We used to do the cheeks as we would scallops.
Camping/fishing on a holiday weekend, when we have plenty of cheeks to go 'round, I like to wrap them in bacon and cook them over the campfire.
A lot of folks place a premium on the cheeks, but I never got all that excited about them. They don't suck, by any stretch of the imagination, but they aren't something I get giddy about. With their firmer texture, I usually save the checks for étouffée or cioppino, if they make it home.
Rockfish.....now THAT's something to get giddy about. By far my favorite eating fish!
My kids are fish-eating fools, and fish is by far their most requested meal.
Broiling it is pretty easy: I use a light drizzle of olive oil on top, then season with Zatarain's creole seasoning and a very light sprinkle of Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs. Broil on high until the top of the filet just starts to flake apart. This is my favorite way to eat rockfish. It stays moist and just melts in your mouth!
Zatarain's creole seasoning also works well when grilling, and if I'm deep frying fish, I'll mix a good bit of Zatarain's into the breading. "Slap Ya Mama" is another good brand of creole seasoning. I find most of the others to be too salty for my taste buds. Zatarain's and SYM seem to have more zing than salt. I'm not a fan of Tony's for this reason, too salty.
My wife's favorite, fast/easy halibut recipe is to cube the halibut filet (works really well with larger/thicker filets) and drown it in ranch dressing. Then, roll the chunks in crushed Ritz crackers and place on a cookie sheet. Bake at 500-degrees for 10min, hot and fast. Another variation (my favorite) is to drown the chunks in melted garlic butter and roll in crushed potato chips.
My dad got me a couple of the Yoshi copper grilling mats. At first glance, I thought it was an "As Seen on TV" gimmick. But, after using it, it does a great job with fish filets. The fish filets grill normally and do not stick to the grill or flake apart. They are a very worthwhile grilling accessory for fish!
