Smoked whitefish?
- Thread starter davew
- Start date
Do just like you’d do trout.
Yes please!! My buddy makes it and it's quite good
Mountain whitefish are good smoked. A bit bony. If you ever get a chance, lake whitefish are super tasty.
SF
SF
Keep the 12”ers. The small ones are good smoked whole and the bones are negligible if smoked hard. Surprisingly good scaled and deep-fried also..I think the flavor diminishes the larger they are..
Although I’ve brined and hot smoked a lot of mountain whitefish here in MT, my fondest whitefish memory comes from Minnesota. We stayed at a cabin resort on Lake Kabatogama every Spring/Summer/Fall for a couple of weeks every year for about a decade between 1993 and 2003. The resort owner was 2nd generation on the shores of Lake Kab and netted a haul of Lake Whitefish every Fall around the shoals of the lake. 100s of pounds of whitefish were frozen over the Winter and awaited a weekly hot smoke every Wednesday night to be shared with the guests at the resort. At a lake side gathering, guests brought different dishes usually representing the cuisine of where they were from. The smoked whitefish was not only delicious but in almost all the gatherings my wife and I attended it was the highlight of the event. As @Stonefish said don’t ever pass up smoked Lake Whitefish.
Here’s a bit of Fly Fishing ?? Trivia involving Mountain Whitefish. When Dan Bailey opened his fly shop in Livingston, Montana in the mid-1930s, he established a successful commercial whitefish business supplying markets and restaurants in the region to supplement the fly shop business. His method: A cane pole and tiny barbless (barbs pinched down) flies tipped with maggots. The business only lasted a few years but in Bailey’s words, he learned a lot about whitefish behavior in the Yellowstone River.
I had a fellow read me the riot act from across the river for releasing a particularly chunky Whitefish. Cussed me out because "thems good eatin!"
I admit, I have never had a bite of one, but I do enjoy catching them. Whitefish will keep the skunk off on a slow fishing day. I've been told that, contrary to the belief held in MT that they damage trout, Whitefish are considered a sign of a healthy river ecosystem.
I admit, I have never had a bite of one, but I do enjoy catching them. Whitefish will keep the skunk off on a slow fishing day. I've been told that, contrary to the belief held in MT that they damage trout, Whitefish are considered a sign of a healthy river ecosystem.
I recall a special WA reg that allowed winter bait fishing on the Yakima to accomodate targeting whities. Is that still a thing?
How to Make Smoked Whitefish -
Smoked whitefish is a wonderful and versatile food from the wild. Mark shows step-by-step how to make it in this video and recipe.
modcarn.com
A place to start yout whitefish culinary journey.
My trout and whitefish smoking routine:
1. After gutting the fish, I dredge them in a mixture of 50% kosher salt and 50% brown sugar laced with either white pepper or garlic powder. (Whitefish are scaled, trout are not). The dredged fish are placed in vacuum sealable bag and refrigerated for 24 hours.
2. After brining, the fish are throughly rinsed in cold water and laid out to air dry for about 30 minutes.
3. (Hot smoke): Fish are placed on a barbecue grill over low, indirect heat with a smoker box on the grill as well. It usually takes about 30-45 minutes to fully cook the fish depending on quantity and size. I like to hot smoke the 2-3 pounders.
4. (Cold Smoke): Fish are placed on racks in a cold smoker with very low indirect heat for 3-6 hours depending on quantity and size.
Apple or hickory chips preferred for smoke.
My Little Chief hot smoker circa 1972 is still functional although a bit grungy.
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