Steelhead trout and asparagus

[wilburpan]

Only a money shot, since we’re at the time of year where it’s too dark to take a cooking shot at dinner time. Asparagus had olive oil, salt and pepper prior to grilling. The steelhead trout had my mix of cayenne, black pepper, salt and oregano sprinkled on it, with a little olive oil on the skin side to help the rub stick better.



The two things I want to comment on are:
 
1. This was a direct high heat cook, sticking with using the main grate based on the feedback I got earlier this month. I got Smaug up to a dome temperature of 600ºF in 13 minutes. That may not be as fast as a gas grill, but my old gas grill would need a good 10 minutes of preheating the grates before I would do a cook like this on it.
 
2. I picked up this piece of steelhead trout thinking that I wanted trout, and didn’t really wonder why it looked like salmon until I was eating it and found it tasted just like salmon. A little googling, and I learned that steelhead trout really is a type of Pacific salmon. You learn something new everyday.
 
Still it was a really nice piece of fish. It’s not as oily as Atlantic salmon, which is what we usually get when we want salmon.

[egmiii]

Looks great! How much fuel do you end up burning on a short burst cook like this?

 

I noticed your asparagus looks like it was snapped off to eliminate the stringy section. I love asparagus but I'm too cheap to throw the bottom away, so I did a little research and developed this technique. First, cut off about 12-3/4" off the bottom depending upon how fresh it is. Don't let the color fool you. The white and purple sections taste the same as the green. Then use a peeler to shave the outer layer off the next 2-3 inches. Lay them across the bottom of a bowl flipped over to make this process easier, otherwise the peeler can't break the skin easily. Next, drop them into salted boiling water for 2 minutes. Remove, add olive oil, salt, and pepper. Then grill for about 2 minutes tops. It's a bit of work, but I can't even order asparagus at a restaurant anymore, it's just that good. The bottoms are even better than the tips. I use the fattest ones I can find to reduce the amount of peeling. It makes no difference in the texture and flavor.

[tony b]

Looks great! How much fuel do you end up burning on a short burst cook like this?

 

I noticed your asparagus looks like it was snapped off to eliminate the stringy section. I love asparagus but I'm too cheap to throw the bottom away, so I did a little research and developed this technique. First, cut off about 12-3/4" off the bottom depending upon how fresh it is. Don't let the color fool you. The white and purple sections taste the same as the green. Then use a peeler to shave the outer layer off the next 2-3 inches. Lay them across the bottom of a bowl flipped over to make this process easier, otherwise the peeler can't break the skin easily. Next, drop them into salted boiling water for 2 minutes. Remove, add olive oil, salt, and pepper. Then grill for about 2 minutes tops. It's a bit of work, but I can't even order asparagus at a restaurant anymore, it's just that good. The bottoms are even better than the tips. I use the fattest ones I can find to reduce the amount of peeling. It makes no difference in the texture and flavor.

 

Crazy, as I'd always been taught to seek out the smaller diameter asparagus, as being better quality/tenderness. Have seen others post about peeling the stalks, but never tried it (my dogs LOVE the cuts off the bottom of the stalks!!) So, I'm gonna have to try this - the dogs will just have to suffer without their treat!

[tinyfish]

Lovely cook.

Steelhead is one of my favorite fish to fish for. They are very acrobatic.

[egmiii]

My wife and kids used to only eat the tips, leaving 60% of the stalks on their plates. Would drive me nuts. I tried every diameter, fresh vs old, boiling longer, grilling longer, but nothing improved the stringy inedible lower half, until I discovered peeling. Now they eat from the bottom up. Can't deny those results!

[ckreef]

Nice fish cook. I've never had steal head trout before.

Will have to try peeling the asparagus. We eat the whole asparagus but I'm still not fond of the strings.

[Poochie]

That fish looks great Wilbur. Asparagus too. I cooked steelhead trout one time and thought the same thing you did. I never looked it up, but now I know.

[MacKenzie]

Wilbur, another one of your very tasty fish dishes. Looks perfect.

[wilburpan]

Thanks! I’m going to try that peeling the bottom of the asparagus trick. I’ve always just snapped off the bottom inch or so. I just hope that my pee doesn’t smell more.

[wilburpan]

Looks great! How much fuel do you end up burning on a short burst cook like this?

 

 

For these sorts of cooks, I start by filling the basket with Royal Oak, and light it over as much of the surface as I can with my weed burner. I let the fire get established with the lid open and the bottom vents fully open for about five minutes. Then I stir up the top layer of coals to distribute the lit parts evenly, put the grates in, and shut the lid. It takes 5-10 minutes after that for the dome thermometer to hit 500-600ºF. Then I’ll cook the food.

 

After the end of the cook, I’ll take the food off, and let the fire go for about 10 minutes to help clean the grate, and then I’ll scrub the grate off and shut down the vents. The next time I go to cook, I’ll have a basket that’s about 2/3 full.

 

This may be different with other brands of charcoal, especially if it’s denser than Royal Oak.

[egmiii]

Thanks! I appreciate the details.

[kjs]

Wilbur, that looks very good! Nice cook.

[tony b]

Sorry, Wilbur, but I don't think peeling will solve the "asparagus pee smell" problem. I have it, too, btw! 

[skreef]

Love Fish and yours look Perfectly cook..far as asparagus I cut the ends as well..and use Oil,butter,Kroger salt and minced garlic..They come out very tender.