Brook Trout over the Fire

Camping Eats Continued!

When we ventured out for the day on Saturday, we ended up fishing at Three Creeks Lake near Sisters, Oregon.  We bank-fished all afternoon (which we have decided we are just NOT good at) and came away with one 12" Brook Trout.  I will say I'm supremely proud of that catch :-)

Cleaning fish in camp isn't a big deal, but ... we didn't bring any flour; we hadn't planned on cooking fish in camp.  So we started rummaging through the grocery bags to see what we could find and brainstorm.

By this time, our Ramen Noodle adventure had come to a close, the kids had stayed up to see the amazing stars and two of the four were passed out in the tent.  Cleaning a fish in the dark - interesting times.  Photographing a fish cooking in the dark - even more fun! :-)  But obviously we made it work.

The closest thing we could find for a breading for Mr. Brook was Trader Joe's Gorgonzola Crackers.  So into a Ziploc bag we poured those babies and one of the kids got the satisfying job of crushing them into dust.  Fishy was shaken in the crumbs and onto the waiting grill pan he went!  No, we didn't season fishy any further than the crackers.  Mostly because ... fishy was cooking in the leftover bacon grease from that morning and we knew that would be enough!  So resourceful.



While fishy was frying over the fire, Brownie scooped up the leftover bell peppers from the kids and sauteed them with the rest of the onions and cilantro from the Jamexican Tacos (how many meals did we get out of that adventure!?) until they were soft.  Then, stirred in two chopped tomatoes from our garden to warm in the pan and ... on top went Mr. Brook Trout!  We just shared a plate, ate the meat and scooped up the veggies as we went ... it was delicious! Wild trout taste nothing like farmed trout, TRUST US!

Overall, we were definitely frugal with food on this trip and created some pretty yummy, if unconventional and strange, meals if you ask me!  And yes, we ended up coming home with quite a few groceries to spare!  We had a blast!

I wouldn't recommend staying in a campground with no water, though.  Luckily we were close to town where we could buy water because .... dirty fishy dishes ... must be washed! :-)