During the fall we see a terrific run of Spanish mackerel at Seahorse Reef, just off Cedar Key in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico. These are hard-fighting, tasty fish that clearly were created for the grill. Regrettably, the fish are poor keepers and should be used within a few days if fresh, or a week or so if frozen. Otherwise they start to develop a "fishy" flavor as the fish oils react with oxygen in the air. I went mackerel fishing on Friday, and tonight the wife and I enjoyed our first mackerel fillets of the fall cooked as follows:
1. Rinse the fillet and pat it dry with a cloth.
2. Oil the skin side of the fillet so it will not stick to the grill or grill basket (preferred). I used olive oil.
3. Place skin side down on the grill basket or grill.
4. Sprinkle the non-skin side with salt, pepper and Emeril’s Fish Rub.
5. Drizzle the non-skin side with lemon juice.
6. Drizzle the non-skin side with butter or margarine.
7. Grill approximately 10-20 minutes over indirect heat until the fillet flakes when poked with a fork.
The skin and the thin strip of red meat down the center of the fillet are not eaten as they tend to taste "fishy", and the center strip may contain small feather bones. The light meat has a delightful "nutty" flavor in truly fresh fillets.
I used a 22 inch Weber Performer equipped with a Slow N Sear loaded with about 3/4 of a chimney of fully lit Kingston Blue Bag and a full tank of water. No wood was added for smoke as the charcoal adds plenty of flavor when used in this manner. I didn't bother to monitor or regulate the grill's surface temperature. Instead, I ran it hot, with all vents fully open. The thermometer on the lid typically reads 450 degrees when I operate the grill in this manner.
The fillets turned out very moist and flaky, whereas they tended to dry out a lose flavor in years past when I cooked them over direct heat. It appears that the indirect method also gives the cook several minutes leeway in deciding when to take the fillet off the grill. In contrast, fillets cooked over direct heat are much less forgiving and must be taken off the grill at exactly the right time to avoid overcooking.
1. Rinse the fillet and pat it dry with a cloth.
2. Oil the skin side of the fillet so it will not stick to the grill or grill basket (preferred). I used olive oil.
3. Place skin side down on the grill basket or grill.
4. Sprinkle the non-skin side with salt, pepper and Emeril’s Fish Rub.
5. Drizzle the non-skin side with lemon juice.
6. Drizzle the non-skin side with butter or margarine.
7. Grill approximately 10-20 minutes over indirect heat until the fillet flakes when poked with a fork.
The skin and the thin strip of red meat down the center of the fillet are not eaten as they tend to taste "fishy", and the center strip may contain small feather bones. The light meat has a delightful "nutty" flavor in truly fresh fillets.
I used a 22 inch Weber Performer equipped with a Slow N Sear loaded with about 3/4 of a chimney of fully lit Kingston Blue Bag and a full tank of water. No wood was added for smoke as the charcoal adds plenty of flavor when used in this manner. I didn't bother to monitor or regulate the grill's surface temperature. Instead, I ran it hot, with all vents fully open. The thermometer on the lid typically reads 450 degrees when I operate the grill in this manner.
The fillets turned out very moist and flaky, whereas they tended to dry out a lose flavor in years past when I cooked them over direct heat. It appears that the indirect method also gives the cook several minutes leeway in deciding when to take the fillet off the grill. In contrast, fillets cooked over direct heat are much less forgiving and must be taken off the grill at exactly the right time to avoid overcooking.
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