January 4, 2010
Last week, while taking my dogs for a brisk winter walk along the Greenway near my home in Springfield, TN, I came upon a group of fishermen milling about next to a small dam just south of the old, abandoned water plant. Some were drinking coffee, fresh from Dunkin’ Donuts across the street; others were stepping into waders or relaxing in camo-backed folding chairs set up near the easy flowing spillway. It was the first time out in public and on a leash for my new pup Rufus, who approached the men cautiously.
“Hey there, little feller,” a whiskered man said while reaching out to pet Rufus with his weathered hand.
“First day off the farm,” I explained as Rufus tucked his tail between his legs and backed away.
“I think that goes for most of us…” joked the man, eliciting a bellyful of laughter from his comrades.
It then dawned on me as to why all these men were here at 10 o’clock in the morning on a cold Thursday in December. It was trout stocking day.
Each year, throughout middle Tennessee, 75 streams and small lakes are stocked to provide a trout fishery. These streams have low abundance of wild trout, or no trout at all. The TWRA (Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency) stocks about 325,000 9- to 12-inch trout between March and July. While trout fishing is allowed year-round on most of these streams, many of the waterways are too warm for trout by mid summer. For this reason they limit most of the trout stocking to the spring and the best fishing is from the first stocking week until the midsummer when water temperatures exceed 70 degrees F.
It also provides a great excuse to wet an early to mid-winter line when many anglers are thumbing through Bass Pro Shop or Cabelas catalogs dreaming of the lunker they’re going to land next spring.
It was an inspiration to see those fishermen that day, a reminder that such gatherings are about so much more than catching fish. It’s about friendship, fresh air and finding pleasure in the simpler things, where a cell phone, a Blackberry or PDA have little purpose except to interrupt the natural rhythm and flow of the world around us.
It was also a call to grab the ultra-light gear and walk off some of the results of my turkey with stuffing, pumpkin pie and Christmas cookie holiday diet plan that is rapidly setting up shop in my mid-section.
I wonder if the Sporting Chef, Scott Leysath, has any good trout recipes . . .
Who Wants Pie?
Thankfully, it’s a brand new year and the 2009 holiday feeding frenzy is behind us. A quick glance over my shoulder in the mirror at my hindquarter tells me that there’s more than Christmas behind me. Eating pie when nobody is watching apparently still counts as calories. While congratulating myself for all of the things I didn’t eat, I must have overlooked the high-fat, sugary foods that did make it into my yuletide feedbag. According to estimates by Texas A & M International University, Americans will load up with an extra 600 calories a day during the holiday season between Thanksgiving and New Years. You know what I’m talking about – turkey with stuffing and gravy, honey-glazed ham, mashed potatoes, candied yams, pumpkin pie and alcohol to wash it down. A 5,000 calorie Thanksgiving isn’t out of the ordinary. For a 180 pound man, that means it’ll only take you 2 – 3 hours of wading a stream or 10 hours in the bass boat to work it off. Of course, you can’t eat or drink anything besides water while you’re out there. I don’t keep many fish, but occasionally a freshly-caught trout is perfect for a light meal. Coming in at less than 200 calories for an average serving, trout is a suitable dish for post-holiday waistline trauma. Trout can be a bit bland, but seasoned with citrus fruits, a light touch of vinegar and a drizzle of olive oil, grilled trout will not only taste great, but it’ll have you back in your waders in no time. Grilling any fish can be a challenge. If your fish tends to stick to your grill, you’re not alone. To avoid fish “stickage”, make sure your grill is clean, well-oiled and hot before placing any fish on the grates. If you rub your fish with some decent olive oil, it’ll improve the flavor and help keep it from sticking. You can also discourage sticking by dusting your fish lightly with flour or cornmeal (or both) that has been seasoned with salt and pepper. When I’m trying to shed some holiday excess baggage, I make a point of loading up on vegetables. Just about any vegetable you can cook inside can be grilled outside. Also, I know that it might be just a little too cold for grilling outside in some places. If so, just slap your trout and veggies into a large, heavy duty skillet or grill pan indoors. Grilled Citrus Marinated Trout With Vegetables 4 1- lb trout, cleaned, rinsed and patted dry (or the equivalent in larger fish) In a medium bowl, combine vinegar and next 7 ingredients. Add olive oil in a thin stream while whisking vigorously to emulsify. Place trout in a plastic or glass container and pour half of the mixture over. Reserve remaining half to baste fish and vegetables during grilling. Cover fish and refrigerate for 2 hours, turning every 30 minutes. Prepare vegetables for grilling – slice squash into 1/4-inch slices, trim ends of asparagus. Remove fish from marinade and pat dry to avoid flare-ups from marinade while grilling. On a hot, well-lubricated grill, brown fish on one side, about 5 minutes, depending on the size of the fish. While cooking fish, place vegetables on grill and brown evenly. Vegetables should have grill marks, but should still be firm. Baste vegetables and fish with reserved marinade while cooking, saving a few tablespoons of the marinade to drizzle over cooked fish when served. Arrange vegetables on plates, top with cooked fish and drizzle reserved marinade over. |
By Scott Leysath, the Sporting Chef