Cousin Webb's King Fish Recipe
Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2008 2:01 pm
Cousin Webb- well he wasn't really a cousin 2 or 3 times removed- was a big man. Now when I say big I don't mean that he was strong nor brawny nor tall nor heavy. Cousin Webb was a big man. He drove his Chevy from the back seat. He had to remove the front seat. He was a very big man. He owned a used car lot. So, that helped with his penchant for re-decorating of the cars. Now Webb- he liked to be called Webb- was working man and he liked to do working man things. Hunted deer, shot quail, ran hounds. And Webb liked to fish. So, Webb, my dad and I went deep sea fishing. I wasn't more than 12 at the time. So, I had a real good time. Nothing better for a 12 year old boy then watch a bunch of old folks get drunk, curse, fish, and tell tales. Webb would give me a beer now and again and psswah my dad about the beer. So, you might imagine I rather liked the old man. Webb- he didn’t like to be called Webster- was a drinking man. When he drank he liked to tales. Told me he was the rightful heir to the throne of England. How the family was usurped. Had the genealogy and everything. Being 12 I didn’t really believe him, but I liked the tale. Later, I found out he stole the whole thing from another guy called Mark Twain. I expect you’ve heard of him. Even today, I don’t begrudge him that. I was amused at the time and I guess that’s what’s important. Now, where was I- Oh yeah fishing. I knew this had something to do with fish.-
After we got back from fishing we commenced to cleaning the fish. There was a lot of fish. This would take most of the rest of the day and a good portion of a quart of bourbon. Did I mention that Webb was a drinking man? Oh yeah. We must a filled three huge ice chest with the filets. That’s when Cousin Webb proceeded to tell me the best way to cook King Fish. I paid close attention as Cousin Webb was generally a good teller of tales even when he was talking about cutting up fish.
“Now, King Fish is a big fish. That’s why I taught you to cut them into 2 inch thick steaks. That way they’ll stay juicy when you cook them. Now when you cook them you got to do it right? First melt about a pound of butter.”
Did I tell you he was a big man? Well, he was a big man. Did I tell you about his Chevy? Oh yeah.
“Then, you want to slice about 5 large onions. Now, I want you to slice them thin. Real thin. You should be able to see through them. Then, you want to slice 8 or ten cloves of garlic the same way. You want to slice them even thinner than the onions. Now, you just bring up the heat on the butter till it just starts to turn brown.”
I think he wanted it to caramelize.
“Then, you turn up the gas real high. You want that pan almost smoking. Then, you throw in the onions and fry away. Now, when the onions just start to get nice and soft and brown- that’s when they get sweet, that’s when you want to throw in the garlic. Now, you got to keep the heat up high or everything going to get soggy. Now, this is why you want the garlic so thin. When it hits that hot pan the garlic will just melt into the butter. Mmmm. Then, you want to add some pepper. Grind your pepper. It tastes better when you grind it fresh. I like big heavy grind, but you grind it as you like. Now, you throw some salt in. Like lots of salt, but you do it the way you like. Now, you’re going to want to add ‘bout a quart of heavy cream”
Did I mention that Cousin Webb was a big man? Okay! But he was!
“Now, turn down the heat and let the cream reduce to about half. Then, you let it cool. When it gets cool enough to touch it’s ready. Now, take your King Fish Steak and lay it down on a big old butchers block board. You’re going to want to pour some of my butter mix on top. Now knead that into the meat. Take your time. You don’t want to break up the steak. Then, flip it over and do the same on the other side. If you have any butter left over now’s the time to pour it on. It should drip off the sides. Now, this is the secret part. You don’t tell no one.”
I shook my head agreeing to secrecy.
“Now, you throw that damned fish away and eat the board. Cause anything with that much butter mix has to be good eating..”
Still think about that Butcher Block… now… and again…
This is a true story...mostly
After we got back from fishing we commenced to cleaning the fish. There was a lot of fish. This would take most of the rest of the day and a good portion of a quart of bourbon. Did I mention that Webb was a drinking man? Oh yeah. We must a filled three huge ice chest with the filets. That’s when Cousin Webb proceeded to tell me the best way to cook King Fish. I paid close attention as Cousin Webb was generally a good teller of tales even when he was talking about cutting up fish.
“Now, King Fish is a big fish. That’s why I taught you to cut them into 2 inch thick steaks. That way they’ll stay juicy when you cook them. Now when you cook them you got to do it right? First melt about a pound of butter.”
Did I tell you he was a big man? Well, he was a big man. Did I tell you about his Chevy? Oh yeah.
“Then, you want to slice about 5 large onions. Now, I want you to slice them thin. Real thin. You should be able to see through them. Then, you want to slice 8 or ten cloves of garlic the same way. You want to slice them even thinner than the onions. Now, you just bring up the heat on the butter till it just starts to turn brown.”
I think he wanted it to caramelize.
“Then, you turn up the gas real high. You want that pan almost smoking. Then, you throw in the onions and fry away. Now, when the onions just start to get nice and soft and brown- that’s when they get sweet, that’s when you want to throw in the garlic. Now, you got to keep the heat up high or everything going to get soggy. Now, this is why you want the garlic so thin. When it hits that hot pan the garlic will just melt into the butter. Mmmm. Then, you want to add some pepper. Grind your pepper. It tastes better when you grind it fresh. I like big heavy grind, but you grind it as you like. Now, you throw some salt in. Like lots of salt, but you do it the way you like. Now, you’re going to want to add ‘bout a quart of heavy cream”
Did I mention that Cousin Webb was a big man? Okay! But he was!
“Now, turn down the heat and let the cream reduce to about half. Then, you let it cool. When it gets cool enough to touch it’s ready. Now, take your King Fish Steak and lay it down on a big old butchers block board. You’re going to want to pour some of my butter mix on top. Now knead that into the meat. Take your time. You don’t want to break up the steak. Then, flip it over and do the same on the other side. If you have any butter left over now’s the time to pour it on. It should drip off the sides. Now, this is the secret part. You don’t tell no one.”
I shook my head agreeing to secrecy.
“Now, you throw that damned fish away and eat the board. Cause anything with that much butter mix has to be good eating..”
Still think about that Butcher Block… now… and again…
This is a true story...mostly