Smoked Spanish and Bluefish

[flash]

Wife and I made it out to Cedar Key prior to her trip to orlando to see the new grandbaby take some of his first steps. Flounder, Spanish, Bluefish and Speckled Trout were the catch of the day. Since the NCAA Basketball tourney was coming up, thought I would provide myself with one of my favorite snacks.
First to prep the fish



No brine, just some spices and soy sauce.



Smoked using a mixture of hickory and oak. Around 175º for 3 1/2 hours in my Propane conversion GOSM.



Sprayed ever half hour with a 50/50 mixture of Canola Oil and Lemon for some flavor and color.



Now to prepare my favorite smoked fish snack.



Put alittle of this stuff on a Wheat Ritz cracker, top with a little fish.



The team I was rooting for Choked....but I didn't. Yummy

 

[erain]

nuthin like smoked fish on a ritz!!! nice pics

 

[white cloud]

Nice shots of the fish, it looks wonderfull. I need to get some fish, thats all I used to smoke years ago and have not done any in awhile. Did your pineapple take root yet?

 

[pineywoods]

Looks good Flash

 

[capt dan]

Man after my own heart. I love smoked fish, although you do it different than I do, and with some species that I have yet to catch!

Nice B-Ball snacky!

 

[smokin' joe]

you da man flash...looks delicious!! Great q-view as always.

Where have you been lately? Hope all is well.

 

[flash]

Oh Good and Bad Joe. Scratched my cornea in my right eye pretty bad during a storm we had a few weeks back. Hurt like heck. Had a oak almost come down on one of our storage sheds. Been photographing High School Softball and Little League. Not easy with a bum eye. But I did manage this one.



I sell the pics to the parents from my website, so working on that has taken alot of my time. Trying to sell some of my camera equipment and planning a travel trip with wife, either to the Canyons of Utah or up to Maine and Vermont. Not sure which yet. It will be a road trip though, that is for sure and during the fall season.

 

[smokin' joe]

Sorry to hear about your peeper flash. Best wishes for a speedy recovery. If you guys come to Maine, you have a place here right off of I-95 for some R&R and good food. You are welcome to stay at my place as a halfway point to your destination. Keep me in mind when you plan your trip, I have plenty of room and it gets lonely here with just me and the hound.

 

[abelman]

Flash, I'm curious as to what the bluefish tasted like. I fished them heavy in the NE when I was in college. Even made a living one summer using rod and reel.

Smoked, they tasted like raw hotdogs but grilled or baked, man, it was and still is one of my favorite fish. Although, many consider it a trash fish which I've never understood.

 

[richoso1]

Thanks for the Q View, now I've GOT to go out and get me some kind of fish, you just jogged my taste buds!

 

[cowgirl]

Looks awesome Flash!

Sorry to hear about your eye, hope you heal up soon.

 

[placebo]

That looks really, really good Flash! Hope your eye heals fast. Great pic too it must not be holding you back too much.

 

[flash]

Raw hotdog

Never heard of that. Out of those two fish, I and my wife prefer the Blues. Remembers ours our not the beast you catch on the NE coast. More in the 14 to 17 inch size. Best to bleed them when they are caught. We LOVE to make dip out of them or on a ritz like I did here. Loaded with Omega 3 fats too. I have fried them before, but prefer them blackened (black 'n bluefish) if I do not smoke them. Spanish, I either fry as I do trout or smoke for dip. Some folks do no care for either fish.

 

[jdfire40]

I am one of those someones!

The only way I like spanish is bridled to a 12/0 hook at the end of a 50w!

On a side note I have caught some pompano the last few weeks from the beach & my wife said the next pomps I bring home better be smoked! So maybe I'll have some pics to go with it!

 

[abelman]

Well, you are the pro and that looks great. Wish I had some right now.

As for the raw hotdog, I tried some smoked bluefish when we were out for dinner years and years ago. If I was blindfolded, I would have sworn that's what I was eating. Although, I would eat raw hotdogs as a kid to so I'm not really complaining. I do remember bluefish being a staple as far as making dips for ritz crackers and such. It was also a staple for my grandparents on the grill or with breadcrumbs baked in the oven. I honestly miss those days and the fish.

I know the blues down there are different from the NE blues. The big guys migrate like tarpon. They range from the Carolinas in the winter to Maine in the summer. Great game fish whatever size. As for cooking/smoking, I have no doubt you have that figured out. Like I said, wish I had some.

Well, I have the bug and am headed down to your state in 10 days and then back again the end of May so I can chase some fish. Unfortunately, I'm not after the eating kind though(except permit but I can't bring myself to keep one. Not because they aren't great to eat, it's because it's a great game fish on a fly. I'll keep a pomp though....another great eating fish).

 

[flash]

Well we all have different taste, that is for sure. Maybe they brined them. LOL. Pompano and Cobia are two fish I find over rated. I've tried several ways but still find them on the bland side. Give me a snook or snapper anytime. Our part time neighbors up here brought some Mutton snapper with them when they came up from the Keys.

Excellent.
JD, if you like fried trout, you should like fresh fried Spanish.