Summer Citrus Grilled Bluefish

Summer on Long Island and the blues are running wild. It’s a nice way of spending a summer day out fishing, and the bluefish are plentiful. Now many people say they don’t like bluefish as it tends to be oily and has a very ‘fishy’ taste. Well of course it has a fishy taste, it’s a fish, and what did you expect it to taste like… mutton? But, be that as it may, there are many ways to add flavor to this fish while preserving the taste of the fish. One of my favorite ways to do this is be marinating the fish to displace some of its fatty oils. And the taste of summer citrus fruits on the open grill is one of the best things about the season here on Long Island.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 4 pounds of fresh bluefish
• 1 cup of fresh orange juice
• ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
• ¼ cup fresh lime juice
• ¼ cup Duck Walk white wine
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of Chef Bill’s secret citrus spice rub

Place the fish fillets into a large bowl. Pour in the orange juice, lime juice, lemon juice, olive oil and white wine. Stir to blend and coat fish. Leave the squeezed lemon and lime halves in the bowl too. Marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat a grill for high heat. When the grill is hot, oil the grate. Season the fish with salt, pepper and citrus rub.

Place fish fillets on the grill, and discard the marinade. Cook for 4 minutes on each side, or until fish flakes with a fork. Transfer to a serving platter, and remove the dark blue part of the fish before serving and let’s finish that bottle of Duck Walk!

Jim Beam Bluefish

One thing we have in abundance here on Long Island is fresh local bluefish. Another thing we have plenty of is fresh local liquor stores. And in almost all of those strip-mall shoppes is a bottle of Jim Beam. So, lets combine these two local favorites into a main course of Jim Beam Bluefish.

Here’s what you’ll need:

Marinade:

• 1 jigger Jim Beam
• Brown Sugar, 6 tsp unpacked
• Soy Sauce, 2 tbsp
• Ginger, ground, 1 tbsp
• Lime Juice, 1 fl oz
• Garlic, 3 cloves, minced
• Pepper, black, 1 dash

Additionally:

• 1 ½ pounds of bluefish fillets

Combine the marinade ingredients in a large zip lock bag & seal and keep in the fridge for 1 1/2 hours.

Now, heat a large skillet. Give it s coating of vegetable oil. Add bluefish and marinate to skillet and cook for 4 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness.

Then place on plates and drizzle with sauce. I like to serve this up with oven roasted potatoes and a bottle of Sam Adams Cherry Wheat beer.

Last of The Summer Ale with Shrimp

So, summer is winding down here, and one of the things that goes away with the long daylight hours, is the summer ale from Blue Point brewery. So, before the taps run dry, there is one more shrimp fry to host. Let’s grab the summer ale, and the flaked coconut, pour a finger or two of rum and cook it up!

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 24 shrimp
• 2/3 cup Blue Point Summer Ale
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups flaked coconut
• 3 cups oil for frying

In medium bowl, combine egg, 1/2 cup flour, beer and baking powder. Place 1/4 cup flour and coconut in two separate bowls.

Hold shrimp by tail, and dredge in flour, shaking off excess flour. Dip in egg/beer batter; allow excess to drip off. Roll shrimp in coconut, and place on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, heat oil to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) in a deep-fryer.

Fry shrimp in batches: cook, turning once, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until golden brown. Using tongs, remove shrimp to paper towels to drain. Serve warm with your favorite dipping sauce. And enjoy the last of the summer ale… and look forward to the Oktoberfest lagers.

Coconut Shrimp

A Classic Fish Chowder

Soup’s on! Its been a while since I’ve posted any soup recipes here. I suppose its all the warm weather we’ve been having lately. But, getting back to basics, here’s a Cod fish chowder that can also be made using haddock or pollack, or any light, firm-fleshed fish.

here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 pound cod fish cut into pieces
• 2 slices of thick cut bacon
• 1 russet potato diced
• 2 celery stalks chopped
• 2 carrots chopped
• 3 cups of fish stock… you do have fish stock yes?
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 garni boquet of: thyme and parsley
• 1 bayleaf

melt a little butter in a large pot and start browning the bacon. Add the fish stock, garni, potato and cook a few minutes until the potato starts to soften. Then add in the celery and carrots and let them cook a few minutes. Then, add in the fish and cook until the fish just cooks through and firms up becoming opaque.

Gently stir in the milk, add a touch of salt, and remove from the heat.

Let stand until the milk heats up then ladle into nice heavy bowls and I like to garnish with oyster crackers.. and a blue point lager.

 

Simple Creole Shrimp and Rice

Well, the local stop and shop has a big sale on shrimp… so it must be shrimp season somewhere, and lately, I have been hankering for some Creole style shrimp and rice. I find that this dish is very welcoming to changes and adapting to clearing out some of those spices in the cabinet.

Here’s what you’ll need:
• 1 pound of frozen medium shrimp
• 1 medium onion, chopped about 1/2 cup
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/2 cup chopped green sweet pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 small can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/8 – 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper depending on your heat tolerance
• Pinch of chili powder
• 2 tablespoons snipped fresh parsley
• 2cups hot cooked rice

Thaw shrimp, if frozen. Peel and devein shrimp, removing tails. Rinse shrimp; pat dry with paper towels. Set aside.

In a large skillet cook onion, celery, sweet pepper, and garlic in butter over medium heat about 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in undrained tomatoes, paprika, salt, and cayenne pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 5 to 8 minutes or until thickened.

Stir shrimp and parsley into tomato mixture. Cook, stirring frequently, for 2 to 4 minutes or until shrimp turn opaque. Season to taste. Serve over rice. Along side of a nice bottle of blue point’s best to cool your pallet

Anchovy Stuffed Sustainable Sardines

I know, this recipe is so much like yesterday’s it’s amazing. But this tie we’ll be getting twice the sustainable fish, and healthy omega three oils in one tasty main dish. So, without much ado…

Here’s what you’ll need:

• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 1 cup breadcrumbs
• ⅓ heaping cup golden raisins, plumped in hot water to cover for 10 minutes and drained
• ⅓ cup pine nuts
• 6 anchovy fillets, rinsed and finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 12 butterflied fresh sardines

Heat oven to 350º. Line a baking pan with parchment paper.

In a medium skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add ¾ cup breadcrumbs and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant and lightly toasted, about 3 minutes; remove from heat. Stir in raisins, pine nuts, anchovy and parsley; season with salt and pepper to taste.

 

Lay 6 sardines on prepared pan, flesh-side up; spoon breadcrumb mixture over the top. Lay remaining 6 sardines, flesh-side down, over breadcrumb mixture; sprinkle with remaining ¼ cup breadcrumbs and lightly drizzle with oil. Bake until sardines are cooked through and hot, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and serve immediately.

Enjoy this whis a Blue Point Toasted Lager!

Three Cans and a Plan

Three cans, a carrot, and a celery stalk walk into a bar… what to do… make salmon chowder. Salmon chowder is one of those winter comfort soups that really don’t take too long to whip up. I find that one of the best tips for making thick satisfying cream-based chowders is to cut the potatoes smaller than you normally would. I cut most of the potatoes into smaller than bite-size, but then I take one of the potatoes and dice it into small cubes. This releases much more starch into the chowder that helps to thicken it without adding fat laden cream or butter.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 12 ounce can salmon
• 12 ounce can evaporated milk
• 1 can corn
• 1 tablespoons butter
• 4 Long Island potatoes chopped
• 1 Long Island potato diced
• 2 celery stalks chopped
• 2 carrots, diced
• 1 onion diced
• 1 garlic cloved, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried tarragon
• 2 cup of water
• Sea salt

Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Saute onion, celery, and garlic until onions are tender. Stir in water, potatoes, carrots, pepper, salt, and tarragon. Bring to a boil, and reduce heat. Cover, and simmer about half an hour..

Once this base comes together, stir in salmon, evaporated milk, and corn. Go through that can of salmon, don’t just open the can and toss it in. Nope! Go through the salmon and remover and bone or skin that often works its way into these cans. Cook until heated through.

I like to serve this long with pumpernickel bread and an oatmeal stout beer right out of the jug from Blue Point brewery.