I fried up some bluegill tonight....not too bad.

[Scarpozzi]

I took the day off and went fishing a few weeks back. There were three of us fishing and we pulled in about 96 bluegill and 3 bass. After all the fish were cleaned, we divided the fillets up.

Tonight I decided to fry it up and made some fish & chips. It's the first time I've had bluegill and was impressed. I had the oil just right in my cast-iron skillet and ended up making some really good batter. The fillets were small, but made perfect plank-sized pieces....just like Long John Silver or Captain D's style fish.

Anyone else tried bluegill before?

 

[SAWYER]

Yes bluegill/brim are excellent, crappie as well.

 

[xSauronx]

never had it
i bought a (and this is from the fishmonger) "huge fuckin' trout" last night and deep-fried it in a beer-batter.

mmmmmm.

i made hushpuppies and fried okra to go with it though
/from the south

 

[Scarpozzi]

Originally posted by: Sawyer
Yes bluegill/brim are excellent, crappie as well.

What I like most about these was the fact that we pulled them in from a private lake. I don't have to worry about mercury or industrial waste like in the public waterways....

 

[Fritzo]

Yeah, it's boney, kind of like walleye, but good. My dad used to use them for bait to catch real fish

 

[SAWYER]

When they are biting you can catch the shit out of them in a short time, crickets are what we use.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Originally posted by: Fritzo
Yeah, it's boney, kind of like walleye, but good. My dad used to use them for bait to catch real fish

They're only boney if you don't fillet them right. I didn't hit one bone tonight.

We were using bloodworms. Sometimes the bait would hit the water and there'd be one on the hook instantly. I caught a few off roostertails.

 

[Pocatello]

I love bluegill, perch, and crappie. They are fun to catch, and so good to eat.

 

[Kaido]

Bluegill + hushpuppies ftw

 

[Kaido]

Originally posted by: Sawyer
When they are biting you can catch the sh*t out of them in a short time, crickets are what we use.

Yeah, I remember back in high school my friends and I cleaned out our local pond - 75 bluegill over 3 days one summer, haha. All we used was bread and sometimes bubble gum. They love tiny bread balls!

 

[Iron Woode]

I prefer bass and sunfish.

 

[olds]

We used to catch them using corn kernels for bait. They always seemed to small to fillet.

 

[Midnight Rambler]

Bluegill/crappie are good, but IMHO, YELLOW lake perch (BIG negative on white perch ...) are the tastiest "pan fish" by far. Walleye, though not a "pan fish" per se, follow closely. After that, bass, bluegill, and crappie are a toss up, all are good.

My preferred method of preparation is as follows :

1.) 1st, "flour" the fish using regular white flour
2.) Next, dip it in an egg/milk mixture
3.) Then cover and pat both sides in VERY fine cracker crumbs (I roll my own ... )
4.) Deep fry until they begin to float


P.S. - Bluegill/crappie will also bite on those red "starter strips" (placed on a hook) from gum packs. And if you're out of shiner minnows when fishing for yellow perch, just pop out the eyeballs from some perch you've already caught and use them for bait.

 

[Kirby]

We never fillet bluegill or shellcracker, and only catfish if it's pretty big. They taste so much better on the bone. Those 3 are about the only fish we go fishing for. Crickets, wigglers, and catawba worms are the way to go. My dad and grandfather have caught >200 before in a day. Tensaw and Alabama river FTW!!

 

[zach0624]

I have to agree bluegills taste great. My brother and I pull in quite a bit of bluegills when we go fishing. Perfect size too. great for camping, throw them on the grill over the fire and have a couple apiece.

 

[El Guaraguao]

Grilled redfish and or drum\sheep head FTW...fuck it, salt water fish ftw.

 

[potato28]

I like trout the best. Fresh caught Rainbows taste great.

 

[chusteczka]

Originally posted by: Scarpozzi
What I like most about these was the fact that we pulled them in from a private lake. I don't have to worry about mercury or industrial waste like in the public waterways....

http://www.usgs.gov/themes/factsheet/146-00/

Sources of Mercury
Alkali and metal processing, incineration of coal, and medical and other waste, and mining of gold and mercury contribute greatly to mercury concentrations in some areas, but atmospheric deposition is the dominant source of mercury over most of the landscape. Once in the atmosphere, mercury is widely disseminated and can circulate for years, accounting for its wide-spread distribution. Natural sources of atmospheric mercury include volcanoes, geologic deposits of mercury, and volatilization from the ocean. Although all rocks, sediments, water, and soils naturally contain small but varying amounts of mercury, scientists have found some local mineral occurrences and thermal springs that are naturally high in mercury.

Environments Where Methylmercury is a Problem
Although mercury is a globally dispersed contaminant, it is not a problem everywhere. ...

The above information is to show that a private lake does not prevent mercury contamination. The "incineration of coal" as a source means that mercury becomes airborne and is then able to pollute any water source exposed to the open atmosphere.

PCB contamination is usually shown as black spots on the belly of the fish. Although, I am unsure how PCB's get into the water and was unable to find such information quickly in my search just now.

Bluegill fight well on the line when caught and taste great when fried. They have always been my favorite.

 

[Kirby]

Originally posted by: mofoe2001
Grilled redfish and or drum\sheep head FTW...fuck it, salt water fish ftw.

People eat drum?!!! :Q

 

[chusteczka]

Originally posted by: nkgreen

Originally posted by: mofoe2001
Grilled redfish and or drum\sheep head FTW...fuck it, salt water fish ftw.

People eat drum?!!! :Q

I think he mentioned he has carnal relations with it.

 

[Kirby]

Originally posted by: chusteczka

Originally posted by: nkgreen

Originally posted by: mofoe2001
Grilled redfish and or drum\sheep head FTW...fuck it, salt water fish ftw.

People eat drum?!!! :Q

I think he mentioned he has carnal relations with it.

Lol, it's a trash fish around here. Most people throw them on they bank when the catch them because they scare off the bluegill.

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: Fritzo
Yeah, it's boney, kind of like walleye, but good. My dad used to use them for bait to catch real fish

I think you missed the word "fillets" in the OP, and they're really not that bony - just the spine and ribs

Originally posted by: nkgreen
We never fillet bluegill or shellcracker, and only catfish if it's pretty big. They taste so much better on the bone. Those 3 are about the only fish we go fishing for. Crickets, wigglers, and catawba worms are the way to go. My dad and grandfather have caught >200 before in a day. Tensaw and Alabama river FTW!!

I think you're nuts. They taste the same whether on or off the bone; the exception being the skin. Sooooo much easier to eat when they're filleted. And, it takes too long to scale & gut 100 bluegill vs. just filleting them (once you get good at filleting them)

Originally posted by: Iron Woode
I prefer bass and sunfish.

Psssst, bluegill are a type of sunfish.

 

[Kirby]

Originally posted by: DrPizza

Originally posted by: nkgreen
We never fillet bluegill or shellcracker, and only catfish if it's pretty big. They taste so much better on the bone. Those 3 are about the only fish we go fishing for. Crickets, wigglers, and catawba worms are the way to go. My dad and grandfather have caught >200 before in a day. Tensaw and Alabama river FTW!!

I think you're nuts. They taste the same whether on or off the bone; the exception being the skin. Sooooo much easier to eat when they're filleted. And, it takes too long to scale & gut 100 bluegill vs. just filleting them (once you get good at filleting them)

We've got a scaler. so all you have to do is cut off the head, slice down the middle and pull out the guts. Takes like 3 seconds. I've just eaten with the bones for as long as I can remember, so I may be a little biased. I'd still be a little scared about chomping down and swallowing it like catfish or something like that, though.

Plus my mom likes the super small ones, and you can't fillet them.