Fish pron questions

[vr6Cop]

This thread got me hungry for some good fish.

Rick's Tropical Delight posted a few pictures of whole fish being smoked. They look spectacular, as to do the other seafood pics. It looks like the whole fish are stuffed with various things.

What type of fish are those? What are some times for whole fish that size? WHat are some of the stuffings? I'd love to do more fish, but my wife always gets tired of the same ole' fish, and she can't eat shellfish. I think doing some whole would be great.

Any good links or tips for doing whole fish (other than salmon)?

Thanks in advance Brethren!

 

[thirdeye]

Rick had several rainbow trout pictures in that post. I'm sure he will jump in with the exact stuffing details. Things I like in the cavity are onion. lemon and herbs. Those little grates are really handy and planks are a good choice too. (this is a brown trout) You can cook skinless fillets on them too. One trick is to put a layer of lemon slices on the plank and lay the fillets on them.

Just about any baked or baked/stuffed fish recipe can be cooked on the grill. Large steaks like swordfish or shark come out really good.

 

[Rick's Tropical Delight]

fish pron! that has a ring to it for some reason :biggrin:

anyway, yep, those were all rainbow trout caught by my father and nephew up near bellefontaine, ohio at a trout club. they clean em and chill em for ya, but my dad has to pay by the pound for each trout in addition to the yearly membership fee! it's fly fishing only, and sometimes you slay em, and sometimes it's casting practice.

so... here's what i have been doing with the trout.

extra virgin olive oil
lemon slices, half slices fit nicely
sometimes apple slices, halved
sliced shallots
ground sea salt
ground black pepper
maybe a rosemary sprig if i have some (i really need to plant some rosemary!)
sometime some dizzy pig raging river

and that's pretty much it for prep. i do this just prior to cooking. you could really get away with just the olive oil and s&p. the oil keeps the skin from sticking to the grid.

so then indirect with a mild wood like apple or maple or alder. low-n-slow or 300. it's done when it looks good to you... maybe 3-4 hours at 230 and maybe 1-2 hours at 300. i've done them on the gasser with no temp gage and when the flesh flakes easily and you can pull out a fin easily, it's done.

these trout have a lot of little bones in them, but if you are good, you can pull the majority of them out with the backbone and with the fins.

 

[thirdeye]

I bet rosemary is good with the fish. Okay here we go again ..... herb pron. :mrgreen:

 

[tonto1117]

Uh Oh.......

 

[Rick's Tropical Delight]

we have such sights to show you :icon_devil

 

[ibait2fish]

The biggest thing is the brine...smoke doesn't mess it up, unless you have
WAY, WAY too much (alder is best, hickory, maple, etc. work fine.)

Too salty a brine causes trouble...a lot.
Here's a recipe...

Dissolve enough pickling salt (avoid iodized) salt in enough water to just
barely float an egg...try the egg in fresh water first to make sure that it sinks to the bottom...if not, get another...)

add your spices, brown sugar, etc....then the fish...refrigerate...up to 36
hours.

rinse (or not, depending on you tastes)

into the smoker...

Now, most will get it done in three to four hrs...BUT...

if you want cold-smoked fish (preserved), then 20-30 hrs @ 90F or less.

for most fish...4 hours at any temperature is enough...
cool, the store...)

 

[chingador]

for fresh fish, I feel that the simpler the better is the key. I catch a lot of wild red snapper on my boat and like to grill it half shell with seasoning and butter only. The fish is so good it does not need a lot of help

 

[Solidkick]

Now I gotta run to McDonalds and get me a fillet of fish........

Honestly, I've never really considered smoking fish..I guess I should try it sometime.....it would have to be roughy, that's about the only non fried fish I will eat.

 

[River City Smokehouse]

 

[parrothead]

You guys are making me hungry and I just woke up. Think I will be making a run to Jewel for some seafood.

 

[vr6Cop]

I'll be up around the fish market today, so I might have to stop and get some now. Thanks for the fish pron. Mmmmmm....prawns. There's what I need. :tongue:

BTW, my wife loves salmon using the Dizzy Pig Raging River/maple syrup glaze recipe.

We're just looking for a little more variety. (in the kitchen, not the bedroom) :mrgreen:

 

[big brother smoke]

Could not help myself!:tongue:

 

[Rick's Tropical Delight]

for fresh fish, I feel that the simpler the better is the key. I catch a lot of wild red snapper on my boat and like to grill it half shell with seasoning and butter only. The fish is so good it does not need a lot of help

that looks fantastic! you will send me 10 pounds of that! :biggrin:

 

[Sledneck]

Did some swordfish and veggies last night