{"id":877,"date":"2021-08-14T20:22:05","date_gmt":"2021-08-14T20:22:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/publiclandsjournal.com\/?p=877"},"modified":"2021-12-31T20:49:08","modified_gmt":"2021-12-31T20:49:08","slug":"3-simple-and-delicious-ways-to-cook-trout-in-the-backcountry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/publiclandsjournal.com\/3-simple-and-delicious-ways-to-cook-trout-in-the-backcountry\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Simple and Delicious Ways to Cook Trout in the Backcountry"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Time spent in the backcountry is never wasted but home does offer some amenities that aren’t easily replaced. One of those is quality food. After a few days off the grid, I start craving anything that isn’t cooked by adding boiling water to it (sorry not sorry Mountain House). Luckily, many backcountry lakes and streams contain healthy populations of trout that aren’t difficult to catch. In many cases, trout populations in these water bodies could benefit by losing a few fish to decrease competition among the others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While catching trout in the backcountry isn’t difficult, it can be challenging to do them justice when it’s not reasonable to pack in the grill or smoker. Luckily, there are a few sure-fire ways to cook trout without adding any (or very little) extra weight to your pack. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
My three favorite ways to cook trout in the backcountry (in no particular order) are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All three of these preparations are simple, require very few ingredients, and are a great change of pace from dehydrated meals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Roasting trout over a fire will be easiest with smaller fish. Once fish get larger than about 12 inches they take longer to cook and it’s more difficult to cook them evenly. Larger fish can still be roasted over a fire but you’ll probably want to rotate them a few times to get them cooked evenly. But I’m getting a little ahead of myself. Let’s talk about the method.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Follow these steps to roast trout over the fire (reference the photo above).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Make sure to watch your fish carefully. As they cook the weight of the fish can pull them away from the skewer and into the fire. If the fish are large enough you can cut some small, toothpick-like branches to insert crossways into the tail of the fish that will help hold it on the skewer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once the fish are cooked you can peel the skin off (if you wish, I like to eat the crispy skin) and pull the meat off the bones. With smaller fish, the pin bones often dissolve and you can eat the fish right off the skewer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As delicious as this method is, it can present one problem because it requires an open fire. Fire restrictions are becoming more common to protect against wildfire. Be sure to know and follow the fire regulations for your area. <\/p>\n\n\n\n