Doesn't anyone BBQ fresh fish by the river for a fishing lunch break anymore?

I used to take a small propane hibachi BBQ out in the boat along with some Johnny's seafood seasoning and margerine and Q' up fresh fish steaks for lunch (for clients and friends on occassion - paper plates and plastic forks). And I used to see it occuring more often a few years ago. But I haven't seen it at all the last couple years or so (except for one that Roy - 'Bait O Eggs' - did for us right in his driftboat on the Trask the previous winter steelhead season). Does anyone do this anymore? If so, what do you use to cook with, and what seasoning, etc? Seems like a good thing to do with all the superb springers on the way.

Thanks

Hey RT,
When fishing Cathlamet, its easier to pull up to the city dock and eat at the riverview or the River Rat Tap and enjoy an AA meeting (Alaskan Amber) or few pints of Chinook Copper.

I still bank cook on occasion. I'll bring a tub of mayonaise, sour cream, parmesean cheese, lemmon pepper, lemon juice, bacon bits and onion mixed together. Smear it on the steaks and wrap in tinfoil...easy way to prepare.

Hey RT, I've got a new email and phone number. Your yahoo adress keeps coming back when I try to send the new info to you.

Seems alot more people these days think it is better in the freezer!! I miss it, and intend on starting a trend up here on the Sky this fall....

I think it's a really cool thing to do. I know that Robbo does it for his clients.

I like to do it myself, but I usually bring a few hunks of halibut or some kielbasas along with me, just in case!

Fish on...

Todd.

I do it, but not as fancy as having a mini Hibachi n all. I just heat sandwiches on the Mr. Heater to melt the cheese and toast the bread a little. You have to wash it down with some Gatorade after you make the sandwiches kinda like a chaser to cover up the egg goo and sandshrimp guts that gets on your bread. :p

I catch 'em, I clean 'em, but I don't cook 'em - I can't boil water without burning it and if my wife didn't cook it I'd never have a hot meal if it wasn't for the microwave. And no, I don't pack a microwave on the Smokercraft, so no worries about desecrating the Fish God's noble creations Besides, I can't seem to catch anything lately that doesn't have an adipose fin - who has time to cook - I'm busy all day just trying to catch a keeper

Spawn', we would BBQ up front in my sled while anchored and continuing to fish. That way we didn't waste much fishing time for the taste treat. I think I've just gotten lazier about Q'ing up on the water; but would like to again with some fresh bonked springers.

Hey Dan, are you trying reeltruth1@yahoo.com ? That's my new addy. I don't recall seeing anything from ya lately, so if that's the addy you used then something is awry. That something is likely my haywire 'puter modem - need to get a new one. I'll send you an e-mail via my other box to see if that works. I've been picturing you bonking springer brats out of Cath basin. Yes? No?

Steve

we take steaks or make ckicken cordon bleu when we are fishing remote rivers in b.c. most of the rivers are catch and release.

We used to do it once in a while. Sometimes the fish would shrink up tighter than RT's (never mind) and turn into rubber. Anyone else had that happen??

Fiahhead5

doug, that only happens when you bbq suckers. besides you havent been fishing for a long time, you probably dont remember what a steelie looks like. if you go to the quinault with me on thursday, we can try it.

RT,I'm mister BBQ, on my guide trips, I BBQ lunch
every trip. No kiddin, I go through 2 to 3 of the $20.00 portable gas BBQ's a year. I have regular
customers, when I meet them in the mornings they don't ask "how fishing is" ,they ask "whats for lunch".
3/4 of the time I BBQ new york strip steaks, I serve then on a hoggie roll, with a little red onion and some potato salad and chips....a great lunch...total cookin and eating time 30-35 minutes, then back to fishin.
As for BBQ salmon shore lunch, there is one place I do this. The Klickitat river during coho season.
The night before I'll cutt up 6-8 red potatos and a onion, add butter and salt & pepper and then roll up in foil ball. About half hour before lunch
I'll start the gas BBQ in bow of my 21' super vee and let the potatos cook, turn over every 10 minutes. I keep trollin while they cook.Then on the beach,
I'll fillet out one of the smaller coho of the morning and place,skin down on a water soaked cedar plank, I cutt to fit my BBQ. Season coho with a little jonnys, lemon pepper, and brown sugar....20 minutes to cook....15 minutes or less to eat, your back trollin for silvers....bank time 30 -35 minutes.....great lunch, very ouick and easy.....like I say beats the hell out of a bologna sandwich...

Me thinks that RT's trolling to see who his boat should be next to around lunch time on F4.

Sorry, dude. We fast during fishing trips. Cleans out both the digestive track and the soul.

The rich smell of BBQ that you might smell wafting from our boat is the latest scent from the people who make those little scented trees. And the smoke is...ummmmmmm...GPC cigarettes. Yeah, that's it.

Fishhead5. I have had the same thing happen to me on a number of occasions. I read something about not cutting or cooking the fish until after it goes through rigamortus. I now ice all fish for 48 hours before cuting and cooking and it seems to make a huge difference.

Plunking last winter by an alder fire to keep warm are buddy that caught a buck steely the day before pulled out a rack and layed it on the fire then pulled out a ziplock bag with the steely cut up and seasoned. cooked it on the open fire till the skin was chared. Man that was the best steely I had even eaten. Of course anything taste good that's hot when you are out on a winter river.

Saw two guy's on the upper Hoh last weekend doin it?

I roll my little webber on any river or boat.I like to fire it up at oh say 9:00 a.m. or so,especialy on cold wet day's.There's something about that smokey Q that makes other boat's hungary and leave the holes a little faster.Most likely headed for a hot breakfast or some thing.
Good luck,
STRIKE ZONE
P.S. I mostly Q up pre made burgers or sausage dog's from costco.Every now and then we'll do up
a hunk of fish.

F5 and MV,
Thats exactly what causes that is rigor mortis.Did the fillets actually tear apart?MVs icing for two days is actually very common practice with some comercial guys.All that realy matters is that the fish is kept cool through this proccess{ice}.Also never straighten out a fish that is stiff in the cooler with r-m it tears the meat and ruins the flaky texture.

We used to have to wait for the p-cod up in AK to go through R-M before we could start fillett them.We used to do them too fresh and the fillet would actually twitch afterwards.Kinda freeky to see a fillet twitching like it is still trying to get away.

Hey Doug, so that's why you groaned when Fly and I tossed the chubs back. You wanted to cook them, ay?

Rapid Robert, if ya get a spare seat in your V when there is some BBQ steak strips along with a salmon steak chaser, just remember that I make a pretty good organic rod holder! Hey, if you are interested in doing a short piece about fish trip cooking for my Aug./Sept. STS column send me an e-mail (click letter icon above the post). I'd put up your guide biz numbers as compensation; as I do with other guests. Kid Sauk is doing a peice for my column in that issue too. They need to be done way ahead of issue date - about by early May.

Ok, I'm hungry now!

RT

Had fresh rockcod still quiverin on the grill mmmmmmmmm.Never done it on the river though. My favorite is to make breakfash burrito's. Take lots of ham, sausage, eggs and cheez. Fry it up the night before they wrap it in foil. Them put them in my force draft hmmmmmmmmm. Then wash it down with Gatorade yeah right Justin.

Tight lines

Kevin

SRBC

Several years ago, I went fishing with my dad and his fishing partner up on the west coast of Vancouver Island. We found a little inlet and would anchor the boat there and just sleep in the boat (26' Seahawk). My dad's friend had a little BBQ that would mount in a rod holder bracket so every night before dinner, we'd come back in close to shore and jig up some kelp greenling. They'd be on the BBQ not 10 minutes after we caught them and we'd eat them and a can of chilli for dinner. Good times.

I've got to get into the fridge quick! But before loggin off I forgot to mention that I've never done a hi Q breakfast out in a jet sled or driftboat. But back when I raft guided for a large outfitter on multi-day rafting/camping trips on the Rogue and Deshutes rivers we couldn't wait to wake up and have at the fresh buttermilk blueberry pancakes and grilled bacon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Aaaaaaaaaaarggggg - headin to the kitchennnnnnnnnnnnn! Later.

Just finished a big piece of Steelhead, Barbied, with alder chunks, basted in pineapple juice

LC, Why do some fish shrink up and some don't. If they are kept on ice can you eat them the same day??

RT, I got a chub for you, good buddy. Check your email for the defination of a "good buddy"

Bardo, Lets go Monday.

Fishhead5

I would think that shrinkage would either be related to fat content or moisture content.

Rapid Robert ......... So you are in Selah.. Well where do you fish and serve those 'neat' meals??

(PS) Your spelling is exquisite for this board and cooking at the same level.

Who's got time to cook lunch when fishing? Nothing beats having fresh caught summer steelhead on the river for dinner. (Well I haven't tried BBQ'd springer yet. Smoked springer is delicious.) Fillet it and remove the skin, put it in a gallon ziplock with Lawry's lemon pepper marinade for 1/2 hour, and put in foil and on the grill. Serve with hash browns and Santiam green beans cooked on the propane grill. I love to tailgate.

This is all too complicated. Nothing beats a dog with all the trimmings or a juicy burger on a cold day. I only bring the barbecue for still fishing. Trolling is just to difficult for the barbecue.

Have any of you ever used Mick's Peper Jelly on fish? They sell it at sportsman's shows and they have a reseller at the Pike Place Market. That is some of the best stuff for cooking. They make different flavors with varrying degrees of spiceness to them. I'll fry a piece of fish in a tiny bit of oil, put some salt, pepper, and garlic powder on it and when the fish is just about done, I'll spread some pepper jelly on it. My favorite flavors are ginger, garlic, and lime.