Canada 4 Fishing - Recipes for Cooking Gamefish

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The "Shore Lunch" is fish as fresh as it gets. A few hours later and it becomes a fish fry.

It's not that difficult once you have the right equipment and ingredients. Plan ahead and reap the reward of delivering a sumptuous meal fit for a king. Guides offer a shore lunch as a standard service for guests at most fishing lodges and they can't afford to make mistakes, with a basic list and a plan you won't either. Make a list, salt and pepper are hard to find when your miles from camp and the nearest grocery store. It's not a big list.
* bring along a can opener, remember that knives are for filleting fish and not fingers.

Once you’ve caught some nice plump walleyes, lake trout, perch (or whatever ), pick a good site for lunch out of the wind, away bugs, and on a rock if possible. Stay off of the beaches as sand and shore lunches do not mix well. Get the wood and kindling gathered, the fire started, the fish cleaned, and the meal preparation underway.

Tips for that perfect shore lunch or fish fry:

- Gut and clean those fish right away and keep them as cool and clean as possible. Small fish cook better and taste better than big fish.

- You'll need a good seasoned cast iron pan. Yes, a cast iron pan. While the pan is cold, pour in a good amount of oil. Peanut oil has no taste and doesn't create as much smoke as other cooking oils can. Put the pan on the fire and get the oil really hot. Test it with a piece of bread - if it sizzles and toasts almost immediately, it's hot enough!

-Take a paper bag with a little corn meal or flour and a dash of lemon pepper and shake 1 fillet at a time until well coated. The moisture of the fish will collect the coating ( no need for milk or egg dip ). Depending on your preference you can even forget the bag and the corn meal and go for the "au naturel" golden fried fillet.

- Place the fish in the hot oil very gently with tongs smooth side down to prevent curling. Give each piece of fish lots of room. When the first side is brown, roll it over. Fish is done cooking when the flesh flakes apart with a fork. Basically, cook it for 10 minutes for each inch of thickness. Don't overcook! It should be crisp on the outside, tender and flaky on the inside. Remove and lay the fillets on plate and paper towel and let them dry.

- Fish should be served hot so prepare the rest of your meal before you start frying and keep the fish part for last. Keep the lemon, salt and pepper handy, too. Heap up those plates with hot beans, fish, spuds and onions, rolls and butter. This fare is as fine as you could find anywhere and better than exotic recipes that compromise the flavour.

Other Suggested Recipes:	Fresh Fried Trout	BBQ Walleye

A fishing trip in Canada is a dream come true. Come fishing and visit us.. in Canada.