When it’s hot and muggy like it’s been recently in Montreal, the last thing you want to do is turn on the oven. BBQ-ing is something I’ve only gotten into since a friend of mine helped me break down his giant beast of a cooker to get it off his third floor balcony by carrying it all down one of Montreal’s well-known winding steps, re-assemble and roll it (angling it forward onto its two front wheels) five minutes down the road to my house, disassemble it again to bring it up my slightly less winding stairs to my second floor apartment and, finally, reassemble. The whole process was so time-consuming that he decided to sell it to me to avoid having to bring it home. Win-win?
Now, I have significantly less balcony space (my three self-watering containers are bookending the other other side of my table and two chairs), but so much more delicious charred food. Life is compromise, after all.
Have you ever had smelt? They’re like mackerel or sardines’ smaller cousins. (Have you ever had mackerel? What about non-canned sardines?)
They’re small, oily (Omega 3’s!) fish that don’t usually grow longer than your hand before being whipped out of the ocean and used for fish feed. Because they’re small, they’re abundant (harder to catch in nets as by-catch, and they don’t need to live as long to reach full size) and sustainable according to Ocean Wise. (So are most mackerel and sardines, by the way.) And like sardines or mackerel, they’re great grilled simply with lemon and olive oil. I like a little sugar in a quick brine to take out some of the iron-y bitterness, but some Greek grandmother would probably hit me for writing that. And I’d take it. She’s probably right. It’s not necessary. My tastebuds probably just need to grow up.
So if you want your tastebuds to grow up, here’s what you do (the brined version is below for anyone who’s, understandably, not quite willing to give up their youth yet):
Sustainable BBQ Smelt with Grilled Vegetables and Lemon
6-8 cleaned fresh or frozen sea smelts (fresh is better but harder to find)
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp salt, divided
1 tsp black pepper, divided
A sprinkle of any dried herbs you like (that Grandmother is shouting oregano)
4 or 5 small carrots, or cut to about the same size as the smelts
1/2 lb Brussels sprouts, core end trimmed, cut in half)
1 lb asparagus, snapped off near the bottom
1 lemon
Toss the cleaned, whole fish with everything except the lemon. Heat the BBQ, then reduce the heat to a medium temperature on half the BBQ and a low temp on the other half (if you’re working with coals, push the coals to one side).
Add the Brussels sprouts and carrots on the hotter side. Let them grill for about 8 minutes. Cu the lemon in half and place cut-side-down on the upper rack or on the less hot side.
After the 8 minutes is up, turn the vegetables over and add the fish and asparagus on the less hot side. Cook for 3 minutes.
Check for grill marks on the bottom of the fish and asparagus and turn over if the bottom side is sufficiently grilled. Cook for another 3 or so minutes.
Put on a big tray or divide between plates and squeeze the grilled lemon over top. Add a drizzle of olive oil if you’re channeling your inner grandma.
Eat on a crowded terrasse with half a bottle of leftover Ottomani rosé taken home from a nice restaurant on Monkland, because you can do that in Quebec.
Brined and BBQ’d Smelts with Grilled Vegetables and Lemon
4 cups water
3 tbsp + 1 tsp fine grain salt, divided
2 1/2 tbsp sugar
6-8 cleaned fresh or frozen sea smelts (fresh is better but harder to find)
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp black pepper, divided
A sprinkle of any dried herbs you like (that Grandmother is shouting oregano)
4 or 5 small carrots, or cut to about the same size as the smelts
1/2 lb Brussels sprouts, core end trimmed, cut in half)
1 lb asparagus, snapped off near the bottom
1 lemon
Stir the 3 tbsp salt and 2 1/2 tbsp sugar into the water. Add the cleaned, whole fish. If frozen, let defrost and marinate in the fridge for a minimum 24 hours. If fresh, soak for a minimum of 2 hours. If you want to brine the fresh fish faster, increase the salt to 4 tbsp and the sugar to 3 1/2 tbsp.
Toss the vegetables with the oil, peppers and remaining 1 tsp of salt. Slice the lemon in half. Brush the BBQ with oil and heat over high, then reduce the to medium on half the BBQ and low on the other half (if you’re working with coals, push the coals to one side).
Add the Brussels sprouts and carrots on the hotter side. Let them grill for about 8 minutes. Place the lemon cut-side-down on the upper rack or on the less hot side.
After the 8 minutes is up, turn the vegetables over and add the fish and asparagus on the less hot side. Cook for 3 minutes.
Check for grill marks on the bottom of the fish and asparagus and turn over if the bottom side is sufficiently grilled. Cook for another 3 or so minutes.
Put on a big tray or divide between plates and squeeze the grilled lemon over top. Add a drizzle of olive oil if you’re channeling your inner grandma.
Eat on a crowded terrasse with half a bottle of leftover Ottomani rosé taken home from a nice restaurant on Monkland, because you can do that in Quebec.
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