akaShag

..........right up to bug season............?

That worked, OIM. Venison that has been grain (or corn) fed, and properly cared for after it has been shot, will taste very much like lean beef. Deer that mostly eats browse and mast (acorns etc) has a different flavour, which I would describe as richer. You would notice a difference between that and beef. Deer that the hunter has handled poorly in the field will taste "gamey" and in some cases is completely unpalatable. Failure to clean it right away, or cut out badly shot-damaged tissue, or allowing the carcass to stay warm, either by not skinning it or storing it when the temperature is too warm, all these things can make for pretty crappy venison. If a carcass smells bad, there is nothing a butcher can do to rescue it. BTW you can tell your lady friend from me that 26 years is one year more than a life sentence. ? Doug

Thanks for the steer!

Is that a Traeger? I have been thinking I need one of these..............

It is absolutely illegal to barter fish and wildlife in Ontario, and I was just joking. But you are free to GIVE somebody a taste of whitefish...............? Doug

What to do with these 2 fine fish ????????????? Well..............................you could put them aside for me and I could swap you some venison for whities.............?

Do you fish three men in a two-man tent? Won't need a heater...............

Dave, I got tired just READING that. I remember well my days when I owned snowmobiles............and wrastling them out of culverts and snow drifts and up out of slush on frozen lakes......................but none were even nearly that heavy. At least, not so far as I recall, but I can hide my own Easter eggs.............. I no longer own a snowmobile, but I DO have a tracked Argo. And if it tips onto its side I am probably DOA anyways and won't need to worry about getting it right side up. They can recover the Argo with my frozen body.? Doug

Last night it was "Crappies Supreme." A bed of cooked brown rice, a layer of crappie fillets on top, then a sauce made with sauteed Vidalias (in Becel and a bit of bacon fat), ground nutmeg, ground pepper, a can of Cream of Cheddar Cheese soup, about 6 to 7 ounces of 10% cream, a small can of crab meat, all heated and bubbly and poured all over the fillets, then a sprinkle with smoked paprika and a handful of grated "Italiano" cheese. Into the oven at 400 for a half-hour. FABULOUS!

Thanks! I looked up that on You Tube and saw how one person made it, very interesting indeed. I had an acquaintance, of Italian heritage, who made something very much like this, that he put in his cold cellar for quite a long period of time, I think two to three months. I wish I had a cold cellar like that to make some of this stuff! Doug

What are we looking at here? Dry summer sausage, or ?????

calling m2b2, are you alive Rick? Doug

back to smitty..........the way I avoid overpowering the fish is to eat it without all of those vegetables and stuff. Remember, vegetables are what FOOD eats. Doug

That's about all I got that still works.............

YEAH MAN!!!!! (But psst, don't tell OIM..........................?

Holy crap is that ONIONS I see!!!!!!? Doug

and PS to Brian, pretty much ANY fish works fine for chowder. Whitefish is very good, steelhead and salmon are great, don't think I ever tried it with lake trout, but I would tend NOT to use a Simcoe laker because of the fat content. Many years ago, I would see bags of miscellaneous seafood in the frozen fish section of the grocery store - bits of squid, octopus, you name it, and I used to add that to my chowders. Nowadays, I see most of that stuff is labelled as coming from China, and in general if a food comes from China it does not go into my mouth. I don't trust their quality control...........

Doctor Doug's Panfish Chowder, from the archives: I often make a chowder with panfish. Roughly: four to six slices of bacon, cut into small pieces a tablespoon of margarine 4-5 pieces of celery, diced 1 large sweet onion, diced 2-3 litres of water about six cups of diced potatoes 50 to 60 panfish fillets, cut into bite-sized pieces Cream (optional) salt and pepper Cook the bacon pieces until they are just barely cooked, not crispy, then add the margarine, onions, and celery and saute on medium heat until the veggies are just about cooked. Add the water and potatoes and turn to medium-high, stirring fairly often, until the potatoes are cooked. The amount of liquid must COVER the potatoes and have maybe a quarter-inch over top of them: that is why I said 2-3 liters, it will depend on your pot. Once the potatoes are cooked, add the fillets and cook on medium for about ten minutes, stirring often. Add the seasonings, taste it, and see if you do or do not want to add cream. Cream basically provides texture (and fat!) If you like clams in your chowder, open two cans of baby clams and drain the liquid into the pot when you put in the water and potatoes, and add the clams when you add the fish. Enjoy! Doug Addendum 5 May 16: I added the shrimp from a shrimp ring, plus one 250 ml jar of my own canned Sockeye, and both ingredients complement the flavour of the chowder very well. So would scallops, but they are pricey. Addendum 15 Jan 18: I also added a bag of mussel meat. CANNING: I have not yet tried to can this chowder but it appears possible. One warning seen several times is not to use 1 litre (quart) jars for canning. Can HOT chowder at 11 pounds pressure for 100 minutes, in PINT or HALF-PINT jars only.

Tonight's chowder was a re-heat from a batch I froze last spring. Bacon, celery, Vidalia onions, potatoes, clams, shrimp, perch, mussels, who knows what else, no salmon in this bunch but I often throw in a jar of my hand-canned salmon and sometimes smoked salmon as well. I served it as an appetizer (no bread or anything) and my wife declared that the chowder WAS supper. Guess I will have a roast chicken sandwich for dessert.

Yeah, so did I when I lived down that way. About a hundred days a year on the water for steelhead and salmon. But that is all in my rear view mirror now, and now I BUY my steelhead already filleted and frozen. Sad, ain't it............

My game recovery rig is called an ARGO. And I ride in it with the game............... .....................and the tracks are back on for the winter, and there is NO SNOW here in K-town! Doug

Last night it was Hot Smoked Candied Steelhead (aka Indian Candy), spot-tail prawns with pasta primavera, and bacon-wrapped halibut. Steelhead from Chile, prawns from the Juan de Fuca Strait, halibut from Haida Gwaii. No photos......................it was quite toothsome. Doug

Thanks for the read. The word that comes to mind is: spiritual Merry Christmas bud. Doug

I had assumed when I read the article that the hunter had taken the meat off the bones and left the skeleton there. Given the apparently remote location, this would have been a likely scenario, ie pack out the meat. But the story does not actually say that, now I have re-read it. If the person who shot the bear ONLY took the radio collar, and left the carcass to rot, that person is not a hunter, that person is a poacher. In Ontario, it is an offence to allow game meat (including black bear) to spoil. Doug

It was apparently a legal bear for the hunter to shoot. So what's the fuss? Law-abiding hunter shoots legal bear, which happens to have a Disney type history. The bear is LEGAL game, taken by a law-abiding hunter, period, full stop. I hope the hunter is enjoying his or her bear, it's delicious.................. Doug