Smoking eel

[george013]

A delicacy in Holland. Smoked eel. Once a food for "lower class". Now eel is becoming less available. Mostly import from Ireland. But still appreciated by many. A yearly contest smoking eel. People making their own smoking oven with all kind of material.
Bon apetit.




Young and old are helping.


Just an oil drum.


Serious work


That's interesting.


Have fun.

George

[Shadowman]

Nice captures, wonder if there is some substitute for the real thing; usually when some food type becomes too popular the imitations come forth?

[LePetomane]

I tried smoked eel the last time I was in Russia. It was very tasty. As we say in the US, it tastes like chicken.

[george013]

I tried smoked eel the last time I was in Russia. It was very tasty. As we say in the US, it tastes like chicken.

You didn't have the right smoked eel. They can't smoke in Russia.
The best eel is about a thick finger and when smoked it's still very fat. When smoked too long, all the fat has gone and the eel is dry. You probably had that one. Some people prefer it.

Eel, the European, is a strange fish. It's born in the Sargossa Sea and after some years it's coming to Europe with the Gulf Stream. Then he moves to fresh water, first as glass eel. It's then already several years old. It stays in the fresh water for may years before going back to the Sargossa Sea to find him a partner.

On the way to Europe many glass eel is caught . In some countries glass eel is a delicatesse.

Other fish that is smoked are the salmon, herring, tub gurnard.

George

[rpcrowe]

Even when I am hungry as I am now, smoked eel is not high on my list of delicacies

[LePetomane]

You didn't have the right smoked eel. They can't smoke in Russia.
The best eel is about a thick finger and when smoked it's still very fat. When smoked too long, all the fat has gone and the eel is dry. You probably had that one. Some people prefer it.

That sounds like what I had. The folks who served it to me dulled their tastebuds with Rasputin Vodka, which I'm told is aptly named.

I do like the "Serious Work" the best.

[lovelife65]

Cool series. Love the little guy hauling the chair
In terms of eel, I just can't do it. I'm not a fan of smoked slimy stuff. Fry me up some calimari and that's great tho. LOL
(jealous of the Amsterdam location).

[Mike Buckley]

The photo captioned Serious Work does a fabulous job of telling the story.

[IzzieK]

I have a serious preference for the ones that has a child in the shot. -- #2 and the last one...

And I always thought that eels are an Asian delicacy, specifically Japan and Korea, China too.

[george013]

Kids are always a thankful subject in images.

Trying to find some more information about the eel I found an image of a sculpture in Denmark.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eel#/
This image is from that Wiki page, not mine.


Seeing that tool he's using reminds me of a shot I took on an earlier event of this smoking competition. This is mine picture again, 2009.The eel picker is walking along the ditch and when he sees an eel he fixes that eel with this tool. Than he can grab it with his hands.


George