Redneck Lobster---- Gar Fishin

My buddy Scott is an amazing fisherman. He knows the local waters better than anyone and does a really good job catchin and landing gar. On a recent trip I was curious to see what Gar actually taste like. As suspected... the normal reaction is...... Nah man that's a junk fish.... Scott However, has actually tried to eat gar and in his opinion it wasn't the worst fish out there and it wasn't the best fish. So with a little research as I typically do in my own fashion..... I found several YouTube videos and websites dedicated to the art of dining on Gar. To my surprise I learned that you either gonna love this thing or hate it. But if I was a bettin man... I would be willing to bet that most people who don't like it have never tasted it. They are just passin along broken knowledge from generation to generation. But to the contrary.... there is something to be said about Seminole Indians trading bass for gar and cooking them over open flames in their hard shell. They absolutely loved it.

So I was convinced..... or at least the only person I had to convince was Scott to catch one or we go together and catch one so that I will cook it. And so we set out on the lake in search of Gar.. We don't have any Alligator gar where we are.. Just common gar, log nose, spotted and Black Gar. It took us all day and we finally got one heading back in to dock. The Shell of the Gar is literally an armor plate. But I was prepared. We had a nail and hammer and brought my thick tin snip cutters and sharp filet knife along with some freezer bags. A quick nail in the skull to a board and immediately sever the spinal column with the tin snip cutters. I ran the tin snips along the back to the tail and I was able to separate the meat from the armor with the knife as I pulled the meat away from inside the armor. BY running the knife along the back all the way to the tail on both sides I was able to get to huge filet's like the back straps of a deer. Some of the prettiest meat I have ever seen.

We cooked it two ways..... One back strap we fried... I prepared lemon wedges and melted butter for the course and the second back strap I cut into chunks and threw it into a Cajun Boil and for approx 5 mins and let simmer down for an additional 3 mins. This was served with a side of melted butter also.. The Verdict.................... ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC!!! and I am not just saying that.. the meat is likened to grouper and when dipped in butter tastes like sweet lobster. SIMPLY AMAZING!!! If Gar isn't the best Fish in the Water and River I want to know what can compete with it. I have tasted practically every fish in our Waters and my favorites are Walleye, Trout, Crappie and Salmon. Now Gar is going to be added into the top Five. If you like Catfish... You will sell your home for Gar!!

Important things to remember....... Make sure you rinse the gar meat off well with cold water and put on ice. I freezed the gar for a night and thawed it the next day to eat it. After it thawed I put it in the fridge to keep it cold until ready to eat. I was flirting with the idea of soaking it in milk... but When I opened the freezer bag there was no smell whatsoever that can be found on the gar. It was clean. So opted out of that. The key ingredient to cooking car is time. Gar doesn't need to be cooked long and it needs to be served hot to enjoy the best the meat has to offer.

So in Short.... with the economy getting tough and families looking for ways to spread their dollars. Instead of heading to Red Lobster... Go and catch a Gar and prepare some Redneck Lobster:)

What a Week!!

I can remember preparing to go hunting last week saturday to only find out that it was way to windy to be really succsessful. It was a hoot trying on my ghille suit for the first time. I felt like the yeti; in fact I could almost bet that the guys who made that infamous big foot video had on a ghille suit. But nonetheless, I had a great time out in the field. I saw tons of sign and I look forward to getting back out this weekend for some hot pre-rut action.

On sat afternoon and all day sunday, I did some much needed yard work and the misses and I planned our meals for the week. This week it was homemade chili, with jalapeno Cheddar cornbread, baked chicken with fresh veggies, lasagna rolls, or fajita burgers with lean ground beef. The wife and I have been planning our meals every sunday for the week and making sunday our official cook family day. I told her my official name is chef. Shes still rolling her eyes.

I uprooted my eggplant and transplanted it into a container and brought her inside and so far so good. My beautiful pepper plant the habanero is not doing so well, all the leaves have drooped and although it remains green, it looks really really sad. All my other transplants are doing great with a few flowers being set this week as well. I really hope the big habanero gets well. I think its from being left outside and taking in a tremendous amount of rain. Im at a lost of what to do. I just hope he pulls through. Big Sigh...............

Fish Head Soup

For many people eating the fish head is probably unacceptable. However to many more people the Fish head is the most delicious part of the fish. In many parts of the world fish head rivals the best part of steak and the reason for that is the gelatinous fat that surrounds the fish head which gives it tons of flavor and is loaded with healthy Omega 3 fatty Acids. In addition, The stock made from fish heads are served in the most expensive of restaurants and are saved for the staff at the end of the day.

I remember my mom who happens to be Liberian asking the guy at the fish market for the heads and for a while they were giving it to her for free. Because lets face it, who eats Fish Heads. But one day she went back to pick up her fish heads that they usually throw out and to her surprise they were on display for sale, she was shocked with disbelief. But apparently unknown to her, the Fish head Business was growing in full force and while my mom had her fair share of competition, the fish market found a new way to turn a profit.

One of my favorite parts of the fish head is the actual eye. Once you get over the idea of eating an actual eye, you will taste who wonderful they taste. For some reason the eye sucks up all of the flavor of the stock and taste so wonderful. Absolutely delicious!! For this soup we used shitake mushrooms, diakon radish, bok choy, cilantro, spring onions, carrots, salt and black pepper.

Georgian Clam Chowder with Old Fashioned Ham and Cheese Pannini

We Absolutely love Clam Chowder. I am partial to the New England type. We have traveled from coast to coast to taste chowder. Right now the chowder that has made a very good impression on me is pikes place chowder in Seattle. Their chowder made me raise an eyebrow. It was so delicious. But we quickly realized that there chowder was good because of the great stock they made from the steady supply of fresh seafood and through our research we found out that many places who have a thriving bustling clam and oyster market still purchase their clams and oysters from New England. I think it's great, but I am soo competitive and I really would like a non traditional clam and oyster producer like Georgia to be put on the map. Georgia is unique because it has a small shore line that produces an abundant amount of seafood that is not widely known and I think with a little more promotion the Georgia coast can get the much needed funding to produce, farm and save this untapped industry.

This Georgian clam Chowder recipe was originated with the Georgia clam in mind by adding home grown veggies and herbs with sweet corn from the husk being the stand alone difference from all other clam chowders.

Recipe Posted on http://urbanhomesteadcooking.blogspot.com/

Cilantro garlic lime grilled chicken marinade

I love chicken thighs. In fact I love all dark meat and it has nothing to do with me being black. I know someone somewhere out there is saying, " well, duhhh." Well, um nope, it has everything to do with dark meat being moist. Yeah, yeah I got it, I know what people say about how unhealthy dark meat is compared to white meat. I don't care. Dark meat is delicious, it's moist even when over cooked or cooked badly, dark meat has a certain integrity that can not be broken. Needless, to say it is no wonder I am a huge duck fan, especially of the Peking sort. And there is no place that does duck better than that awesome Peking duck place in Falls Church, Va. If you live in the DC area 'Ahem indoor gardener and growing human you have to try this place if you already haven't and you have to order there Peking duck that will feed two. I can go on and on about that place. But back to the thigh, it was absolutely great and everything we didn't expect. I say that because we didn't expect it to be so good or anything to write about. But it was. Thank God for thighs!!!

Recipe posted on http://urbanhomesteadcooking.blogspot.com/

Chicken pesto panini

Well we had to try the new "G5" foreman grill today. For dinner my wife and I made a Chicken Pesto panini and added some fresh veggies. This year we are going to do alot of soups and sandwiches for dinner. I don't really need to have the traditional dinners. I just need a meal that offers all of the basics and most of all tastes really good. Recipe posted on: http://urbanhomesteadcooking.blogspot.com/