Mistakes with steak and other food

When was the last time you began eating something and suddenly realized it wasn't what you thought it was? This morning I read a cartoon with a guy that was baiting his fishing hook with a piece of his wife's pasta and it dawned on him why his lunch hadn't tasted all that good.

Being a fisherman I was taught by my dad that nothing should go to waste. Consequently, I learned how to cook fish, all sorts of fish and frog legs too. There are a few types of fish that are just way too ugly to eat though, Gar Pike, Guppies and anything with gills, legs and tails all together. If I can't throw them back, they get buried in the garden. Nothing is wasted. Anyway, I went fishing in a river for an entire afternoon, a rare occasion for me, and I caught three dozen Red horse Mullets. A fantastic breed of fish with a fin across their back much like a sail on an ocean fish. Red Horse are about the best fighting fish I've ever caught. When the are hooked, they put that sail up and swim sideways against the current so hard that the only way to catch them is to simply keep the line tight and wait until they tire enough to bring them in. It takes a while, they don't tire easily. Needless to say, I enjoyed the experience. What's that got to do with eating anything?

Packing up all those fish in the cooler I brought them home and scaled, deboned, filleted and powdered  them for cooking. Some people are adverse to eating a mullet type of fish. They are similar to Suckers and cat fish regarding their bottom feeding habits. It's fine with me as long as it's a clean river but not everyone feels that way. (Of course those same people are usually more than fond of eating Shrimp, Shrimp are also bottom feeders.) So, on this beautiful Saturday afternoon, feeling super good following a successful fishing adventure, I called a couple friends over for a fish fry, a little guy talk and a brew or two. When they arrived I already had the last batch of fillets in the pan and the tantalizing aroma wafted over the patio bringing appetites to almost a feeding frenzy. Along with cole slaw and baked potato the fried fish meal was complete and worthy of royalty. One of my friends is a one of those people that seems to know everything about everything. Nice enough but always grabs center stage in the knowledge category. The subject of what kind of fish we were eating did not present itself until I was asked where the fish came from. I named the river and before I could tell my stories of fantastic fishing the know-it-all guy butts in and explains how he just knew we were eating Walleye. "That river is known state wide for it's huge Walleye fishery" He said. Then he went on to say how he "had heard that some guys fish that river for suckers and Red Horse. However, he would never, ever allow those bottom feeders to touch his lips. They were garbage fish but these walleye were something special and he could recognized the taste blindfolded."

I had a choice to make: Tell him they were Red Horse and he'd just eaten half a dozen "bottom feeders", or Let it go and enjoy the rest of the time with my friends without embarrassing him. It was a great meal, pleasant conversation and nice weather to boot. I guess the know-it-all will go to his grave not knowing he ate a plateful of Red Horse. Maybe I'll let him know the next time I catch a cooler full. It just wasn't important to do anything but be selfish and be full. I didn't serve him right, I served him fish.