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JuliKellner
Juli Kellner
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By Juli Kellner
There’s more than one way to fry a fish, but just one good way to clean a northern pike.
Ah, northern. A former boss called them “snakes.” Little ones clean the worm off your hook without a whisper on the line; big ones give a satisfying fight, possibly a nice trophy and certainly a delicious meal – if you can clean out the nasty bones. And be careful when you work your good old red-and-white plug free from razor sharp teeth. (I still have the scar.)
Chances are that you won’t catch a northern pike in Lake Superior.
“Northern are fished primarily in inland lakes, but can be found in the Duluth-Superior harbor,” says Dan Wilfond, a fisheries specialist with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources in Duluth.
They might even venture out into Lake Superior, but not in what I’d call a fishable population. “They are a viable game fish that anglers target on the bigger sport fishing lakes, like Mille Lacs Lake, where they grow to trophy size,” he says. (Consider a 40-plus-inch northern a “memorable” or trophy fish.)
But are northern good eating? Only if you can fillet your way past the dreaded “Y” bone.
“There are folks out there who know how to fillet a northern so they end up with perfectly boneless filets. Or you can pickle small northern and the bones tend to dissolve away,” says the DNR fisheries expert.
Eric Goerdt, owner of Northern Waters Smokehaus in Duluth, thinks northern make great pike burgers. “I remove the skin and the belly bones, but leave in the Y bones and run the filets through a grinder. If folks don’t have a grinder, they could use a food processor. The magic is that you don’t need to add eggs or bread crumbs … just season with a teaspoon of salt for every pound of fish, add your favorite spices – I like garlic and black pepper – then form into patties and cook as you normally would. Serve on a bun with lettuce and tomato. My kids absolutely love them.”
Of course, on the Big Lake, anglers seek lake trout, whitefish and herring, or walleye in the shallower, warmer waters of the south shore.
“People love walleye. Personally, I prefer whitefish, herring and lake trout,” says Dick Martin, one owner of the Lake Superior Fish Company in Superior. Whitefish is a popular and versatile fish, he adds. “People usually bake or broil lake trout. Whitefish can be baked or broiled, fried or used in a good old-fashioned fish boil.”
With 40 years of experience in the business, Dick explains the easiest way to fillet whitefish: “The bones are mostly in the loin section. Just find the line of bones with your finger and cut on either side. Then I divide that long filet into four pieces. Then there’s the belly part and the tail. It goes pretty quickly and easily if you have a good sharp knife.”
Lake Superior Fish Company sells to retail customers, but if you can’t find your favorite in the store and you’re not about to catch your own, call and the store will try to have your special order wrapped and waiting. “For fresh fish from Lake Superior, my all time favorite is herring,” says Eric at Northern Waters. “You can’t beat fish and chips made with herring.”
For smoked fish, “people love both lake trout and whitefish. These cold-water fish have a nice oil content, which makes them perfect for smoking,” he says. (You can order from Northern Waters on the Web.)
We often hear that it’s good for us to eat more fish, and local fish prepared in a delicious way makes it all the better … no Y bones about it.
Baked Whitefish Filets
1-1/2 to 2 lb. of whitefish filets
Cooking spray
1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
2 Tbsp. mayonnaise
1/8 tsp. onion powder
1/8 tsp. white pepper
1/2 to 3/4 c. breadcrumbs or cornflake crumbs
2 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
Preheat oven to 425° Fahrenheit. Coat an 11 x 7-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Arrange filets in dish. Combine juice, mayonnaise, onion powder and pepper in a small bowl, then spread over fish. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs; drizzle with butter.
Bake at 425° for 20 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Remove from oven and sprinkle with parsley.
Friday Dinner Fish Cakes
1 lb. northern pike (skin removed)
1 egg
1 medium onion, finely chopped (about 1/2 c.)
2 Tbsp. prepared mustard
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. dried parsley flakes (or finely chopped fresh parsley)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. white pepper
cornflake crumbs
oil for frying
Poach northern in gently boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain, cool, flake and debone if necessary. Mix next seven ingredients in a bowl. Add fish, mixing well, then add enough cornflake crumbs to form patties. For added crunch, dip patties in dry cornflake crumbs before frying in oil. Serve with dill sauce on the side or place on bun, slather with dill sauce, top with lettuce and tomato and serve as a sandwich.
Dill Mayonnaise
1 c. real mayonnaise
1/4 c. finely minced cucumber or minced dill pickle
1/2 c. finely minced dill
2 Tbsp. fresh squeezed lemon juice
Dash each of salt and white pepper
Combine and refrigerate. Ridiculously good with fish cakes!
Best Ever Pickled Fish
4 cups raw fish, cut to desired bite-size pieces with skin removed (northern pike works best!)
1/2 c. pickling salt (NOT iodized)
1 qt. water
white vinegar
onion slices
Pickling solution –
4 c. white vinegar
3 c. sugar
1 c. Rhine wine
1/4 c. pickling spice blend
Place fish pieces in a crock or large glass jar. Mix the pickling salt with water. Pour over the fish to cover completely. Refrigerate for 24 hours, then drain. Cover completely with white vinegar. Refrigerate for 12 hours, then drain. Pack the fish into pint jars layered with onion slices.
To make the pickling solution dissolve the sugar in the vinegar, heating and stirring until the sugar dissolves, but the solution should not boil. Add wine and pickling spice then bring to a boil. Cool solution, then pour over the fish in pint jars. Cover and refrigerate. This will keep for several months.
