Old Maine Fish Recipes:

[dadstacklebox]

 Hope you all enjoy some of this information. 


                                    -   Sweeten the Catch  -
 Gaminess is a wonderful trait when a fish is on the line, but gaminess on the serving platter is a totally different matter. Unfortunately, many of our finest sportfish suffer from some distinct culinary shortcomings. trout, salmon, shad, snappers, bluefish, and stripers are all excessively oily to some taste. Pike, pickerel, catfish, and many other species tend to taste overly fishy. Most freshwater fish- including black bass, bluegills, and crappies- have wonderful flavor when taken from clean water, but  often taste like bottom when when caught from less than pristine habitats.
 You can cure all these problems by soaking your pan-dressed fish or fillets overnight in a simple salt and soda solution. Many of the best restaurant and hotel chefs have been "sweetening" fish this way for decades, but few sportsman seem to know the trade secret.
 Measure 3 tablespoons of salt and 2 teaspoons of baking soda into 1 gallon of cold water, and stir until thoroughly dissolved. Submerge the fish in this solution, weight them down with a heavy plate, and fefrigerate overnight, or a miniumum of 6 hours.
 When the soaking is complete, you'll find that the brine is covered with a floating layer of oil and gelatinous slime. Since these are the substances that transmit most of the "off" flavors found in fish, their removal will make almost any variety of gamefish tast sweeter and fresher, but not at all bland.
 Discard the used saltwater,and rinse under cold tapwater.Let them drip dry on on paper towels, and then cook according to your favorite recipe, or freeze them for later use. 

 excerpt from old Field& Stream clipping

[dadstacklebox]

                                               BAKED ALEWIVES
 Wipe whole alewives with damp cloth after entrails have been removed. Lay on heavy duty aluminum foil in baking pan. Brush with olive oil. Pour fresh lemon juice over fish. Bake for 5 hours at 275 degrees. Remove skin and what bones are left.   Delicious!
                                                     Waldoboro, Maine

[dadstacklebox]

                                                    BAKED EELS
 Skin 4 eels and cut into 3 pieces. Roll into flour, season with salt and pepper and dot with butter. Place on greased baking sheet or shallow pan. Bake in moderately hot 375 degree oven for about 20 minutes. Serve hot. serves 6.                                   Friendship, Maine
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                                                   BAKED EEL
 Skin the eels, split them and remove backbone. Cut in 2 or 3 inch pieces. Wash in salted water and dry thoroughly. Dredge with flour and season with salt and pepper. Place in a buttered baking pan and add about a half cup of water to prevent burning. Cover and bake in a 400 degree oven for 15-20 minutes or untill eel is browned.                                       
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                                                 FRIED EELS
 Skin eels, split them lengthwise and remove the bone. Cut the strips into 3-inch lengths. Dredge with salt and pepper. Dip each piece in beaten egg and then cornmeal. Drop them into hot fat and fry about 5 minutes.                                                      Jefferson, Maine

[dadstacklebox]

                                                      CAMPFIRE FISH

 Catch a fish! Clean it, leaving the head on. Wash it, leaving it damp, season with salt.
 Take a piece of maple about four inches through, split it down the center.
 Open up the fish flat and nail it to the split side of the wood. At the top of the head, hang a piece of bacon. Stand the fish in front of the fire, tail down, to cook- time will depend on the size of the fish. When the fish is done, push the flesh off with a fork right into your pan or plate, leaving the skin just where it is. Proceed to eat.......                                    Warren, Maine

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                                                ALL DAY CAMPING
 If your staying at a campsite all day, dig three holes in the ground-one for breakfast, one for noon and one for supper. The The size of the holes will depend on the size of the fish you've managed to catch.
 Clean the fish, wash it and place it in foil. Slit the skin of a whole, unpeeled potatoe and wrap it up with the fishin the foil. The potatoe takes the muddy taste out of the fish such as perch, or bass late in the season.
 Come mealtime, build a fire over the holes which have been covered with earth about two inches deep. Fish usually will take about an hour to cook.
 Let the fire go down, dig the fish out, throw away the potato and satisfy your appetite with the fish.
 Throw the whole thing away and start over if you've forgotten to split the potato and it's burst inside the foil!!
                                              The coastal outdoorsman
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[dadstacklebox]

                                                    CANNED TUNA

 Steam tuna until cooked. Chill 6 to 12 hours. Cut into jar- length pieces. Pack into hot pint jars leaving 1 inch head space. Add 1 tablespoon salt and 2 tablespoons salad oil to each pint. Ajust caps. Process 1 hour and 30 minutes at 10 pounds pressure.
                                       Bath, Maine

[dadstacklebox]

                                                  POOR MAN'S LOBSTER

 1 pound haddock fillets                 Hot melted butter
 1 tablespoon vinegar                    paprika

 Cover fish with cold water and vinegar and bring to a boil on medium heat, boil for 10 minutes. Drain and serve with hot melted butter and a sprinkling of paprika.  Very tasty!!
                                             Lewiston, Maine
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                                                 POOR MAN"S LOBSTER
 1 pound frozen haddock                   2 tablespoons salt
 2 tablespoons vinegar                      butter melted

 Place haddock in a covered skillet, cover with cold water, add vinegar. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Pour off water and recover with more cold water, adding the salt. Bring again to a boil and simmer for 10 more minutes. Drain. Serve with melted butter.
                                          Waterville, Maine