Fish On!

The folks on Goose Creek Island are fortunate to live on a fisherman and hunter’s paradise.  And in our very own backyard of Pamlico Sound, North Carolina’s very own state fish, the Red Drum makes it annual pilgrimage to our shores.  The annual run of these monsters makes for a great evening out in the Sound.

The old drum, as the locals call them, have always been a staple to Goose Creek Island dinner tables.  Many of the fish that have landed in “a pot” have been older than the cook.  Red Drum can live to be older than 40 years old!

To catch an old drum, one must venture out into Pamlico Sound in the late evenings.  Around the Mouse Harbor and Brant Island area, record size drum have been caught.  Weathering an evening thunderstorm during these nighttime trips to catch the massive drum put fishermen on edge out in the lonely sound, with only the moonlight providing any comfort and the constant battle of swatting mosquitoes.  But the sound of a reel “going off” tends to stop all concerns of wind and an approaching squall.

In the past, old drum were considered a nuisance to long haul crews working the edges of the sound.  A giant would be brought home and a family would have a feast.  It was not uncommon to see these creatures being scaled “with a hoe”.  Old Drum Stew with potatoes and onions, with a heaping plate of cornbread was a meal fit for a king. 

Today, as the old drum continue to make their presence on our shores, a stewed drum feast or boiled drum is a sure sign that fall is approaching. I have included two recipes for Stewed Drum, please note that Goose Creek Island and Ocracoke cooks all have similar versions.  Also, I have included some recent pictures of catching one of these mighty beasts for the cookpot. Enjoy. 

Stewed Drum

Ingredients You Will Need:
1 pound fresh drum fish, cubed
4 potatoes, peeled and cubed
½ pound salt pork, cut into one-inch pieces and fried
1 large onion, chopped
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper

Fry the salt pork until crispy. Add the onions and cook for another few minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, cover and set aside.  In a cook pot, add two cups of water and the cubed fish. When the fish is cooked through, drain the pot and set it aside. Put the potatoes into a second pot and add water until just covered. Boil until tender. Season the potatoes with salt and pepper. Add the fish and simmer until a good soup consistency is achieved.  
 Put one large scoop of fish and potatoes into each bowl and top with a generous helping of hot salt pork and onions. Spoon a little grease over the stew. Serve with thick slices of cornbread or biscuits.

 

Marky O'Neal and Cle Popperwill out in Pamlico Sound early September. Photo courtesy Marky O'Neal.

Ocracoke Boiled Drum from Cooking with Grandma by Sonny Williamson
“Late in the fall we’d get these big drum fish, 30 or 40 pounds or more. They were so big some people used their hoe to scale them. They would clean the fish and cut it up in fist size chucks and boil it in salt water until it would flake off easy. In a separate pot boil some potatoes whole and in their skin. Dice up a lot of fatback and fry it out. Put the “cracklins’ in a bowl with the grease and keep it hot. Chop lots of scallions and serve them in another bowl. Put it all on the table and let each person prepare their plate, pile it on anyway they like. Most would put on several hunks of fish along with the potatoes, sprinkle the raw scallions and cracklings on top and then drizzle on the hot, hot grease. Serve with a big pan of hot cornbread and a hard boiled egg on the side.”