Thursdays Are For Cooking….

| February 3, 2022


Since it’s ice fishing time, and more people are out doing that now, parking themselves and their younglings in colorful fishing huts on the nearest lake (which just happens to have large stocks of fish), I thought I’ve give you all a little hint on what to do with the fish you catch…. if you go fishing, that is.

This particular lake has lake trout, northern pike, perch, bass, and a few crappies. When I went up there last week, about 5 miles north of me, whole families were out there with those fishing huts, having a fine time on the ice. Since all the lakes in my area are stocked early in the Spring, the fishing birds like mergansers will show up to get their fair share, too. But in the winter? Those feather flockers just head south and leave the rest of the schools of fish to us lowly humans.

Note: this recipe comes from Rachel Ray, and if you bring in a big catch of fish, you know you can prep it for the freezer to keep it on hand. In my photo, the top piece of fish is salmon and the other piece is lake trout.

Ingredients

Directions

  • In a large (10- to 12-inch) cast-iron skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Season the trout with 1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper. Place the trout, skin side down, in the skillet. Scatter with the thyme and lemon slices.

  • Cook the trout, spooning the butter from the bottom of the skillet over the fish often, until just cooked through (do not flip), about 5 minutes. Transfer the fish and lemon slices to a serving plate.

  • Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the lemon juice, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Spoon the pan sauce over the fish. Top with the parsley.

Fix some pan-fried sliced potatoes and onions to go with it, add a couple of bowls of veggies like radishes, baby carrots, celery sticks, green onions with tails, and whatever else takes your fancy, and if you prefer tartar sauce over lemon, fine by me. And for dessert? Whatever you like best, of course!

Enjoy your weekend. Things seem to be stirring in the Outer Limits. Just watch, smile, and nod, dear.

Category: Cooking

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ninja

Thank You, again, Ex, for sharing! We will try your recipe using Salmon.
Have you ever had a meal consisting of fried catfish with hush puppies, fried okra, corn on the cob with sweet tea and homemade real nana puddin as dessert? Soooo good….What did I leave out, KoB?
😉😎 gabn/hbtd/rtr

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KoB

Cheese grits, ninja…and some fresh sliced ‘maters (Ms Thang down the road has ’em year round from her green house). Shipped the chill’ren caught behind enemy lines in Flur-ruh-duh some Natty Champ tee-shirts that were produced locally. gabn/rtr/hbtd 😉

Is it me or does it seem like every good recipe starts with “…cast iron skillet…”?

Looking Good Mi’Lady, the cooking threads have been missed. Lubs me some fish and all the trimmings. And down heah, you don’ts have to poke no hole in the ice to catch them. We like to catch them filetable perch, crappies, and catfish. No bones to fight that way.

Thanks Matey, Let’s eat!

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ninja

Cast Iron Skillet…Best investment we ever made!! Yep on those ‘maters, KoB…and cheese grits? We NEVER get tired of that!

😄😄😄 on those Tee-Shirts…We felt sorry for all those businesses in Bama country who were willing to keep their stores open in hopes of selling THEIR Tee-Shirts..😉😎

We will be back. 2022 has got to be a better year, i.e. GOP taking over the House and Senate, Army beating Navy, Bama and the Dawgs on another winning streak again..😄
gabn/hbtd/rtr

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Ex-PH2

I have not had catfish in a long, long time and the stores here don’t sell it. If I ever go fishing again, I may try to find a place where the wild cats(fish) hide in the lake weeds or river bends and just throw a line into the water, and GOOF OFF!

Right now, I do miss corn on the cob dripping with butter and really good hashed browns to go with that.

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Claw

Ex, the closest place for you to find some cats (either channel, blues or two pound bullheads) is in the Little Calumet River there in Abe Lincoln Land. Just take either I-57 or I-94 to the south of Chi-Town and find a shady spot to drop a line in the water. Enjoy!!

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Ex-PH2

I was thinking there might be some channel catfish in the Des Plaines watershed, but if nothing else, there is Ole Miss, to the west. There’s a town over there that likes fishing tourists.

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Roh-Dog

Mmmmmm, trout.
Can’t wait for fish murdering season!
I’m a pepper, salt and lemon kinda guy. Paired with Stella or a white wine?
Heaven.

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AW1Ed

Step 1. Catch fish.
Step 2. Have chili in the slow-cooker when you come home having failed step 1.
And cornbread, or course, either way.
*grin*

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Ex-PH2

Cornbread: best snack ever….

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AW1Ed

Don’t utter the “S” word and “corn bread” on the same website!

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ninja

With BUTTER….REAL BUTTER…

Butter and Bacon. How do Vegans survive…😉😎

P.S. to Ex: Do hope you get a hold of some catfish. Sooo good!!

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Ex-PH2

Spring will get here some day…. 🙂

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ninja

Speaking of fish and chili: We found this in our local commissary a week ago. The shelves are getting bare and we guess DECA was desperate to fill the freezers. Our response was “Interesting.” For those who have duty in the Phillipines, you may recall that their Pizza Hut carried Tuna Fish Pizza. To Each His Own!! 😉😎

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gitarcarver

For those who like to cook under pressure……

In this cold winter, a fish stew is a welcome change of pace. Most of the ingredients are in your pantry (except maybe the red potatoes.

Ingredients

  • 8 oz. bacon thick cut, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 6 oz. tomato paste
  • 1 Tbsp. garlic minced
  • 2 lbs. red potatoes cut into ¼-inch slices
  • 1 lb. yellow onions cut into ¼-inch slices
  • 1 ½ tsp. sea salt divided
  • 2 lbs. fish your choice
  • 4 cups seafood stock
  • 6 eggs the highest quality you find
instant_pot_fish_stew.jpg
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gitarcarver

Part two:

Instructions

  • Using sauté setting – add bacon to pot and cook until almost crispy. Add tomato paste to pot, mix well, and cook for about 1 minute. Add garlic and cook for another minute. Then turn off heat.
  • Add a layer of potatoes, followed by a layer of onions. Season with ¼ teaspoon of salt. Add a layer of fish and season with ¼ teaspoon of salt. Repeat layers again, ending with a layer of fish on top.
  • Pour in seafood stock. You want the liquid to just barely touch the bottom of the top layer of fish. So, if need be, add a little water to achieve that. Lock lid and cook for 3 minutes at high pressure.
  • Once cook time is complete, quick-release pressure. Remove lid and skim as much fat from the top as you like. I think a little fat is good, but you can skim it all off if you like.
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gitarcarver

Finally, part 3:

  • Switch back to sauté setting. Crack eggs into empty spaces on top. Once all the eggs are in, switch back to “keep warm” setting and place the lid back on pot.
  • Allow edge to poach in the residual heat. For slightly runny eggs (like I prefer), let them sit for about 7 minutes. But for hard cooked eggs, it’ll probably take 15 or so. To serve… Gently scoop out stew, making sure to get all the way to the bottom so that you get some bacon! Top each bowl with an egg or two.
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ninja

gitcarver: So far, the ninja family has burned three meals using an Instant Pot.
Our munchkins gave us an Air Fryer which is ironic considering we rarely fry our foods anymore. (Yes, KoB, we did kinda give it up, but we still love and eat fried food if others serve it at family get togethers). We tried the Air Fryer because it was a gift and so far, two meals have been a failure (the meat was not cooked as it should even though we followed instructions). We are still trying with those new gadgets. Heck, our munchkins gave us one of those Echoes/Alexi gadgets 5 years and we still have not used it. 😉😎

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gitarcarver

If you are burning meals in the Instant Pot or other pressure cookers, it is because you don’t have enough liquid in the pot.

Unless you are sauteing, you need the liquid to build pressure otherwise all that happens is that you burn foods as well as the stainless steel liner as well.

As for air fryers, I have found that it is good to “sneak up” on cooking until you get a feel for it. Times and temps even in air fryers vary. It also helps if you don’t open the door / tray much.

The first time I cooked BBQ chicken in the air fryer, it was burned terrible. When I started to sneak up on the final product, I was able to get the time right for the future.

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KoB

GC, you had me at bacon (…and on the eighth day, God created bacon).

ninja, I don’t fry near as much as I used to, not that I give a gnats behind about the supposed health risks, More of a hassle on the clean up of spatters and the longer term standing to monitor/flip stuff. I spend a lot of quality time with my crockett pot, grill/smoker. But then again, I got nothing to do and all day to get that nothing done. 😎 😉

On the Air Fryer thing, practice makes perfect and having a good quality unit makes a BIG difference. Look into/research the American Harvest Brand Cyclonic Units. They were one of the FIRST to perfect that technology and their design makes for a more even and consistent cooking. Little more than a bit spendy than the cheapies out there, but well worth the difference. Full disclosure…AH was one of the lines I repped for way back yonder. I did demos at housewares and CES venues using them and got not only proposals, but some interesting propositions.

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gitarcarver

I was not a fan of air fryers because of the size of the baskets. However, I bought a Instant Omni Plus Oven / Convection Over / Air Fryer / Rotisserie that I could not be happier with.

It is like more like a large toaster over (and it does toast as well.)

You have to fiddle with air fryers because some have one fan. Some have 2 fans. Some even have 3. Everything is a variable including time and temperature.

Sadly, the Omni Plus is not made anymore, but Instant has a new one and other companies are making something similar.

Instant-Pot-Omni-Plus--640-px-OPTI.jpg
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Tallywhagger

Yeah, I WANT that!

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Tallywhagger

I’d like to hear a bit more about gitarcarver’s seafood stock. Do you purchase it already made? If not, what’s involved in creating it?

When living in the metro-DC area it was easy to come by various concoctions from Asian stores. One place in Rockville had a really good fish flavored bouillon. The box is written in an unknown language but 1 T per cup seems to have been about right.

Down to the my last box of it, as of today… been gone from that area for twenty one years. The freshly opened package, today, was just as good as the first package from about 27 years ago.

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gitarcarver

Because of space, I am a HUGE fan of “Better than Bouillon” products. I have mentioned them here before.

They make a delicious fish that you can find here: https://www.betterthanbouillon.com/products/fish-base/

Amazon also sells it:
https://www.amazon.com/Better-Than-Bouillon-Base-Fish/dp/B004VELNCK?th=1

That being said, Ex-PH2‘s “inspiration” for this thread was people going out and ice fishing. That means that when you clean the fish, you have the heads which is where a lot of flavor is. (Supposedly the jowls of the fish is the most flavorful part of it.)

With the heads, I would consider making my own fish stock and either canning or freezing it.

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gitarcarver

Oh look!

Pressure Cooker Fish Stock

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 small carrots , cut into large chunks
  • 1-2 celery ribs , cut into large chunks
  • 1 medium onion , quartered
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 5 whole black peppercorns
  • fresh flat-leaf parsley (a few sprigs)
  • 2 pounds white fish heads (900 grams), see note 1 & 2
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme , see note 3
  • 2 tablespoon salt , see note 4
  • 6 cups water (1.5 liter), see note 5

Instructions 

  • Turn on instant pot and press SAUTE. When hot, pour in oil and add carrots and celery and onions. Sauté for about 2 minutes.
  • Add the rest of the ingredients and give everything a stir.
  • Cover with lid, lock it into its position and turn the steam release valve to SEALING. Press PRESSURE COOK (or MANUAL) and set timer to 20 minutes. When the time is up, wait for natural pressure release (wait until the pin drops down) before opening the pot.
  • Let it cool down, strain and pour into sterilized jars/containers and use in fish recipes
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gitarcarver
  1. Fish – I prefer using white-meat fish for fish stock. Fish heads, bones or tails are great for fish stock, but also various small fish can be used.
  2. Make sure there is more fish than vegetables. You can use more fish bones/heads for a stronger broth.
  3. Dried thyme can be substituted with fresh thyme or dried/fresh rosemary.
  4. You will need enough water to cover the fish and other ingredients.
  5. You can make the fish stock completely salt-free if you like.
  6. You can pour the chilled stock into a freezer-friendly container (make sure to leave enough space to expand). It will last up to 3 months. When storing in the fridge (air-tight container/jar), it should last up to 5 days. Sterilize the containers first to avoid bacteria from growing.
  7. This recipe was developed for a 6-quart/6-liter instant pot.
  8. The total cooking time does not include the time the pot needs to come to pressure (15 minutes) nor the time needed to release the pressure naturally (up to 60 minutes).
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gitarcarver

Source: https://www.happyfoodstube.com/instant-pot-fish-stock/

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