TROUT ON THE TABLE
One of the more frequently used quotations from 19th century wilderness wanderer, writer, and philosopher Henry David Thoreau suggests that “some men fish all their lives without knowing it is not really the fish they are after.” Perhaps that is true for “some men,” but rest assured that for folks in part of the world where I grew up, the Great Smokies, hardly people closely attuned to and wonderfully adept at living off the land, would have dismissed such thinking out of hand. My mother addressed the whole matter quite nicely with her pithy thoughts on the popular practice of catch-and-release among today’s trout fishermen. In her view that approach was fine, but with a strong caveat—you released the trout to a sizzling pan of hot grease, not the stream from which they came.
It isn’t my intent to get into an argument about the pros and cons of catch-and-release, and I guarantee you such considerations never cross Mom’s mind. To her, the very idea of going fishing, enjoying success, and not bringing home a mess was absolutely ludicrous. I would also note that from a biologist’s perspective, at least in the Appalachian high country streams and in many smaller streams in the West (especially those where brook trout predominate) that are home to naturally reproducing trout, she was exactly right. In such situations angling pressure in the form of creeling a limit of fish is in no way detrimental. This isn’t the place for an extended argument on differing viewpoints when it comes to whether or not to keep fish for the table, but where it makes sense I can state two things with unequivocal conviction.
First, over the course of my life I’ve been responsible for many a trout being all dressed up in a cornmeal dinner jacket, fried to a golden turn, and gracing plates in a backcountry camping site. Some of the finest meals I’ve ever enjoyed have been in such settings, often with the trout having been swimming in cold, clear waters of a nearby mountain stream just a half hour earlier. A wild trout which is barely keeping size, fried so crisp you can eat bones and all, comes mighty close to culinary heaven. My second point simply sees a change of settings from the back woods to the family table. There the accompanying fare might have been more diverse although the fish weren’t fresh from the creek. In either case, as my Grandpa Joe might have put it when speaking of such superb fare, the only thing better than a properly prepared trout is several of them. Here are some ways to enjoy this delicacy.
PAN-FRIED TROUT
- 2 to 3 small trout (6 to 8 inches length is ideal—they are tastier than larger ones) per person, dressed
- Stone-ground cornmeal
- Salt and pepper
- Bacon grease or lard
Clean the fish and leave damp so they will hold plenty of corn meal. Put your cornmeal in a Zip-lok bag, add the trout, along with salt and pepper, and shake thoroughly. Make sure the inside body cavity gets a coating of corn meal. Cook strips of bacon or streaked meat and save grease, setting the meat aside to mix with a green salad or to crumble into fried potatoes. Place the trout in a large frying pan (a cast-iron spider works wonders but modern non-stick kitchen ware is quite suitable) holding piping hot grease. Cook, turning only once, until golden brown. You can help the process along by using a spatula or tilting the pan a bit to splash grease into the open body cavities. Place cooked fish atop paper towels, pat gently to remove any excess grease, and dig in. If it is springtime, serve with a backwoods “kilt” salad (branch lettuce, ramps, and bacon bits with leftover hot cooking grease poured over it for a dressing), fried potatoes and onions with bacon bits added, and something for the sweet tooth to finish.
Trout On The Table – Part: 2, 3, 4
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In company with his late wife, Ann, Jim Casada wrote a number of cookbooks focusing on game or foods from the wild. One of those, The Complete Venison Cookbook, is available from him or the Sporting Classics Store. Jim’s next book, Fishing for Chickens: A Smokies Food Memoir, is due out from the University of Georgia Press in mid-2022. He is currently taking advance reservations for copies. To reserve a copy or learn more about his many other books, include his recent multi-award winning A Smoky Mountain Boyhood: Memories, Musings, and More, visit his website at www.jimcasadaoutdoors.com or e-mail him at jimcasada@comporium.net.
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