Carne Asada Omelet , & Brody ’ s First Hunt ”
Carne Asada Fish Omelet
22 Oct . 27 - Nov . 10 , 2017
FRESHWATER
VOL . 36 • ISS . 23
GONE FISHING continued from page 1
fish crossed over to the starboard side of the boat . At this point , the fish made an unstoppable run downstream . In all of my years fishing , I ’ ve never been worried about being spooled until that very moment . The fish had the reel down to my braided backing line , and it was continuing to run downstream . There wasn ’ t much I could do to stop it .
Before I go any further , let me explain the rig I ’ ve developed for bait fishing for striped bass . I start with a reel spooled with 25 pound test monofilament line . I ’ m using at least 9 foot long parabolic fiberglass noodle rods . This means they bend all the way down to the reel , looking like a letter ‘ C ’ when they are loaded up . I like these because it allows the fish to grab the bait and run for a few feet before the rod eventually loads up and they are hooked .
Speaking of hooks , I ’ m using Gamakatsu 8 / 0 inline octopus circle hooks with a straight eye ( 265418 INLINE OCTOPUS CIRCLE SE ). I tie these on a 3 foot long 25 pound test monofilament leader . I tie a snell knot so the leader comes out of the eye on the same side as the hook point . This forces the hook point towards the line when you hook a fish .
To complete the rig I run a sliding sinker above the leader , and load the hook with something stripers love like shad , anchovies , sardines , pile worms , or in this case , chicken livers .
The long limber rods do their by job hooking fish , and they are easily up to the task of landing average sized striped bass . However , when really large fish are hooked on these rigs , you are dependent on your line strength and a quality drag to save the day .
I told Andre we might have to drop anchor and chase the fish downstream , but moments later I started gaining on the fish . After about ten minutes , I said , “ This fish doesn ’ t feel very sturgeony ”. It wasn ’ t head shaking , jumping , rubbing in the line , or using any of the normal sturgeon tactics . “ It might be a big striper ”, I related .
I finally had my sinker to the surface , but the turbid water made it hard so see any further than a foot deep . Each time we thought we had a chance to net it , the fish would strip about ten feet of line towards the bottom . After repeating this scene for several minutes , we finally got a glimpse of the fish .
Fish Sniffer field editor , Jack Naves landed and released this huge striper while soaking bait in the West Delta on October 8 . Photo by JACK NAVES , Fish Sniffer Staff .
“ It ’ s a big striper !” I uttered in excitement . In one swoop , Andre had the fish safely in the net . Since the circle hook had the fish cleanly pinned in the side of the mouth , I wanted to release the big breeder to spawn some future stripers .
In the past , I ’ ve read that it ’ s not good for a fish ’ s survival to suspend a large fish from its lower jaw like we ’ ve all been accustomed to seeing in bass magazines .
Because of this , I attached my scale to the net and weighed the fish suspended by the cradle of the netting . The final tally was 24 pounds and 39 inches in length . After a few quick photos , I revived the fish in the water using my fish gripper . Once the pectoral fins were extended and the fish started biting , I released the gripper . The huge bass swam slowly back down into the murky waters of the west delta and out of sight .
Andre and I continued to fish until about 3 pm that afternoon in perfect weather . We ended the day with four fish in the 4 to 5 pound range for the grill , while releasing two other keepers . Days like that are what make me continue to believe that autumn fishing in the West Delta is one of my favorite places to be .
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Carne Asada Omelet , & Brody ’ s First Hunt ”
Brody , Eric ’ s Labrador retriever , is on the first official goose / duck hunt of his young life . He ’ s now 6 mos and 3 weeks today ; with his gangly legs , he should be a funny sight dragging in a big goose . Hopefully , they ’ ll get some Specks ( tasty and smaller – like a big Mallard .).
A few weeks back , Brody went on the absolute first hunt of his life when Eric took him dove hunting . The first time he went to retrieve a dove , he jumped back , startled by the still quivering body . But , soon , his genes kicked in and he retrieved all of Eric ’ s doves as he would ’ ve a bumper – like an old pro .
He ’ s so different from Deke . Deke was the alpha of the litter and had a more reserved and wise nature to him ; while Brody ’ s got a sweet and slightly silly nature , making him affable to most anyone and especially to kids . He ’ s at his gangling teenager phase right now with his long stilt-like legs and big feet .
I use to think it was slightly sacrilegious to cut fish into unrecognizable chunks . But , as the years have trickled by , I ’ ve decided it ’ s allright to cut up your meat however you want in order to achieve the desired meal . If I don ’ t have a small fish fillet to fit my recipe that calls for a thin piece or smaller chunk of fish , I will try and turn whatever fish I have into something resembling the fish I preferred .
“ Necessity is the mother of invention ,” they say . It ’ s not as easy to customize fish ( especially cutting fillets thinner ); but , with a steady hand and a sharp knife , it ’ s not that hard . Slightly frozen fish is easier to fashion into the shapes you prefer . I ’ ve been more often than not cutting Rockfish into thinner slices so that I can eat crunchier , more flavorful pieces .
This past month , I cut up some of
COOKIN ' YER CATCH by Paulette
the rockfish into really small pieces and tried out a new seasoning that I had found that Lawry ’ s makes . Lawry ’ s happens to make a lot of the seasonings that I like ; and , years ago , they actually put out a cookbook called “ A Fisherman ’ s Cookbook ,” by Dan Hernandez .
I think I got it complimentary back in the good old days when I actually use to receive free fish cookbooks . It was nice when I got to use a recipe from other people ’ s cookbooks now and again . They really came in handy back when the Sniffer had my article twice a month in every issue . I had to keep on my toes thinking “ new recipe ” every single time I cooked fish . Eric would say , “ Can we have something other than fish around him someday ?” I guess I like fish more than he does .
When I was a kid , we mostly ate only crabmeat from Joe up the street who gave us live crabs from his dad who fished out of the SF Bay . His dad was tragically killed by a very large ship that ran over his fishing boat in the fog out there one night . Eric and I were hoping to get crab this year when he went up to Shelter Cove ; but , by time the season up there opened for anglers , the Dungeness had been practically all fished out .
So , this month I ’ m sharing with you one of the ways I ’ ve enjoyed using this new seasoning that I discovered . I noticed it is part of an entire line of Mexican seasonings ; so , I ’ m guessing that it could be carried at Mexican grocery stores . I happened to find it online .
FYI : It ’ s available online in an 11.25 ounce size at Amazon , Walmart , and Jet . com for under $ 4.00 . You can also find the ingredients in it online at their website if you don ’ t want to buy the seasoning . It ’ s a list of the usual suspects with some cumin , lime , and oregano .
Carne Asada Fish Omelet
INGREDIENTS
• Mild fleshed fish cut into small ½ -1 ” size pieces
• Lawry ’ s Carne Asada seasoning
• Shredded Mexican style cheese or cheese slices
• Eggs , beaten 65 strokes with a tablespoon of water
• Green onions , chopped or minced
• Butter
DIRECTIONS
Add a couple of tablespoons of butter to a large non-stick pan , heat to med-high heat , and add in the fish . Stir fry it and allow it to brown . Add in a goodly amount of seasoning to color it and make it tasty . Stir it around until browned and cooked . This should only take a minute or less . Remove to use as filling for your omelet ( s ).
Heat an 8 inch skillet to medium or medium-low , add in 1 Tbsp . of butter per omelet . Then , add in 2-3 beaten eggs per person . Cover with a lid and let cook for a minute . Check and see if it has cooked through . You want it barely cooked all the way through before you add in the cheese and fish pieces .
Add in 1 / 4 -1 / 3 Cup cheese per omelet ( shredded Mexican or 1-1 / 2 -2 slices of cheese , such as Colby-jack or mild , medium , or sharp cheddar ). Then , add in about 1 / 3 -1 / 2 Cup of fish , depending on the size of your pan and how many eggs you are using .
Turn down the heat and cover the pan again and after about 30 seconds to a minute , sprinkle in the green onion . By then , the cheese should be melted . When the cheese is melted and the fish and green onions are added , slide the omelet out of the pan and fold the other half over as the first half lands onto the plate . This is my favorite way to make an omelet . You can also use a larger pan and slide it off , folding it from both ends , one overlapping the other .
All ingredients are written as per person measurements . This is good as is or served with salsa or Tabasco sauce .
Avocados are good with this too either inside the omelet or served as a salad on the side . I like to put a scoop of sour cream inside the peeled and halved avocado and a spoonful of salsa over the sour cream .
Yum ! This makes a nice brunch or lunch or light dinner . As a dinner , this is also good
with a side of hash browns . Go for it !
If you have any questions , comments , cooking tips or recipes to share , feel free to write me at : Paulette or Cookin ’ Yer Catch ; c / o The Fish Sniffer ; PO Box 776 ; Colfax , CA 95713-0776 .