Hooked

A few weeks ago my husband went out with a friend on his first ocean fishing boat trip. It was a 3/4 day boat that sailed out from here in San Diego to the Coronado Islands in Mexican waters. He borrowed an ocean rod & reel, packed up his tackle and snack bag the night before but he was so excited (like a kid at Christmas), so I'm not sure he slept much!

They left the dock at 6am and didn't return home until nearly 6pm. I got a phone call from him as the boat was coming back into dock.

"I caught the biggest fish of anyone else on the boat".


Danny with the big catch of the day, the only yellowtail caught on the boat

He walked in the front door with a huge bag full of fish. I stayed clear of the kitchen (and the smells) as my pregnant appetite isn't so crazy about pungent freshwater fish odor, if you know what I mean. Fans were blowing and the windows were wide open in the kitchen as he and his friend sorted the fish in the sink.

Fortunately the deck hands had done most of the dirty work on the dock, gutting, deboning and cutting into more manageable pieces. There was rock cod, barracuda and the Mother Lode...a 30 lb yellowtail. Of course, Danny had to bring home the tail to show me (I'll admit, it was a lovely yellow and green shimmery color, but I didn't really need to have it so close to my face!).

Our fridge was soon stuffed with over ten bags of fresh fish, labeled with a Sharpie. He immediately squeezed lemon over one of the steaks and put into the oven for a quick dinner.

Of course, he's HOOKED on sea fishing now. He is itching to go back out there again but I told him first that our freezer is already stuffed to the gills (hee-hee!) and he's going to need to eat some of the fish he caught before he goes out again for more.



Sunday was our fish fry. Danny's friend, wife and kids came over with their outdoor propane burner, fresh tortillas, a rockin' creamy salsa, and the perfect recipe for beer batter. The men set to work frying up the meat while the kids swam. The smell of yummy grease and fried fish was irresistible and the men nibbled the entire time. Pretty soon the kids were out of the pool and clamoring for fish. Even The Girl, who is one of the pickiest of eaters asked for a piece of fish... I think her grandma nearly fell over in shock!

Soon enough we had everyone settled in with a plate of fish tacos. I alone ate three, which is pretty good given my lacking appetite!



The kids kept going back for more pieces, wrapping them in napkins and gobbling them up!



Needless to say the fish fry was a success and we can't wait to do that again. Now Danny will just have to go out again and catch more of that delicious fish!