101. This woman has already agreed to buy all the seafood this fisherman brings in. From here, she takes it to market. Ma'am, what if I told you, you could sell one of these tunas right now? That would make my life easier. Oh, oh, good. I'm happy to do that. How much for one of these guys? One kilo is 8,000. Where will you check the weight? Oh, you know what? I wish my girlfriend had a fish scale in her purse. One, two, three, four. 4.5? Yeah. It's about $10. Usually, they're going to sell this at the market. They're going to bump up the price, but we're getting kind of the fresh off the boat price right now. This is Alan's village, a complex of homes housing his extended family. The village elders gather around to give their blessings and welcome us. Thank you. Of course, the best way to welcome guests is with booze. Jeez. Are you okay? Okay. Yeah. That deserves an applause. This is illegal rum, much cheaper than legal rum and stronger, too. It's good. That rum could power a tractor, honestly. The men catch the food, and the ladies cook the food. Breadfruit gets peeled along with cassava, peanuts get crushed, seafood is washed, and Angelo shucks some oysters. Guys, I gave him about $5, and this is what he came back with. Look at that. That is incredible. Caught by hand and flavored with sweet or spicy vinegar sauce. This is fresh. Whoa. Oh, that is potent, like salty, but I love the flavor. Is this from the river or from the ocean? From the meeting of the river and the sea. You can eat it without vinegar, too. Okay, I'll just try it plain this time. Mmm. It's very naturally salty. It has kind of like a river-y flavor, but an ocean salt flavor, too. That is very delicious. You're a great oyster guide. Okay. I'll tell you that. Today, I'll pay witness to some of the best flavors in Madagascar. Boiled greens, mashed cassava with peanuts, mashed breadfruit, spiny lobster, that giant tuna from the beach, shrimpies. Another villager even sold me this rainbow lobster for $5. That's crazy. Then there's this potentially endangered crab that I have never seen before. Have you tried eating it before? He didn't eat it yet. Not so much people are, like, eating it. So what would they normally do if they caught it? He'd just, like, throw it back. This might be your lucky day, little guy. Cassava is tough, growing easily in sandy soil with little rain. Also, it's delicious. After it boils for about 30 minutes, it's mashed along with some crushed peanuts. This is the cassava. It's mixed with some peanuts. You can see some specks of the peanut in there, the cassava, and actually, it's kind of, like, purplish hue almost to the sauce in here. Making kind of a mashed cassava potato. You ready? Ready? Mmm. That is really good. Maciru. Mmm. Like, nice, hearty, kind of chewy cassava. And then the sauce has almost become, like, a gravy in there. Mmm. Really simple. Really good. Have you guys ever seen a breadfruit? Because this is a breadfruit. Boiled and mashed with a pinch of salt. The only question is, how do I get these in Minnesota? Nice and steamy. That looks so good. Here we go. Mmm. That one's very creamy. It's almost like a gravy with a bunch of cornstarch, but that's just all breadfruit and a little bit of salt. Sishi. Namarewang. Mmm. Charlize is the executive chef, and this is her diligent cooking team. Right now, she's directing seafood preparation. The shrimps are sauteed with onion and tomato, topped with cassava leaves and boiled in water. The tuna, cut into sections, tossed in a hot steel pot, and topped with fried onion, tomato, and salt. Then steamed until it's cooked through. Finally, the lobster. We're getting the spiny lobsters ready. Just kind of cutting it right down the center. Yeah, because they're like going to grill it, so it's better to cut a bit the shell. How do you handle the smoke? Yeah. I agree. Are you cooking breakfast, lunch, and dinner here each day? I mean, it must take forever. Cooking must just be an all-day job, because you literally have to start a fire three times a day, right? It was in that moment I realized something I said struck a nerve with Charlize. Is she crying because of the lack of free time, or is it maybe the smoke? It's the smoke. Charlize, you have outdone yourself. She can hardly relax right now. She can't stop directing the meal service. Typically, the men are served first, then children, then the remaining is mixed in a bowl and eaten by the ladies. I've asked Charlize to join us. So this may be the first time she's eating her own delicious cooking while it's still hot. Oh, okay. Thank you. Look at these cute little spoons they made. Could you make me a fork out of a banana leaf as well? Yeah, I need a fork. This is it. Guys, what a tremendous effort. He was out since 1am catching all this food right here, orchestrating all this cooking. Joel telling me what the heck is going on the whole time. And now the moment has come. We are ready to eat. Can we do this? Let's do it. Oh, so look at this. Everyone's going for this one right away. That is the cassava with some peanut in there. This is kind of a soup made with shrimpies. So I'm getting some leaves, a little bit of broth. It's working. It's staying in the spoon. Wonderful shrimp essence and then a nice oily broth. Especially the leaves, it's a bit hot. What kind of leaf is it? We just call it like hot leaves. Hot leaves? Yes. It sounds like you just made that up. You're like, it's hot. It's a leaf. Hot leaves. Can I eat the tuna with my hand? It's still warm. Wow. It is so juicy. And they cooked it just in the pot with some spices, some salt, some tomato. It's just nice, natural, fatty juices. Oh, look, the kids are eating now. Wow. Oh, God. Have you ever seen a lobster this big? This is the normal size. Look at this. Some meat came out immediately from the body with some head butter on the edge there. Wow. This is one of the meatiest lobsters I've ever seen. Is this okay? Yeah. This half. Can I share this with you? Cheers. This is some of the best, freshest seafood I've had in a long time. Although, an insane amount of work, but the product is well worth it. Chalice. Misutra. Misutra, best. Oh, so good. We're going to make sure everyone else gets fed. We're going to make sure the camera guys get fed. Before we finish today, there is one more thing I have to do. Well, little buddy, it was good to meet you. You just seem too special to eat. It's been a fulfilling day, but it's time that I let you go. After further research, it turns out that was a Chinese mitten crab, an invasive species. Literally, the worst thing I could have done was throwing it back in the water. Go be free. This is where Miss Place Compassion gets you. Joel, my man, you have been an amazing guide. Thank you so much. Pleasure. Joel is actually with Ramar Tour. Madagascar would have been so much more difficult for us to navigate and figure out, but with them, we've set up the perfect itinerary and had so many great experiences. I highly recommend them. Also, this video was made possible by One Trip Vietnam. One Trip is the highest rated tour company in Vietnam, doing tours from north to south in all major cities, including Hanoi, Nha Trang, Da Nang, Hoi An, and Saigon. You can experience food tours, adventure tours, and more. To learn more about One Trip, check out the links in the description down below. I will see you next time. Peace. No. That's my crab. Bye. Good luck.