Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Food, Cooking, and Game Preparation Winter time eats fit for Thor.

The following dish is prepared in reverence to the Norsk mythical gods.
this is not I repete NOT a lutefisk dish. This dish can be eaten by ordinary humans and enjoyed.
So we begin, first this dish is creamed salt cod with potatos and peas.
Historically this is a late spring dish as peas and new pototes were not avalible in winter. Due to modern ways we can get anything we want to cook today. But originally stored potatos were used with out the peas.
Heres how it's done:
The most difficult part of this dish is procuring a slab of salt cured cod. In the old days one just reached up into the rafters and pulled down a slab that had been hung there on a string. Now you either find it in a box imported from europe or a fish monger who happens to sell salt cod.
The fish has been prepared in salt, salt preserves the flesh by displacing the water in the cells thus making a fillet of cod into a shingle like board.
To reconstitute you have to soak the cod in clean cold fresh water at least over night changing the water three or more times. The fish will now look like a fillet of cod again. Put the cod into a pot of water and simmer until the cod is falling appart. The flesh just sort of flakes off the bones. strain the meat saving a cup or so of the liquid. set aside pick out the bones. Now in a pan melt some butter 1/2 cube, add enough flour to make a roux. Add fish juice and a little cream to make a gravy. If you are gravy challenged and always make lumpy gravy try this: In a bowl mix flour and cold cream (whole milk will work just as well) with a wisk until blended, try not to make it foamy. Add to hot butter and fish juice stir continusly until gravy reaches a full rolling boil. Add pepper and Allspice along with fish. Ladel over potatoes add peas if you like. A glass of Mead and a slab of soda bread and the gods will come a calling.

A very similar dish can be made using fresh firm white fish just fillet and cook in a pot of water until the fish is falling appart, baked cod works the same. For a real treat replace cod with medium to large shrimp.

Oh man I'm getting hungry now.

Bullwnkl.

Now the way you tell it Winky that don't sound too bad. My great aunt used to fix something sort of like that a long time ago. It could be confused however when you mention other fish.

Long time ago my first wife and I had a colored maid that worked for us. We called her Ignorant because she was. Was also cooking chalenged when you got beyond coffee, fried eggs and fried bologna. Good house cleaner but couldn't cook for sour apples. Point of fact my wife taught Ignorant how to cook a few simple dishes. One of them was creamed chip beef. SOS don't you know.

Well, the old colored school was empty and leased to a company who put up a fence and turned it into a funny farm. Called it Shady Rest. Had forty dim wits mostly kids up to about 18 there. Once in a while a bunch of them would get loose and wander around until they caught them but that is another story.

They were hiring workers and Ignorant quit us and hired on as a cook. One day soon after all hell broke loose. There was ambulances coming from all the surrounding counties lights flashing and sirens wailing. Naturally every body around went down there to see what was going on at Shady Rest.

They was hauling screaming and crying kids out of there by the baskets full. Most of them doubled up like pretzels holding their bellies and pukeing and soiling their britches and screaming and hollering and gibbering and just carrying on something fierce. Was hauling them off to get their stomachs pumped.

When things sort of quieted down they collared Ignorant to find out what she had fed them for lunch.

She told them that Miss Jeanie ( my wife) had taught her how to make creamed beef but she didn't have any beef. She did find twelve cans of Mackerel so she made creamed mackerel.

None of them died but it was sure a run away there for a while. Ignorant got fired too.

BCR

Boggy have you been into the turkey nuts again? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> Down in your neck of the woods I suppose you can get gulf coast shrimp or crawdads. Both of these critters work pretty good in cream sause. We Swedes up here in the NW are partial to fresh cold water sea food for the most part but an occasional slab of salt cod is always good. Then there is the pickled herring, Oh my god that is good eats when made right. if ever you meet my dad, which I am sure you wont, do not I repeat do not even try any of his pickled herring or smelt, you will surelly come down as sick as those kids in the nut house. he dosn't cure his fish so it is just raw pickled fish very bad stuff. On the other hand my pickled herring is pretty good if I say so my self. The thing is I can only get Icelandic salt herring a couple times a year and then it's a 100-150 mile drive round trip. But it's worth it. Simple to make, rehydrate the fish changing water two or three times depending on how much fish that you have. Use lots of pearl onions and pickling spices....no dill or pickle spices. Cloves anise etc. boil mix in white vinigar 50:50 vinigar and water cut up herring in bite size hunks put in "glass jug" oinons, liquid, herring and all the spices, keep in cool place, right rear of second shelf in refer. is where you will find mine. Takes about two months to get real good. then there is pickled eggs......

Bullwnkl.

Ok Bullwinkle, if you're driving 150mi to get salt cod, thats got to be in Seattle. Either the Market or someplace in Ballard. YA GOTTA TELL ME WHERE YA GETTING IT!!!!! I live in the culinary wasteland of Mt. Vernon, and havn't had any salt cod or herring in years.
To make do for my pickled herring fix I have to do it "quick and dirty". I take a jar of pickled hering from Costco, drain the fish, save only half of the juice, replace the rest of the juice with white vinegar, add pepper corns, bayleaf, a couple of little red hot thai peppers, sometimes a tiny bit of sugar if I put in too much vinegar. Let this sit in the garage fridge for about 2 or 3 weeks. It's almost good, but better than nothing.

Jeffro, I find salt cod sometimes at the Pike Place market, I hate going to Seattle. Usually i get what i want in Aberdeen, there is a fish market at the bridge just before you leave town. I used to work down there for the county health dept. Some grocery stores will order salt cod but i have never seen one that will order salted Islandic herring. Good luck on the pickled herring. Pickled sockeye is mighty fine too. The salting is the secret,a crock will work well to salt in I have only done this once but it worked ok. Salted fish around here does not last too long due to the moisture in the air, so I purchase my fish pre salted then use it. Salting your own is a hassel that I do not have time for.

Bullwnkl.

I know, I hate going to Seattle also. When I do go to the PP Market, I get there early in the AM to avoid the touristas. Here is a site that may or may not interest you. It belongs to a guide that we use. Her smoked salmon recipie is ok, but mine is better. Her recipie for pickled steelhead is really good! Well I like it anyway. www.lettypotter.com she has a couple of good links in there too.
We just got done packaging up this years supply of homemade saurkraut. This years yeild is 42qts.

Pickled steelhead!!! oh that makes me want to cry, Pickling such a fine fish is akin to using razor clams in clam chowder, it's bound to be great but there is a better way. Pickled sockeye is good, pickled eggs are good, pickled vegies are good. I even like pickled octopus.
Am heading up to Neah bay this week end just to have a looksee, try and get reservations for a week in July for two camp trailors and a boat slip. Halibut and ling are the target.

Heres to ya

Bullwnkl.

Even pickled pickles are pretty good. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />
Winky what are ling? We have a fish in the gulf that are called ling. Real name is Cobia. One of the better eating fish. Wouldn't be the same as your ling would it?

BCR

Boggy, I am familier with cobia, they are not what we call lingcod. Lingcod are ugly no make that real ugly. they have a set of teeth that belong on a baracuda and a mouth half as big as they are long. A good sized lingcod 50 pounder could take a basket ball in his mouth. I caught one over 70 pounds a long time ago as a kid in Alaska. Lingcod season here usually produces a lot of 12 -25 pounders with a two a day limit for fish in the bracket. These guys are ugly but they are mighty fine eating. They are almost as good as halibut.
we used to dive for them when they were plentiful but the state allowed the bottom dragers in and now there are few bottom fish left in the Canal. But out on the coast it's another story. In fact tomorrow, Sunday, I am taking the family up to Neah bay for the day. Want to set up reservations for a week in July at one of the fishing resorts, need a space for a couple travel trailors and a moorage for a boat.Salmon fishing in the straights is usually pretty good in July plus crabbing and bottom fishing and general goofing off...no licence for that yet.

Bullwnkl.

Dang it Bullwinkle, I didn't want to make you cry! I don't know if I could bring myself to use steelhead for pickling . She just has a good recipie for salting fish for pickling. Any 'ol salmon would work. About this using razor clams for chowder....Now you're scarring me! That is an evil, evil thought. Stop it!
We fish around Pillar Pt. for ling's and halibut. Years ago we stayed at the old Silver-King resort. But have been putting in at Seiku the last few years. Lots of good kelp beds to get green-ling's for bait in area.