Pickerel — the Ontario name for walleye — is the fish that anglers dream about and restaurants across the province proudly list as ‘fresh local pickerel.’ Found in lakes and rivers throughout Ontario, from the French River to Lake of the Woods, it has been a staple of the Indigenous diet for thousands of years and later fed the logging camps, cottagers, and fishing lodges that built the province’s north. Its firm, sweet white flesh makes it arguably the finest-eating freshwater fish in Canada.
What makes it great is that delicate, sweet flavour and flaky texture that needs very little fussing — just butter, a hot pan, and a squeeze of lemon. Ontario’s cottagers have their own traditions: some bread it, some don’t, but nearly everyone agrees it should be cooked simply so the fish speaks for itself. Serve it with boiled potatoes and coleslaw and you have the perfect lakeside dinner, whether the view is a northern lake or your own backyard.
