Ever since I did my first batch of smoked salmon my friend Jonathan
suggested we try smoking Alewives. Around these parts apparently they
are mostly used for lobster bait. Some old timers smoke them and hawk them off as edible to unsuspecting children and tourists. After several fits and starts we borrowed a 14 foot aluminum skiff and explored the Presumpscot river in Falmouth. We did not catch anything on the first try.
But given the hassle of the boat we figured it was just as easy to walk the trail and fish from the bank. Ospreys and cormorants seem to catch a steady stream of them but we did not enjoy quite the same level of success.
In addition to suffering a good slip on a wet rock and giving my self a couple of good bruises I did manage to catch one . . . . . .
and Jon and Noah caught 6 between them
After salting our harvest overnight I rigged up the smoker . . . .
and 6 hours of smoking later
the results . . .
provides for a small bony piece of . . . . . . smoked lobster bait
edible if you wash it down with copious amounts of beer . . . .
We ALWAYS need another excuse to drink beer! Bravo!
ReplyDeleteGorges, I this case we need to precede the fish with about 4 beers in order to desensitize the palate sufficiently. The one I had consumed before tucking in to them was not enough.
DeleteA sardine by any other name....
ReplyDeleteMichael. What a great figure you cut with a fishing rod and that beard!!!.It's really "Saturday Evening Post" stuff!!
ReplyDeleteLooks like a good fishing hole. I don't see any Millers on the rock to cope with the stress!!!!
RG
Believe me Rob, any Millers at all would have only added to my clumsiness and earned me further bruising. The spot I went arse over teakettle at was just ahead of where Jon was standing, good thing I did not skewer myself with that 10 inch piece of reebar sticking out of the rock.
DeleteLooks like a good days fishing, been years since I've done any.
ReplyDelete