Montana is full of Big Fish! When we catch them, the filets are often removed, and the rest is tossed away. No one enjoys wasting their hard-earned catch. Many just don’t know what else to do with them.
My Grandmother Rose was from Czechoslovakia. She migrated from Europe and worked at the pickle plant in Chicago. Later they moved to SE Pennsylvania. Grandma Rose was a great cook and made many unique and different foods.
As a kid, I remember holding chickens as she axed off their heads, helped make sausage, and many other meal preps. If you were hungry, you ate what was prepared. Nothing went to waste.
My brother and I went to a “pay to fishpond” called Seghi’s Seven Lakes. Each lake had a different species of BIG fish. We came home with several monster trout. Grandma Rose baked them whole. The eyeball was replaced with an olive. When we ate dinner, the entire fish was consumed. I remember my grandparents picking the head meat like it was steamed crab.
There’s a lot of meat on the fish head. Some chefs make stock out of the head and backbone. Once strained, the broth is tasty and healthy. There are also meaty fish collars and cheek meat on the fish head.
Any Big fish head will do. Maybe a large laker, Channel catfish, monster trout, huge walleye, salmon, or even a carp will do.
Once the fish has been cleaned, scale the head and rinse thoroughly. You can remove the eyeball or let it bake and eat it. The guts can be buried in the garden for fertilizer. Remove the gills and leave the pectoral fins/collars attached. Salt/pepper and add garlic salt, thyme, and lemon juice. Old Bay seasoning is also a nice spice to use.
Bake at 350 degrees until browned and done. This baking time will vary based on the head size. I have also seen chefs steam their heads like crabs or shrimp. Once cooked the abundant meat easily pulls off the fish. Pick it until the just bones/cartilage remain.
In England, the Cornish folks make a pie filled with fish, eggs and potatoes. The fish heads and tails are baked in the pie Gazing up at the stars! It is called Stargazy Pie. They normally use whole sardines, or “pilchards”, but other fish enjoy stargazing too!
When you consider eating and picking shrimp, crabs, and other seafood, nothing really will gross you out. It’s all just protein.
It’s funny what you will eat if you are hungry or simply don’t know any different.
Montana Grant
