Fried Trout

This past weekend, Justin, the kids and myself took a few days off and went camping. We travelled from Reno to Winnemucca and spent some time with our families before heading up into the mountains near Orovada. We set up camp with our tent and the canvas fly that attaches to the truck.

We took the ATV's out and enjoyed the fresh air.

Our second day up, we made pancakes and hot tea for breakfast.  Justin's family drove up mid-morning.  Any more, this has been an annual trip near Father's Day. Everyone fished for brook trout and took turns riding the ATVs. Eric was absolutely begging to go fish and take a ride.

In the late afternoon, the guys cleaned the fishies and did the cooking. Grandma Rose fixed a salad, which we all enjoyed with fresh trout pan-fried with French bread.

We set up a propane camp stove and cook the fish in a cast iron frying pan. You can recreate this at home on the stove. Just be aware frying splatters a lot, so protect yourself with long sleeves and keep kids and pets away from the stove.

Also, we don't take a thermometer and rarely even have a watch, so cooking temperatures and times are approximate. The guys just have a knack for knowing when they are ready.

Out fishing, the limit is 10 fish per person. A normal serving is about 5 fish, unless you are really hungry and the fish are all small. The small ones are only 4 inches long, big ones are maybe 7 inches long. The tiny ones, you can eat the bones and fins. With the bigger fish, you will want to scrape the meat off and pull out the spine to eat them.

Ingredients

small trout, guts and heads removed, washed and patted dry

oil for frying

salt

pepper

garlic salt

Method

1. Make sure fish are cleaned well and dry.

2. Heat oil in frying pan about 3/4 inch deep until it's hot, but not smoking. Since we do this without a thermometer, dip the tail of one fish in and see how much the oil boils upon contact. It should sizzle rapidly. From my past experience frying at home, I think this would be about 350F.

3. Carefully lay fish in the pan. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic salt.

4. After a few minutes, probably 5-7 depending on the size, the fish will start to curl and look browned. Flip them over and season the other side.

5. When browned and the flesh starts to flake, they are done. Carefully move hot fish to a pan lined with paper towels.

6.Let rest a minute or so to let the oil drain off.