Sweet and Sour Whole Rockfish

Here’s my simple recipe for the 9 Mile rockfish I cooked tonite. It was caught 9/21. My wife also fried up a filet from a 6-8 lb Red. I cooked up a teenager, a 3 pounder.

Sweet and Sour Rockfish
(1) whole 2-6 lb rockfish
box corn starch
veg oil

Sweet & Sour Sauce
1/3 c catsup
1/3 c apple cider vinegar
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c water
1/2 tsp salt
Mix all ingredients in a small sauce pan. Bring to a boil. Whisk and boil on med heat until liquid is translucent. Put aside covered.

Wash fish. Gill, gut, scale and leave rest of fins on. Do not put slits into the skin. Rub both sides and cavity with raw garlic then ginger. Then salt heavily on both sides and cavity.

Heat oil in 14″ cast iron skillet to +400 degrees. try to keep temperature at 400 degrees while frying all sides. I use a 15,000 btu cooker outside. Put whole fish in corn starch and rub in each side and cavity. Dust. Put 3/4s of fish in hot oil or whole fish if fits. Cook until it looks golden about 5 minutes. Then put tail section in for about half that time. Flip. Cook other side like 1st. When done remove to a sheet pan with a rack on top. Baste top side with S&S sauce. Bake at 400 for 10-15 minutes (depends on thickness). Remove, turn fish and baste other side with S&S sauce and return for 10-15 more minutes. Even though the fish pic looks well done it is JUST cooked thru to medium and juicy. Remove to a serving platter. I start eating at the tail and fins (crispy treats), then work on the head. After that i like the tail meat best. My wife said this fish tasted like shellfish. You are what you eat. You get about 1/3 more meat by cooking the fish whole. Lots of the tastiest meat is in the cheeks and fin/head areas. Parts that you throw away when fileting.

Fish Chowder – Reds, whitefish, Bass

3 lbs mixed fish (reds, whitefish, bass, etc)
2 lbs yukon gold potatos
2 med yellow onions
3 Tbsp butter
5 cups chicken broth
1 tbsp fresh thyme
1 tbsp fresh parsley
fresh chives
4 oz salt pork
1 1/2 c heavy cream
salt and pepper to taste

Peel and slice potatoes into 1/4-1/3 inch slices. Cut onions to med dice. Remove rind and cut salt pork into 1/4-1/3 inch cubes.

Leave fish fillets whole but cut so that when the fish flakes, it will become large chunks.

In a 4-6 qt pot, cook salt pork over medium heat. When the pieces get crispy, remove with slotted spoon and set aside (leaving pork fat behind). Add onions, butter and thyme and sweat until onions get soft and translucent (about 8 minutes). Add potatoes, broth and parsley and bring to a rull rolling boil. Cook about 10 minutes until potatoes are al dente. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add fish fillets and simmer 5 minutes.

Remove pot from heat and let sit for 10 minutes covered. Add cream and gently mix. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.

This chowder is hearty but not real thick and creamy. For thicker chowder, you can thicken it with roux. Use 2 tbsp butter and 2 tbsp flour and make a blond roux and whisk in a cup of the chicken broth and then add with rest of the broth when you add the potatoes.

Serve garnished with fresh chives and reserved bits of salt pork and crackers.

Great filler for those cold winter days/nights and great way to get rid of some of that fish in your freezer.

Proste!