Cooking Fish without the 'fishy smell'

Fish is really good for you.  I'm lucky enough that my family loves it.  However, I HATE that fish smell in my house.  One of the best parts about living in Florida is we grill out all year long (that didn't stop us before, though.  I once made my hubby grill while it was snowing!  He pulled it close to our back door and braved the weather for some yummy food)

I prefer to cook my fish in foil packets (think campfire cooking) and it steams them a bit, too.  They're always really moist!

Start with two pieces of foil the same length (roughly, you don't have to be exact)

Lay one on top of the other and fold over the long side (you know a hot dog fold) about 1/4 inch. 

Then roll it up once more another 1/4 inch.  Yes, you just made a seam in your foil.

Then open up your foil.  The seam should be down the middle.

Put a tiny bit of oil on your foil and lay your fish out.  I like to make sure they're not overlapping TOO much, so they cook evenly and so I can season them evenly.

Drizzle with a tiny bit more and add your seasonings.  We like spice, so pepper, creole, chili powder if you like 'blackened' fish.

Pull up the long sides of the foil so they're matching and then roll it up until it almost touches the fish.  Then roll the short sides up.  Smash all the seams nice and tight.  I like to transport mine to the grill on a real cookie sheet (just in case something were to happen)  Cook on medium to medium low until it's flaky.

Now if you really want to avoid the fish smell, make sure the first time you open the packet it's OUTSIDE.  Then next times won't have that burst of fish smell like the first time.  But don't peak until you think it's done, this is not something you mess around with, just toss it on and let it cook.  Thicker fish will take longer, obviously, and you may want to flip the packet over and keep the heat lower.

Enjoy your fish!  Just roll up that fishy foil and throw it straight in the garbage when you're done!

Sweet Potato Fries

Sweet Potato Fries are a family favorite.  I've been making them for years.  Before this I didn't like sweet potatoes AT ALL.  I found the idea and thought it was worth a shot, and we were in love!  Over the years I've changed it up a little.  Here are some pointers:

We prefer wedge fries.  They don't get too soft but still get the dark almost burnt sections that you want (this is the sugar in the potato caramelizing, it's YUMMY!)

One trick I saw on the internet for regular fries was to soak them in water first.  This was the first time I'd tried it and the jury is still out on whether it's worth it.

Mix some flour with your seasonings.  We prefer a little spice to compliment the sweetness (okay, so we prefer a lot of spice) I use Seasoning Salt, Pepper, chipotle powder, and creole seasoning.  If you don't like spice leave out the chipotle and creol.  If you can't have gluten, try rice flour or a different one of your choice.  I used to make it without the four and it tastes yummy, too.  We just like it this way a bit better.

The best way to cook these is on the grill.  Though the broiler works too, you just have to balance getting them cooked through with cooking too fast. I make a disposable cookie sheet by taking a piece of foil and turning up the edges (you will want edges to catch the oil, not just a flat sheet of foil!)  Sorry about the bad picture, but it's dark by dinner time and the flash reflects off the foil.

This time I actually coated them with too much flour.  They got crunchy, but it was more the flour getting crunchy not the fry getting that dark color that I mentioned you wanted.  So, lightly coat them.

 I cook them on the grill over medium to medium high heat (depending on what else is on the grill) for about 30-40 minutes.  See the yummy dark spots.  Mmmmm.  I prefer dipped in ketchup like regular fries, but my hubby and son prefer BBQ.