Poll
Poll Question: What is your favorite way to prepare fish on canoe trips?

Fried    
  34 (53.1%)
Seared    
  6 (9.4%)
Poached    
  5 (7.8%)
Baked    
  10 (15.6%)
Grilled    
  7 (10.9%)
"Sushi"    
  1 (1.6%)
Other    
  1 (1.6%)




Total votes: 64
« Created by: DentonDoc on: Nov 18th, 2009 at 4:40am »

 25 Fish ... Its what's for dinner (Read 25426 times)
DentonDoc
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Fish ... Its what's for dinner
Nov 18th, 2009 at 4:40am
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A currently active thread describes a series of ways to prepare fish.  What is your preference?  Make your selection(s) and add a note that describes any special "treatment" you use for preparation and/or cooking.

dd
  
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db
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Re: Fish ... Its what's for dinner
Reply #1 - Nov 18th, 2009 at 7:56am
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I probably shouldn't vote until I find out exactly what seared means.

I fry most often as it's the easiest way to achieve the crunch I so enjoy but there are two ways to fry. One is battered and deep fried. I never do that. I do (You need to Login or Register to view media files and links) most often. Could that be considered seared? What's seared?

Poached has always made me feel really, reeeeeallllly old since chewing is not required but poor man's lobster is good enough to be an every other trip thing and is the next best when I run out of crunch fixens. There is no excuse for overcooking when you poach.

Baked, again there's baked in foil and what, air baked? Both tend to be cumbersome which requires a group trip. The last trout I prepared was in 2003 - my first air baked trout and it was good. The fish part was preferable to foil baked but I missed the cavity rice. I'll do (You need to Login or Register to view media files and links) if it's raining and my tarp is positioned wrong. I tend to intentionally over cook that recipe a bit to regain some of the fish layered texture in the mush.

Grilled requires equipment I've never taken, I think.... BW/Q Sushi IMO would require an emergency of some sort or perhaps a shower and different wardrobe.

Planked has always sounded interesting to me, especially for trout IMO. That would take some doing though too. Again I should ask, what is seared?

Hey, check out this (You need to Login or Register to view media files and links) website! Grin
  
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arkansasman
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Re: Fish ... Its what's for dinner
Reply #2 - Nov 18th, 2009 at 11:39am
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While tripping I prefer my fish to be pan seared with a little butter and oil, lightly seasoned with a grind or two of sea salt... or with a sprinkle of lemon pepper, or possibly even Tony C's Cajun seasoning!

Bruce
  
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Re: Fish ... Its what's for dinner
Reply #3 - Nov 18th, 2009 at 1:35pm
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"other" = on a stick over a fire;  occasionally do baked in foil.
  
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Old Salt
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Re: Fish ... Its what's for dinner
Reply #4 - Nov 18th, 2009 at 1:38pm
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I like my waldos 'bronzed', cooked over hot heat w/ 50/50 blend of canola oil & squeeze marjorine. Any seasonings, including cajun, can be used.

I like my lakers baked in foil.

So, one method does not cover me. No vote.
  
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Re: Fish ... Its what's for dinner
Reply #5 - Nov 18th, 2009 at 4:26pm
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db,

Seared means to brown/scorch over very high heat. Not quite Blackened Cajun hot, but pretty close.
It seals in the flavor and juices and prevents lean cuts of meat/poultry or fish from drying out.
 Oily fish or fatty meat and poultry you can fry with little or no oil in a non-stick pan and they'll be okay.

A lean piece of meat, like a pork loin chop/ non-marbled beef, you sear quickly on both sides and turn down heat, sometimes you would cover with a lid in on a fry pan, or in restaurants they'll put the seared fish/meat in a oven to finish cooking.

You see them doing with large cuts of meat like pot roast all the time on the cooking shows. By searing all 4 sides until caramelized, you lock in the juices and then you roast slowly in oven.
 IF you have thin enough fish fillets, a quick sear on both sides will cook the fish enough. The tricky part comes if the fillets are thick. Then you can end up with the fish appearing done, but when you bite in, you have that "sushi" experience Grin
 The biggest mistake people make is trying to turn the fish/meat before its caramelized, or moving it around with your spatula. That's really important with fish, because until it's seared/caramelized evenly, it will break apart when you try to turn it.

Best thing to do, is give the skillet a little shake when you can see the edges of the fillet curl a little. If the fillet is seared evenly, it will slide easily in pan and it's ready to turn over.

My vote is for baked, as I like Lakers in foil anyway you want too make them.
  
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Re: Fish ... Its what's for dinner
Reply #6 - Nov 18th, 2009 at 5:23pm
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Old Salt wrote on Nov 18th, 2009 at 1:38pm:
So, one method does not cover me. No vote.

That's why the lead in says "selections(s)" ... you can vote for more than one "style" on this poll.  BTW:  If you mis-interpreted the poll initially, you should be alble to remove your vote (lower-right corner of the poll panel) and re-vote with more than one selection.

I've not done straight "sushi" on a canoe trip, but I have eaten roe taken directly from the fish ... amazingly salty, but what would you expect of "caviar?"  I've also tasted a few slivers of fish while cleaning.  (Raw fish doesn't really bother me, but I guess to be completely safe from parasites, etc. it should be cooked.)

Searing (as arkansasman/solotripper suggests) is cooking (usually with a skillet) with no or minimal oil.  Typically you need to cut the portion sizes a bit smaller so its easier to cook through, if that is your desire.  So, if your fish is lake trout, you might be able to get away from using any oil.

I realized when I created the poll that fish could be batter fried or fried with seasonings and baked over the fire or in foil.  Ultimately I ran out of poll choices to list (only one unused option when the poll was created).  So, when I asked for "notes/comments" part of that was to identify your cooking style with that selection.

I'll generally cook fish in a style that I'm in the mood for ... so I fry (with and without batter/breading), sear,  poach (usually with beer at home) and bake (in foil)

I guess I'll have to try grilling!  Smiley
dd
  
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Re: Fish ... Its what's for dinner
Reply #7 - Nov 19th, 2009 at 1:31am
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Made fish (baked) tonight for dinner with a shrimp/cream of mushroom sauce poured over the top -YUM!

Basser
  
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Re: Fish ... Its what's for dinner
Reply #8 - Nov 19th, 2009 at 3:06am
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FWIW, the "sushi" option for "white meat" isn't a good one for 2 reasons.  One, the taste is very bland and has all the palette pleasure of a rotten apple.  Two, the parasite factor.  May as well cook it.

OTOH, lake trout can inspire a decent sushi - particularly on a cracker with some flavor (triscuits, etc...) or even rolled in rice wrapped in a birch leaf.  Yeah, a birch leaf.  Get out the wassabi!
« Last Edit: Nov 19th, 2009 at 1:49pm by PhantomJug »  
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db
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Re: Fish ... Its what's for dinner
Reply #9 - Nov 19th, 2009 at 7:52am
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Searing fish still doesn't resonate in my brain so I watched 2 ehow vids, one on pan frying and the other on searing fish. They were essentially the same except for the pan - same guy too. I guess what I do most could sort-of be called searing but to me searing is what you do with red meat like steak and beef roast.

In any case, no matter how they are prepared, the fish we all eat in the BW/Q are fresh. Cook 'em however you want but that freshness is why my mouth is watering right now. I basically stopped eating fish anywhere else unless I KNOW it's fresh because when it's not, it's almost always a huge disappointment - much like venison that wasn't aged properly.
  
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