Eater Size?

[Nels]

This is sort of along the lines of the C&R topic.

What length fish do you consider an eater size? 13- 20" for Walleye? Under 24" for N.Pike? Any Size Crappie or Bluegill? Trout? Does it depend on the lake (that is, some lakes are known for larger or smaller fish) or how hungry you are?
Does anyone here eat LM or SM bass, rock bass, dogfish, carp, lamprey, etc...

If you haven't caught some of these, would you eat them?

Later,
Nels

[Guest]

Boy are you gonna stir things up with the "Whats eater size?" Theres some guys in here that feel really strong about that. I personally stick to the smaller ones and let the big spawners go. The biggest walleye I would eat would be about 20 in. And thats Max Length. Nothin smaller than 14 in. I'm sure there are others in here that will say different. As for panfish, I like to keep a couple of the big crappies. The main thing is I only take what I need. I'm not the type to let a bag sit in the freezer for more than a couple weeks unless the ice season is coming to an end then I gotta stock up.

[Guest]

I don't freeze any fish anymore. As for eaters, walleyes (where legal) of 13 to 19 inches are super. Northerns up to 8 lbs.

Lake Michigan trout and salmon present many options. Smaller ones (3 to 10 lbs) can be filleted and broiled, fried, or baked, and larger ones can be steaked and grilled, or smoked.

Ciscoes (tullibees, if you prefer) are great filleted and steamed in foil with onion & seasonings; sheepshead are good pickled as well as smoked; catfish are terrific fried or broiled; and bass are fine if cleaned properly (altho I keep no smallmouth).

And, yes, many years ago I did eat muskie. No, I don't believe muskies should be harvested -- I'm simply reporting ancient history.

[Guest]

Clayton,

What do you use for brine when smoking sheepshead? How about wood? My parents have a cabin on the sheepshead capitol of Minnesota, Pokegama near Pine City. I'll try it.

[Cliff Wagenbach]

When I am fishing for walleyes for my own eating I never keep a fish over 17 inches or under 14 inches. I think these fish are the best tasting walleyes.
I also prefer crappies in the 8 to 10 inch size. Just big enough to fillet!!
All the rest go back unless injured.
Good Fishing!

------------------
Cliff's Guide Service
CliffsGuideService-LakeVermilion.com
Lake Vermilion
Phone: (218) 753-2005

[cluelessfisherman]

Well, I haven't really caught that many large fish, so I don't know for sure where I would draw the line. Prolly walleye under 23", Pike under 30", Have eaten largemouth bass - great baked in a BBQ sauce in the oven!! Rockbass, bluegill, crappie, sunnies - all great eaters! Catfish is also very good. I have tasted carp back in Nebraska - that one I would not advise to anyone who values their lives!! I have smoked some bullhead, and tried sturgeon (very white meat!) I eat a lot of perch, probably my favorite fish, anything over 7' ususlly gets thrown in the basket. Hey a family can eat quite a few of those, and they fry up really nicely!
Never tried tullibes or whitefish or sheepshead or suckers. Might have to some day to say I did.

Clueless - -

[Surface Tension]

Walleyes :14 to 17,only cuz I think they taste best at that size.
Brookies,rainbows and slake:14 and up.
Crappies & gills: Size is all relative to the lake.
Lake trout: 2lb. and up
Northerns: none unless Im lost and real hungry.
Perch 1 lb. or better
Largemouth Bass: only when Im lost and cant get any Northerns

[hawgTime]

If you can eat walleyes (14-19"), why would you eat anything else?

mike

[LaVoi]

If any of you haven't tried smoked sucker, you must. They are a delicacy in my book.

[rap]

we generally keep eyes from 16-20"...

[Ely Lake Expert]

here's my opinion

15-22 inches for walleyes

10+ inches for crappies

Don't keep anything else.

Ely lake expert

[Guest]

There are a lot of people who are upset about people keeping a spawning size walleye, but I see people on here who are keeping spawning size fish of other species. I know walleye is the state fish, but spawners of all species are included in keeping the food chain going.
Hey clueless, are rockbass really decent eating? I catch tons of them on Farm Island but always throw them back because of the rumors I hear that they are bad eating. Also, one time in high school I made carp-jerky and passed it off as beef jerky to friends at school. It looked like beef jerky after enough time in the smoker. Anyway they thought it wasn't bad until I told them what it was. There were quite a few laughs about it.

[bigpike]

I have kept several rock bass. Only problem I have had is that they seem to be tough on the knives.

[Reel Inn]

Walleyes 14-17 bigger ones released
Perch 9-to whatever
Northerns never keep any

[Surface Tension]

Releasing Spawners?
All fish will spawn some day. If you were out to get a meal what would be better on the fish population? 6 fourteen in. walleyes. Or 2 twenty in. walleyes.
Ive released hundreds of walleyes between 4 to 12 pounds, only becase I choose to. Not becase someone told me to.
Theres a stag fisherman reach when releasing a hawgs is just as fulfilling as eating it.

[This message has been edited by Surface Tension (edited 02-19-2002).]

[Freewheeler]

I agree with Surface Tension on letting
the big guys go and the feeling you get
from that, But I'm still trying to accept
eating sheepshead in any form. Is it
only because I haven't tried it when
properly done?

[cluelessfisherman]

You wouldn't know the difference if you laid a bluegill fillet, crappie fillet and rockbass fillet on your plate. They all taste the same to me. Ok maybe the crappie are a little better, but rockbass are worthy table fare. Their ribs can take a number on your knives however, I sharpen after every couple fish. Give them a try.

As for carp jerky, I have never tried that. I just tried them fried and that was enough for me. Carp was a delicacy back in Nebraska. They have carp feeds at the vets club, carp filets in the stores... It was crazy!

Next time I catch a sucker, I will try to smoke it. Last spring I found a fun little creek that was full of them spawning - caught probably a hundred of them, just kept throwing them back. The water was black with hundreds of suckers!

Clueless - -

[MuleSkinner]

Oh boy. Love this topic. As long as no one gets militant.

My walleye release size of 22" goes down a lot depending on if any smaller eaters are already in boat, how long I've been out, etc.

Panfish:I keep 9"+ crappies. Have never caught 14"+(only fished local lakes). Sunnies, similar, but smaller relative sizes.

Generally don't eat Northerns and bass. (Any injured game species I keep to eat, if legal).

As for walleye spawning, most of the lakes I fish, per DNR info, are supposedly stocked fish. Very few natural reproduced catchers. Also, DNR says more 1-2 lb Northern should be kept, so bait food for walleyes increases. But who really keeps them, and what do you do with that size of Northern?

[Piker]

We can definitely be proud of the civility in this forum! Keep what you're going to eat and not just keep a limit is good advice. The smaller the fish the better the taste I'd say. So pick a balance between too small to bother with and not too big. 2lbs. is perfect. Northerns are the best tasting meat there is!! I love em.

[Guest]

I have served northerns and walleyes to guests at my home for fish fry, thinking all the fillets were walleyes. When I've done this, I have never had anyone suspect they were eating BOTH walleyes and northerns.

Unless you miss a Y-bone or two, your guests will not know they are eating northerns.

P.S. Can someone explain to me why it makes any difference when you remove (harvest) a female of any species. Females are spawners at some time in their lives -- thus, taking females is taking spawners. Unless you see fish on their spawning beds, you really do not know if you are harvesting a spawner.

[Guest]

we could probably make ten pager out of this.
Everybody has their preference on what size,
But you make sure that you only take what you're gonna need and eat in the next couple of weeks not the next couple of months. I find it irritating to lose room for my frozen pizzsas because somebodys got 10 bags of sunfish jammed in there

[Guest]

CLAYTON,

Check out my previous post. I really want to know about smoking sheepshead.

[Guest]

Clayton, I have the same experience with walleye and northern. I find that there is not much difference between the two. I never understood the hubbub about the two. Just my opinion.
CpR

[Steve Foss]

Well, I'll keep sunnies over 7", crappies and perch over 8", walleyes from 14 to 22" and pike from 2 to 6 pounds. On the big lake, I'll keep lakers from 2 to 7 pounds, salmon from 16 inches up to however big I can catch them and 'loopers over 18". Don't keep smallies. If I want to eat a largemouth, I'll eat one of the pounders and let the bigger ones go.

Not much point keeping pike under a pound and a half, because there's not much left after removing the y bones. But pike taste wonderful. We slice them into finger-sized strips and fry 'em up like any other fish.

Don't know what the hullaballoo is over walleyes. I've caught, cleaned and eaten hundreds. They don't have any taste, so they taste like whatever you put on 'em. They're the white bread of the fish world. Pike are firm and tasty. Perch are excellent, with a bit of taste to them, and crappies and sunnies have that slight tinge of sweetness that keeps me coming back for more. I like catching winter walleyes, because they're so aggressive, and they're the easiest fish I've ever cleaned.

Also, don't forget eelpout backstraps. Those freshwater cod are excellent.

[Guest]

Bornofice --

I wish I could help you on the smoking. A friend of mine has an old refridgerator he adapted into an indirect heat smoke house. I don't know what he uses, but the end product is superb.

Lake Michigan trout and salmon I've had smoked commercially. In Racine, Wis there is a meat market that smokes them for 40 or 50 cents a pound.

I have never smoked fish myself, so can't help on that score. And, forgive me, I can't resist the old one about not knowing which end to light. Sorry about that.