Growing up I fished with great regularity on waters both big and small: open water from Lake St. Clair to Lake Huron to the Atlantic Ocean; rivers from the Pere Marquette and Au Sable to those I could step over. The common thread through all that water was that any legal fish we caught became food…no questions asked. I enjoyed mounded platters of everything from perch and walleye to trout and bass, salmon and pike to grouper and grunt, mahi mahi and mackerel to yellowfin and…well, you get the point. To say I had my fill of every sort of fish imaginable is not much of an overstatement. The amount of fish, and game, that we ate was a wonderful thing for me as a child...one blissfully ignorant of the fact that without those meals I would have likely eaten much less, as there was not much money to go around in those days.
I still eat quite a bit of fish, but these days it is most likely bought and paid for instead of sweated after, as I have become something of a convert to catch-and-release. That being said, I am still a sucker for a good fresh meal, and will harvest a few fish every now and then as the mood suits. As it turns out my favorite meal is not steak, ribs, or some Italian pasta concoction, but rather trout. Specifically, my favorite is Rainbow Trout served with green beans, baby new potatoes, and a bit of fresh ciabatta bread. The following is how I prepare and present the meal. For some this is nothing more than a tease you will read at work, knowing full well you'll spend the rest of the day thinking about how you will catch or pickup some fish on the way home to prepare this old standby. For others, this will be something new to try and savor.
I start by getting all the pieces of the meal out; washed, rinsed, and ready to go. Get the water steaming for the beans and potatoes. Lay out the eggs, fillets (hopefully fresh caught), and spices.
Once I have the steam going I drop the potatoes into one pot and the green beans in another, then focus my attention on the fish. When I take wild fish I prefer to butterfly them, as this is the easiest and quickest fillet for me on site, and I feel that it keeps the meat in better shape until I am ready to cook them. One tip is to fillet the fish no more than 15 minutes after death, if at all possible, even if this means doing it streamside and putting on ice. I have no explanation as to why, but this seems to keep the fish tasting much fresher. It is at this point that I prepare the batter consisting of Italian bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, a little Lawry's and a pinch of garlic salt.
With the fillets removed from the skin I proceed to double batter them as the oil comes up to temperature. The oil should be hot enough to spit a bit if you flick a drop of water on to it, but not so hot as to overcook the fish…this is something you will get down with experience. As I put the first fillets in the oil I also place the ciabatta bread in the oven. The fish will not take too long on each side; as the fish is ready the batter will turn a nice, golden brown. Be careful in flipping the pieces, as if they are properly done they will fall apart on you. The pieces would, of course, still be delicious, but you lose points on presentation!
Approximately fifteen minutes after the beans are in I turn off that burner, followed five minutes later by the potatoes. At about the time the potatoes are done you should have all the components of your feast ready to plate and get to the table!
For me there is nothing better than this meal, especially when followed up by a nice piece of apple walnut pie cooked up earlier in the day (you are on your own for that recipe!)
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Meal time: PRICELESS!
For me this is simply known as ‘the meal’.
I hope that you all are able to get some fish on the table soon.
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