# Too Easy Steelhead



## Chief Longwind Of The North (Nov 6, 2014)

Close your eyes and imagine taking a bite of deep salmon colored rainbow trout, or steelhead.  The outside texture is softly crisp, like a potato chip, with a delicate flavoring of salt and pepper, light and clean.  The fish skin doesn't taste oily or fishy, but is crisp and light.  The fish flesh is pure trout, clean and delicate, moist and firm, but tender, and again, lightly crispy on the outer surface.  Now imagine a second bite that is identical to the first bite.  You are in fish-lover's Nirvana.

That was last night's steelhead, coupled with a very flavorful side of savory Great Northern beans, and a light green salad, with a splash of raspberry-vinaigrette.

"So how was the fish cooked?"; you ask.  What was the technique.  Wait no longer you cravers of  marvelous trout (I'd say troutheads, but it just doesn't have the same good connotation as cheeseheads).  Now this is just too easy, and produced spectacular results.  Here goes.

Heat neutral flavored cooking oil to 360' F.  Make french fries for the DW, and refry left-over, homemade eggrolls. again for DW (She's not a fish lover).  While her meal is cooking, prepare your favorite bean dish, starting with canned beans to save time.  When her food is plated, drop a frozen Steelhead steak, about an inch-and-a-half thick, into the hot oil.  Let it fry for about ten minutes.  Turn over after the first 5 minutes and cook for 5 minutes more.  Plate with salad and beans.  Lightly season the fish with salt and pepper.

That simple preperation - drop frozen fish steak in hot oil and fry until done through, was one of the finest fish preperations I've ever eaten, and I've eaten a lot of fish, cooked a lot of ways.  For a genuine trout/salmon/char lover, this will become a favorite.  There is nothing to distract from the great fish flavor, and the texture is amazing.

Why am I going on and on about this?  I do so because it was really, really good.  And besides, I am Chief Longwind of the North.

Seeeeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


----------



## Zagut (Nov 6, 2014)

Sorry to say it Chief but it looks like you're getting older. 

I've found that I enjoy the simple preparations of foods over the more complicated recipes as I get older. 

Looks like a simple and tasty way to fix the fish. Don't see much trout these days but I'll give it a shot next time I do. 

BTW. I fixed a variation of your fish chili and it was interesting and rather good.


----------



## Chief Longwind Of The North (Nov 6, 2014)

Zagut said:


> Sorry to say it Chief but it looks like you're getting older.
> 
> I've found that I enjoy the simple preparations of foods over the more complicated recipes as I get older.
> 
> ...



Yeh, I am getting older, but still enjoy the creativity of making my own recipes, and trying new techniques.  That fish was just so good, I think I would have loved it at three months old.

So what variations did you make to the fish chili?  I'm always up for something new.

Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


----------



## Zagut (Nov 7, 2014)

Chief Longwind Of The North said:


> [snip]
> So what variations did you make to the fish chili? I'm always up for something new.
> 
> Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


 
Since us old farts need help with our memories I'll refresh both of ours with the guideline's you so kindly provided. 

Ingredients:
2 Pollock Fillets
1 yellow onion
1 celery stalk.
1 pat butter (about a tsp.)
Salt
Pepper grinder pepper
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. ground coriander
1 tbs. hot *chili* powder
1 fully ripe, fresh ghost pepper
1 tbs, Sriracha Pepper Sauce
1/2 tsp. Tabasco Sauce, original flavor
15 oz. can pinto beans
15 oz. can black beans

Wash and slice the celery. Peel the onion, slice it in half through its equator. Slice each half into quarters. 

Heat the butter in a 3 quart sauce pan until it begins to bubble. Add the celery and onion. Season with salt. Remember to season each layer with a little salt and pepper. When the veggies are just starting to soften, and the *fish* cubes. Cover and let the food simmer for 5 minutes.

Add the herbs and spices, and stir them in. Add both the pinto and black beans. Fold the pot ingredients together. Taste and correct the seasonings. Add the Sriracha and Tabasco sauces. Finally, use kitchen shears to finely cut the ghost pepper into the *chili*. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.









I cooked up some Red Kidney beans. I don't often used canned and those are the beans I associate with chili when I put beans into chili.

I omitted the celery. Just doesn't seem right in chili to me.

I didn't use Sriracha but used another of the many hot sauces I always have on hand. I think it was Yucatan Sunshine Habanero Pepper sauce but it was a while ago.  I also more then likely used more then you recommended. 

I followed your cooking directions as best I could but I used leftover grilled Rockfish (Striped Bass) and since it only needed to be heated I didn't introduce it until the very end and everything else was cooked.

Also, I just couldn't help myself on this. I simply had to put a few splashes of Fish Sauce in.  


It was defiantly fish chili and not fish stew. Tasty and yet not conventional.

Sort of along the lines of a Taco and a Fish taco. Where is the line drawn?


----------

