How to enjoy the gemmies

[JackM]

I say, you should not harvest anything over 9 inches. and nothing smaller than 7 inches.

They're only worth broiling or grilling whole. I would say you should gut them and even shave off the fatty tissue, if needed.

 

[JackM]

And, if pulling the succulent flesh from the bones is too much trouble for you, then why not practice responsible C&R.

 

[Char_Master]

I still can't believe anyone would keep such beautiful, delicate, native fish, regardless of size. If you want to keep trout then go to your local put and take stocked trout lake or stream, we all know there's plenty of those in PA... Just my thoughts.

 

[pcray1231]

Cut off head and tail and fins. Some butter and Italian seasoning in the body cavity. Wrap in foil. Lay on hot coals from wood fire. Flip after a few minutes.

 

[troutbert]

Obvious troll is obvious.

 

[phiendWMD]

So this is the part of the day where I hijack the mod's thread.

Is there much difference between a wild trout and a stocked one as far as taste? Could you tell the difference in a blind taste?

 

[dryflyguy]

#1 rule on this site - never take Jack very seriously

 

[pete41]

yeah-- wild trout cooked on a green stick over a campfire taste so much better than supermarket ones.

 

[Maurice]

Dont scratch your nose with scissors in your hand when tying flys.

 

[pete41]

Don't have a lit cigar in your mouth when using mono shooting line.

 

[steveo27]

I prefer to leave all appendages on, while stuffing said fish with butter, onions and garlic, then wrapping on foil and cooking.

 

[Swattie87]

The only time I eat Gemmies is on a backpacking trip. I take a lemon, Cajun seasoning, and a couple of those mini butter packets you get at McDonalds. Gut, stuff the cavity with the above accoutrements, and wrap whole in foil. 4 or 5 minutes a side over the coals.

Yes, they taste way better than stockies and have a much better consistency to the meat. Fresh stockies are mushy upon cooking. They get better with time elapsed since stocking, but Gemmies are better either way. I've only ever kept and cooked Gemmies, but I may try a Gemmie and a wild Brown next to each other this year, to see if there's a difference.

From what I understand, the best (although illegal) way to eat Gemmies is to keep the small ones. Gut, dredge in flour and fry in peanut oil whole. Eat the whole thing. Gemmie fries. I'm not carrying a cast iron and a jug of peanut oil backpacking though. And the process loses its practicality and novelty once you get to the size of a legal 7" fish.

 

[Maurice]

Back in the day we used to keep all the gemmmies 6" and up. The guy who owned the camp would smoke them and we would each get a bag of smoked gemmie pieces that we would carry around on our harvest journeys and for eating around the campfire.

It took alot of gemmies to fill a bag and the limit was 8 gemmies at 6". Sometimes we would keep the ones under 6" and break their spines to stretch them.

We would have called it gemmie crack had crack been around at the time.

 

[geebee]

Raw with a bit of salt and lemon. Shave slices off at an angle working from the tail forwards. When you get to the gills knock it on the head if still flapping, then turn over and repeat. Lovely

 

[BradFromPotter]

When I find a beaver pond that has a good number in the 8-10" range I'll keep some for the smoker.

 

[JackM]

troutbert wrote:
Obvious troll is obvious.

It's what I do. I prefer the term "provocateur," however.

After gutting, you can boil them and then pull the meat easily off the bone. Remove meat from all the boiled gemmies, then form them into patties by adding a small amount of egg and breadcrumbs. I prefer unflavored breadcrumbs, because I want to savor the flavor of the gemmie.

 

[McSneek]

YOU GUYS I CAUGHT A GEMMIE TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[turkey]

Gemmies taste purest when harvested with a dry fly. An aftertaste of discontent can be expected when said gemmie is taken on a subsurface fly.

BradFromPotter wrote:
When I find a beaver pond that has a good number in the 8-10" range I'll keep some for the smoker.

Similarly I've experienced a noticeable hint of beaver whilst dining on gemmies that were harvested from ponds created by castor canadensis.

 

[pcray1231]

Is there much difference between a wild trout and a stocked one as far as taste? Could you tell the difference in a blind taste?

Yes. Although I don't have enough experience to know how it changes with various diets and habitats and age, or at what point holdovers get more wild like.

The only wild trout I've ever eaten are some gemmies on backpacking trips. Flesh is much pinker than a stocked brook trout. Much more salmon-like.

Anyway, as far as morality, personally I think if you're going to harvest some wild trout, taking a few gemmies from somewhere way back in, from a stream largely overpopulated with gemmies, is the way to go about it.

 

[gulfgreyhound]

Moose and I plan on catch and cook at the Jam. Dusted in folur and salt and peppa. Fried in bacun greese. Yummy!!
Don't judge me? GG