In response to roughfish recipe requests.

[Kurt Paulsen]

A request was made for recipes in the roughfish thread, so I thought it would be more appropriate to answer it here in the event anybody else is interested.

kurt i would like to try and make some of the rough fish that i catch, but can't find many ways of makeing them. i never new you could eat gar but im going to try it as soon as i catch one again this year. can you if you have any other recipies share them?. thanks in advance if that is possible for you to do.

ps. ive heard of pan frying carp but have only ever had it smoked is this possible?.

Some people consider fish rough because they are: very plentiful, or overly oily, or ugly, or predators of game fish, or just out of folklore. Now, none of those really make rough fish inedible. Oily fish like carp, sucker, and goldeye are better smoked because the oil creates a skin which keeps the moisture in.

Carp can be grilled like salmon as well, but you must remember that carp and sucker are very bony. You either score the filets to chop up the bones into tiny pieces or get ready to pick them out. Goldeye is VERY oily, and I haven't smoked it very well yet. Supposedly up north they are quite the treat!

Gar would be my second favorite rough fish. Try to cook a smaller one. 2-5 pound range. They are carnivores just lake walleye and northern, so the bigger they are the more contaminated they are. You can try to skin them and make paties out of the meat, but I really think the best way is to grill them whole. Just stuff the gut full of garlic and onions and peppers and drizzle some soy sauce or salt in. They cook about 7-10 minutes per side and then you can simply pop off the entire skin and eat the pork-loin like meat.

My favorite roughfish has to be freshwater drum, or sheephead as some call them. The filets are white and flaky and very mild. They are taste similar to walleye, actually. Since they both occupy a similar region on the bottom for much of the year and share the same food, it is not surprising. I often filet them and pan fry with vegetables. You can bread them, deep fry them, bake them... a very friendly fish for eating. If you are good at filleting, then these will be a piece of cake because they are generally larger and have a simple rib cage. Best part is, they are all over. They are very common and easy to catch, so I do eat quite a few...

I get most of my ideas from a book called "Fishing for Buffalo: A Guide to the Pursuit, Lore and Cuisine of Buffalo, Carp, Mooneye, Gar and Other "Rough Fish"". It is a REALLY great book!

[nitefisher]

are sheep head bonny or like the carp northern and walleye?

[LABS4ME]

Sheepshead do not seem to be any bonier than other fish. I filleted them over the ribs leaving the belly meat attached to the carcass.

I bought a jar of Chef Prudhommes Blackened Redfish Magic (figuring sheepshead and Redfish are close cousins in the drum family). Followed his recipie for Blackened RedFish - butter, seasoning, and a VERY hot cast iron fry pan, and served it up side by side with Crappies (we caught both crappie and sheepshead on Red Lake)... both times the blackened Sheepshead disappeared before the crappies! It actually was pretty darn good... I've since used it on Walleye too and it turned out very good also. Just another trick in your arsenal if the other fish aren't cooperating... when life serves you lemons... make lemonade!

Good Luck!

Ken

[nitefisher]

has anyone ever tried pan fried carp i have been told that it is good but bony?

[Tom Linderholm]

Haven't tried roughfish since I was a child but those recipe's sound great Kurt.