Striper Meat Quality

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Apparently I left my other account too long and it was deleted.... but with that being said..... Years ago we were catching large strippers with huge heads but no meat... almost like blubber. do not waste your time with poor quality fish... like Wayne said it is a great idea to cut them up and chum them....
The two best recipes me and my pops use are as follows....
My favorite is a beer batter like we use at the shad rallies.... fillet the stripper, make sure to get the red stripe out and then I soak them in beer for a bit. While they are soaking mix up as follows (double or triple for how ever much batter you need) 1 cup flour, add water to create a firm dough ball, add spices of your chosing. I like lemon pepper and garlic salt. then add a tsp of baking soda. after the dough ball is mixed and firm thin it out with white vinegar to make a slop not too runny.... drain the beer from fillets and chunk them to whatever size you like. heat up oil or lard and throw your fillets in the batter, coat them and throw them in the fryer. cook till golden brown.... ENJOY
The other way is quicker and has made people who do not like fish believers and brought them to a life of enjoying fish that they never knew of....
Crush Ritz crackers to a fine powder..... use as much as you need to coat as much fish as you are cooking. you can add spices of your choice to the crushed Ritz crackers. use an egg soak then roll the chunked or whole fillets in the Ritz. fry in oil or butter!!!
 
KYKevin said:
Ed G, how do the Tilapia fight? They are shaped like a Bluegill, and I love the fight of a Blue gill, and they are my favorite, on the table. I'm sure the Talapia, are better fresh, and like any fish, it's different, tasting out of different lake's, it's all about the different feed, each lake has. I'm like you Ed, I here so many say Crappie is there favorite, but I would rather have Bluegill, then Crappie. But to me, Lake Powell fish are good, and deep fried, it's hard to tell them apart. "THERE ALL VERY GOOD".
Have a good one Ed, and evereyone, enjoy your fish, what ever your favorite is.
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Tilapia can put up a heck of a fight for their size. I used to catch some in the 1 3/4 to 2-pound range, and they were a load on light spinning gear - much like a big red ear sunfish, another of my favorites to both catch and eat. I also love big bull copper belly bluegills. Lake Pleasant down was full of them in the early years after the lake filled behind the new dam. It had some big red ears, too. I much prefer red ears and bluegills to crappie for eating. They have sweet, firm meat which is what I like. :)

Ed Gerdemann
 
My dad swears by microwaving most of his fish... trout, bass, sunfish. Put the fillet in a casserole dish, and cover loosely with plastic wrap (or paper towel)... they will 'explode' a little bit. Depending on the size, try 1.5 minutes +/-. Too done is no good. Better to start with a minute and add 20-30 seconds at a time until done. A little butter, salt, pepper to taste. Simple and good.
 
KYKevin said:
Ed G, how do the Tilapia fight? They are shaped like a Bluegill, and I love the fight of a Blue gill, and they are my favorite, on the table. I'm sure the Talapia, are better fresh, and like any fish, it's different, tasting out of different lake's, it's all about the different feed, each lake has. I'm like you Ed, I here so many say Crappie is there favorite, but I would rather have Bluegill, then Crappie. But to me, Lake Powell fish are good, and deep fried, it's hard to tell them apart. "THERE ALL VERY GOOD".
Have a good one Ed, and evereyone, enjoy your fish, what ever your favorite is.
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KY,
we hit the great gill lake of old 2 weeks ago , after a cold snap and was held to on 25 with nothing over 1/2#. did catch 2 6+# carp on a 2" grub, what a battle. have seen multiple posts that they are trying to kill the lake this year if water gets low enough. maybe a reset on the lake will kick it back to the mid 90's sizes and hold back the meat grubs for a time.
 
ROSCOELAB said:
I only eat winter striper, keeping them cold helps the meat quality also while your on the catch. smallie taco's for summer fair
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I think I am on board with this assessment. It seems only about 1 in every 10 or 12 we've caught this trip (spring) had good fillets. Yesterday I changed up my game plan. We caught dozens of striper and I just filleted, then cubed them. When I got back to camp I vacuum sealed and threw in the freezer about 15-20 lbs of striper chum to use on future trips! No more need to buy chovies!

That leads to another question for @wayne gustaveson If people catch stripers but do not want to keep them do you prefer they dispatch them or release them regardless of if they are healthy or not?
 
I know it is for the good of the lake but I have a hard time killing something if I don't eat it. Three or four is all I can grill for tacos, I have been releasing the rest.
 
Mann4ducks, They are going to kill it out, next year, and there's no limit on the Bluegill, and a 12 limit on the Bass. The Bass don't seam to have as much of the parasite in them, as the Bluegill's. I hope they can get Pelican lake back like it was in the day. When are you going back to the lake?
Have a good one David.
Ky
 
birdsnest said:
And is it best to throw them on shore or in the water? I've been doing both
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Throw them into the water! The lake can use the nutrients, and they will be consumed pretty quickly.

I only fish the lake during the Spring, but we have not had any issues with meat quality, other than about 5% of the catch that are too skinny or had poor flesh (all fish caught on flies or lures). I only fish up north, where I think the fish have more forage than to the south? There have definitely been years in the past where lots of the fish were super aggressive loner's in the shallows that were skinny razorbacks.
 
Dorado said:
Throw them into the water! The lake can use the nutrients, and they will be consumed pretty quickly.

I only fish the lake during the Spring, but we have not had any issues with meat quality, other than about 5% of the catch that are too skinny or had poor flesh (all fish caught on flies or lures). I only fish up north, where I think the fish have more forage than to the south? There have definitely been years in the past where lots of the fish were super aggressive loner's in the shallows that were skinny razorbacks.
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I agree with Dorado. Throw fish in deep water after punching the air bladder so the fish will sink. Just put the knife blade in the belly and then run it up to the backbone. It is quick and easy. The carcass will break down and the nutrients within will be released back into the lake where it can increase plankton growth, etc.

When fishing for stripers you often select the health of the fish with your fishing technique. Slow poor fish are the first ones to find bait. Healthy active fish are separated from the slow school and seek plankton or live fish. These fish are the ones you catch trolling, casting and spooning.
 
CPR catch puncture release unhealthy stripers. Got in trouble 15+ years ago with NPS ranger, had my 3 kids out in Striper city catching and releasing big heads as fast as I could get the hook baited. The kids were pulling them up from 60 feet. They were in the starving mode not a one worth keeping. We just would let them go but they would pop back up after a few minutes, turned out we made an obstacle course for a boat of water skiers, they actual went to Hite and reported us to the NPS Ranger, I have no issue with NPS Rangers but, Real nice of the Ranger to come out and harass us about it. I of course explained I could Catch and release if I wanted to and write me a ticket for it please! Nice way to ruin a kids best ever fishing experience btw. so anyhow CPR was born !
 
KYKevin said:
Mann4ducks, They are going to kill it out, next year, and there's no limit on the Bluegill, and a 12 limit on the Bass. The Bass don't seam to have as much of the parasite in them, as the Bluegill's. I hope they can get Pelican lake back like it was in the day. When are you going back to the lake?
Have a good one David.
Ky
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heading down this weekend Friday to Monday if I can get the kid to go with. wife isn't going to go. will be hunting hard for the bottom feeders. will call you with results. are you going to be down?
 
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