The Name Game

 Ever have a recipe that you couldn’t name? That’s the case with this particular dish. I’ve been making it for many years, and there’s a really great story connected to it. But I haven’t been able to name it appropriately.

This is more a technique that a specific recipe. Here’s the story:

When I lived in the Midwest I was an avid steelhead and salmon fishermen. Around this time of year I spent a lot of time fishing a particular hot-water discharge stream, from a power plant. Sometimes we regulars would prepare lunch right there, using fresh-caught fish.

Comes a time I had just published a story about that hot water discharge fishery, so there were a lot of newbies trying their luck. Meanwhile, I’d brought all the fixings for this dish, expecting to make it using steelhead. I got the fire going, laid out my ingredients, and, half kidding, yelled to a buddy, “ok, Dave, get me a small one. Something around four pounds.”

Dave casts his salmon roe quartering upstream and starts to bounce it on the bottom. Bounce…bounce….bounce….strike. And a few minutes later there’s a fresh-run steelie on the beach, coming in at---are you ready---an ounce more than four pounds.

“Oh, my God!,” exclaimed one of the newbies to his partner. “These guys are so good they catch ‘em to order!”

I’ve thought of calling this “catch ‘em to order steelhead” but that doesn’t seem catchy enough. Anyway, here is the technique. It works with any trout or salmon. Warning: The final dish doesn’t taste anything like it sounds. The salt and sugar act as foils to each other. So give this a try before you say “ugh.”

Filets of any salmonid, all bones removed

Brown sugar

Salt

Sliced onions

Butter

Foil

Rub a sheet of foil large enough to contain the filet with butter. Center a filet on the foil.

Cover the filet with a generous layer of brown sugar. I mean a thick layer. On a large fish, a full quarter inch layer or more is none too much. Cover the brown sugar with a layer of salt. It should be at least as thick as the sugar layer, with no sugar showing though. But a layer of sliced onions over the salt, and dot with butter.

Wrap the fish in the foil, sealing all seams well. Lay the package on hot coals and cook, turning once, ten minutes per inch of thickness. Unwrap and serve hot.

Although I haven’t tried it, this would probably be an ideal approach for many stronger salt water fish, such as bluefish and mackerel.

And, if anyone has what they think is a good name…….