05-25-2015, 01:59 AM
I do tip them with worm from time to time, but for a different reason. There are whitefish that follow them to slurp their eggs and its not uncommon to pick up a whitefish or two while trying to catch the suckers. Same with a cutt or two, and last year I even caught two rainbows off of the marina while fishing for them. Leftovers from the rainbow plantings from a few years ago.
Last year I decided to try to eat one of the suckers I caught. I cut the fillets off and scored them cross wise about every 3/16" almost all the way through the fillet. Then I dredged them in corn meal mixed with creole seasoning and fried them. They were delicious, very much like the whitefish, very mild and flakey. Problem is the bones. They have the typical minnow family Y-bone structure (exactly like a carp) so you either have to score them or bottle them. Bottling dissolves the bones. Last year was also the first time I tried bottling a few and my little girls and I scarffed it down within days. Very mild, white and flakey. Still...it took some psyching up to try it at first due to preconceived prejudices. I grew up thinking anything that wasn't a trout was a trash fish! My how I've broadened my horizons since then[
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The recipe I use to bottle them is to cut the fillets to length to fit within 3/4" of the top of the jar and pack them in fairly tight and close together, then add 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of liquid smoke and equal amount of kosher salt. Do not add water. Process in a pressure canner for 90 minutes at 15 psi. Use like tuna or eat on crackers.
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Last year I decided to try to eat one of the suckers I caught. I cut the fillets off and scored them cross wise about every 3/16" almost all the way through the fillet. Then I dredged them in corn meal mixed with creole seasoning and fried them. They were delicious, very much like the whitefish, very mild and flakey. Problem is the bones. They have the typical minnow family Y-bone structure (exactly like a carp) so you either have to score them or bottle them. Bottling dissolves the bones. Last year was also the first time I tried bottling a few and my little girls and I scarffed it down within days. Very mild, white and flakey. Still...it took some psyching up to try it at first due to preconceived prejudices. I grew up thinking anything that wasn't a trout was a trash fish! My how I've broadened my horizons since then[
]The recipe I use to bottle them is to cut the fillets to length to fit within 3/4" of the top of the jar and pack them in fairly tight and close together, then add 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of liquid smoke and equal amount of kosher salt. Do not add water. Process in a pressure canner for 90 minutes at 15 psi. Use like tuna or eat on crackers.
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