Shore Lunch
Fish fries, supper clubs, dock jumping
I’m reflecting on the aftermath of a week at The Cabin (the collective cabin that lots of our friends decamp to in the summer—whether their own or longtime family retreats.) And nostalgically remembering Gary, our first best friend at The Lake.
A huge shout out to Gary & his band of merry fisher & hunter guys. My younger (by a decade or so) hubby was adopted into the tight brotherhood for his good-natured willingness to do as the older (and wiser) guys said. Our dock was their dock too—so when the boys assembled at Gary’s spot across our gravely cabin road, they knew that even if we weren’t there, they were always welcome on our side of the point. Over the years we were the beneficiaries of so much—help with our ever-present cabin maintenance challenges, advice about fishing boats & bait, and all things wild blueberry and fish-related in the kitchen. These burley outdoorsmen loved to cook.
Fishing, from our dock or on long, leisurely forays out in a canoe or small fishing boat, is the language of The Lake. Conversation starters, whether running into neighbors out walking on the road or at the hardware store in town, center around fishing “luck”. Bait, bobbers, flies…pick your lures and you’ll get an avalanche of advice. I’m sure I’ll get corrected about something I’m writing here, as I’m NOT a fisherwoman. But I think I do okay cooking what my intrepid fisher guys bring me. I learned to clean fish (ad naseum) in cooking school but am eternally grateful that my fishermen clean their own—and beautifully. My guys are all terrific fish cooks, but I need to earn my keep. So I’m always at the ready with a hot skillet and ideas for how to season things up.
PAN-FRIED CRISPY WALLEYE
Enough for 4 (about 8-inch) fillets
At the lake I always have a box of Shore Lunch, a must-have in our neck of the woods. So I may use a combo of that with some crisp panko crumbs for dredging the fish—along with any other dry seasonings that strike my fancy that day. The key to cooking any fish is to keep the heat at medium & cook till the coating is golden brown & the fish just flakes when tested with the tip of a spatula. Oh, I highly recommend having an official fish spatula, the thin flexible blade makes turning the fish a piece of cake!
INGREDIENTS
½ cup whole wheat panko
¼ cup medium-grind cornmeal
1/3 cup shredded parmesan cheese
Garlic salt, ground pepper, generous shake Cajun red fish seasoning
1 large egg
4 fresh fish fillets
Olive oil
DIRECTIONS
1. Mix the panko, cornmeal, parmesan, & seasonings in a shallow dish. Lightly beat the egg in small bowl.
2. Dip the fish into egg; dredge in dry ingredients. Place on a small baking sheet; cover and chill till ready to cook.
3. Heat oil in large cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Cook fish fillets for 6 to 8 minutes, turning once (cover pan after turning the fish), till browned/crisp and flakes easily (and no longer translucent in center.)
THE BEST TARTAR SAUCE (IMHO)
Makes about 1-1/2 cups
At this moment in time, my favorite store-bought mayo is Trader Joes’s organic. But I just used another organic brand from the co-op near our lake place—and it was just as good. So if you’re not buzzing up your own, find a jar of mayo you like and go for it! I’ve also mixed this with some thick Greek yogurt, to cut the richness of the mayo, as I like to dip my roasted potatoes in it (I roast thick slices of russets or bite-size Yukon gold or red new potatoes until they’re darkly blistered brown and creamy inside.) Even my hubby, who’s not a mayo fan, loves this with fish.
INGREDIENTS
¾ cup organic mayo
2 small dill pickles, finely chopped (it’s okay if a little pickle brine makes it into the sauce)
1/3 cup finely chopped red onion (or 2 medium shallots)
3 tablespoons small capers
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley/tarragon
1 to 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (and maybe a bit of zest, if you have the energy)
Freshly ground pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS
Mix all ingredients in a small bowl.
Mid-century (the last one) supper clubs dot every lake in the North Country—taken to a high art in the Upper Midwest. And in Minnesota & Wisconsin the Friday night fish fry is sacrosanct if you’re a boater. I learned early on—as a transplant from the west coast—that fried (as in deep fried) fish is what’s on the menu, with a good cocktail (or Hamm’s or Leinie’s beer) and maybe a crudité plate thrown in for good measure. A saccharine-sweet, hot pink Shirley Temple mocktail may be available for the kids if there’s a wait. Dress code includes wet swimsuits and flip flops—or clean shorts, but still wet hair, if there’s time to clean up before hopping into the boat to buzz across the lake to the club. Often a welcome break from cooking at the cabin—and another opportunity to trade fishing tales—Friday night fish fries are pretty great.
SUPPER CLUB FISH FRY
Serves 4
Go full mushroom fry if your lucky fishing goes bust—some days you just can’t have both.
INGREDIENTS
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup cornstarch
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons coarse sea salt
Freshly ground pepper or cayenne to taste
2 eggs
1 (12-ounce) bottle pale ale
Peanut or vegetable oil
1-1/2 pounds skinless walleye, northern pike, lake perch, or thin cod fillets, cut into 4 pieces
½ pound lobster or oyster mushrooms, sliced ¼-inch thick
Wedges of fresh lemon
Creamy Basil Sauce (see below) or The Best Tartar Sauce (see above)
DIRECTIONS
1. Whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Stir in the egg and ale until batter is smooth. Cover and chill while the oil is heating up.
2. Pour enough oil into a large Dutch oven to bring the level to 2 inches. Turn the heat on to medium; bring the temperature to 375˚F (use a thermometer or drop a bit of batter in to see if it sizzles.)
3. Have paper towel-lined trays ready. Dry the fish well and season with more salt and pepper. Dip one fish fillet at a time into the batter. When the oil is hot, shake any excess batter from fish and lower it into the hot oil. Cook about 5 minutes or until golden brown; drain on tray. Adjust heat to keep the oil hot and repeat with the rest of the fish.
4. Cover the fish and keep it warm. Dip the mushrooms in the batter a batch at a time, dropping them into the oil. Cook 3 to 4 minutes or until golden. Repeat until all the mushrooms are fried; drain well on tray.
5. Serve the fish with the crisp mushrooms, with lemon wedges and a dish of the basil sauce for dipping.
Creamy Basil Sauce: Mix ¾ cup plain Greek yogurt, ½ cup sour cream, ½ teaspoon garlic salt or to taste, ½ teaspoon grated lemon zest, 1 to 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, ¼ cup chopped fresh garden or farmer’s market basil until well blended.
As our kids have grown, the complexion of our Lake neighborhood has shifted—we once had the few little ones running around. Gary is gone now & his niece inherited his cabin—we really miss him, but love his younger family. Now there’s a new generation of grandkids and neighbors who are spending much more of the long, warm season on the edge of the northern wilderness as their “real” work winds down. We’re easing into that club, grateful for our own band of like-minded peers that are willing to pool resources to repair our road, have it snow plowed in the wintertime for sporadic Nordic ski & snowshoeing expeditions, and lend a hand (the chance to use a chainsaw—woo hoo!) with moving fallen trees and hauling brush. And it’s a good thing.
Thank you so much Bek! And I so appreciate your stopping by...
Oh, the sockeye run! Fish are wonderful no matter where they live...