Tomorrow's Lunch

I remember my first fishing trip; I was eleven years old and my dad decided to take me on the “annual” fishing trip after making much commotion about not being able to go, as I was a girl. Well, off we went on a Friday night (my brother came too) to a lake that was pristine, but also three hours away with a house that had no heat or plumbing! My adventure left much to be desired; I spent the weekend complaining about the cold and the rampant smell of farts that was coming from my brother (yes, I got my first taste of the “Dutch Oven” on this trip!). That was the last time that I attempted to fish. Many years later while living in the British Virgin Islands, I took up fishing again and enjoyed it! Perhaps it was because it was hot, and my brother was nowhere in sight. I mostly caught small, tropical fish that I didn’t want to eat, but my love affair had been sparked.

When I met my husband, one of my qualities that I told him about was my ability to fish; so as a Valentine’s gift, he got me a fishing rod. I have yet to use the rod (I always forget to bring with me), but when we went to Cape Breton a while back, he asked me if I would like to go mackerel fishing. Well, of course I did, and off we went on a sunny Saturday afternoon. Our hosts offered me a rod, but I opted to fish with a traditional hand line, something that I had never done before. Fun! Here I was, off the coast of Cape Breton, fishin’. Doug had never seen me in action, and I think he was slightly skeptical as to whether I not I could actually a fish. A few minutes later, my jigging payed off and I caught 5, count em’, 5 mackerel! I took them off the line and dropped into a bucket for grilling later.

I don’t have a specific recipe for these bejeweled beauties; we usually clean them, then grill them with olive oil, salt and pepper. Some people find the flavour to be too strong, but I find dipping the grilled flesh in some citrus aioli to be the perfect balance! Pair this with a crisp white wine, such as a l’Acadie Blanc, and you are off to the races.

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