San Juan this week!

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The Stripers seem to be pungent and they get smelly faster since I don’t have a Livewell (we immediately put them in a cooler and cover them with ice).

Or is that my imagination?

Not sure about that, they all seem to have a distinctive smell! At the risk of being repetitive, be sure to bleed them out before you put them in the cooler, your filets will be a lot cleaner and taste better. Do that all your fish. Since you don't have a livewell, maybe just a bucket of water to put them in while the bleed out, then put them on ice?
 
Hey Dorado, as a fellow Wyoming angler I was curious if you’ve read the 2018 regs? In the past I understood WY to have the same rules regarding daily creel and possession limits. The way I read it this year was you are allowed one limit in possession (6 walleye). Just curious if that was a recent change, or if I’m mistaken.
 
Not sure about that, they all seem to have a distinctive smell! At the risk of being repetitive, be sure to bleed them out before you put them in the cooler, your filets will be a lot cleaner and taste better. Do that all your fish. Since you don't have a livewell, maybe just a bucket of water to put them in while the bleed out, then put them on ice?

Bleeding out: Haven't done that yet. Any suggestions on technique or a good YouTube vid?
 
Bleeding out: Haven't done that yet. Any suggestions on technique or a good YouTube vid?
I usually knock them on the head or pith them with the tip of the knife into the back of their head, then slice the gills. Kitchen shears are probably safer. You can also just reach in and tear out their gills.
 
Hey Dorado, as a fellow Wyoming angler I was curious if you’ve read the 2018 regs? In the past I understood WY to have the same rules regarding daily creel and possession limits. The way I read it this year was you are allowed one limit in possession (6 walleye). Just curious if that was a recent change, or if I’m mistaken.

Wyoming reg's haven't changed, the possession limit and the daily limit are the same. I know there are always complaints about this from anglers coming to fish the Gorge from out of state that can only have 3 Kokanee in possession........
 
Fishing is a much more violent sport than I originally imagined ;-) LOL

Sounds simple. Gills are where the blood exchanges oxygen so compromise those and they bleed out.

My challenge is we don’t have a fishing boat so I have to weigh the inconvenience of getting our Bow-rider and the decks covered with fish goo. It’s a lengthy process to clean up later after it dries.

I think the bucket idea sounds good. I’ll leave it on the back platform just in case of a spill.

Thanks guys.
 
OK I will chime in here: Many bleed their fish before putting on ice. I do not because I want to get my lure back in the water before the school goes away. I don't whack them but just drop them on ice in the cooler and cast again.

Then when its time to prepare the fillet I cut out the band of red meat on the fillet and cut the tissue into 1 inch chunks. I don't cook the whole fillet because small pieces taste better. I recommend doing both options and then decide which one works for you.

Many, many people who "don't like fish - especially stripers" really like my stripers cut up in pieces and cooked in cracker crumbs, buttermilk and flour.
 
Last trip I kept them (all species we caught) alive in the well all day (you usually can in the spring with the colder water), before we left the last spot of the day I simply reached in the well and pulled a single gill before heading back to camp. Great advice from Wayne on the smaller pieces before cooking, we do that as well and it makes a big difference.
 
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Last trip I kept them (all species we caught) alive in the well all day (you usually can in the spring with the colder water), before we left the last spot of the day I simply reached in the well and pulled a single gill before heading back to camp. Great advice from Wayne on the smaller pieces before cooking, we do that as well and it makes a big difference.
This is our procedure as well, turn live well on manual for the last mile in and everything is clean. Thanks for the reply Dorado.
 
We use the front live well for stripers and ice. he back live well for all other fish alive. When we unhook the stripers we just break one gill with our finger and in the live well they go.
 
OK I will chime in here: Many bleed their fish before putting on ice. I do not because I want to get my lure back in the water before the school goes away. I don't whack them but just drop them on ice in the cooler and cast again.

Then when its time to prepare the fillet I cut out the band of red meat on the fillet and cut the tissue into 1 inch chunks. I don't cook the whole fillet because small pieces taste better. I recommend doing both options and then decide which one works for you.

Many, many people who "don't like fish - especially stripers" really like my stripers cut up in pieces and cooked in cracker crumbs, buttermilk and flour.
How do you cook them? Pan fried, or deep fried? Thanks
 
How do you cook them? Pan fried, or deep fried? Thanks


Here is my best yet!
Try it!
Put fillets in yellow mustard and let set for at least 12 hours.Yes yellow mustard...blot all the water off first.
Get some McCormick Cajun Seafood Fry mix . When ready to cook put the mix and the fish in a ziplock and coat the fish.
Drop in hot oil until they float up but make sure they are not stuck to the bottom if you have them in a deep fat fryer.
Make sure you get. All the red meat out before!
 
Here is the recipe from WW.Com<Recipes:

CARING FOR FISH:
For best results catch a small striper and have it for dinner the same day. When caught, immediately place fish on ice.
Fillet as soon as possible and put fillet back on ice. Cook the same day (do not freeze).
PREPARE FISH:
Trim red meat from fillet. Cut fillet in bite-size pieces and place chunks in buttermilk. Let chunks soak for at least an hour in the refrigerator. (striper cooks better in bite size chunks rather than whole fillets).

Mash Club cracker or Ritz cracker crumbs in a plastic bag. Add flour at a ratio of 1 cup crackers to one cup flour.

Heat 1/4 to 1/2 inch olive oil in frying pan over medium heat.

When oil is medium hot shake fillet pieces in cracker crumbs/flour and place in hot oil. The fillet should brown in about 3 minutes (if faster reduce heat).

Turn fillet over when golden brown. Dark brown means pan is too hot. When other side of fish chunk is golden brown fillet is done and ready to eat.
 
Wayne, you should add a sticky with fish recipes:cool:

I love fried fish, but want something lighter sometimes. I have some good recipes that don't involve deep frying....
 
This last trip we made last week we started bleeding out the fish. Essentially put the fish in the livewell all day (except stripers we cut immediately then put on ice after bled out) then just before heading off the lake at the end of the day cut the gills. Very impressed with how clean they were when cleaning and you could see noticeably less blood in the fillets.
 
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