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I have heard large mouth bass is not all that good eating, although excellent as a sports fishing fish.

What are the best eating fresh water fish choices?

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Crappie hands down! At least in the south

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All panfish are good, providing they came from good water. My favorites in order...
1) Yellow perch
2) Crappie
3) Bluegill

However... It's a pretty small spread. They are all good!


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I think it all depends on water quality and how the fish are taken care of post catch.

In no particular order:
Channel Catfish
Largemouth Bass (or any "bass including HSB")
Yellow Perch
Bluegill/Redear Sunfish
Crappie
Walleye

For ease of growing? Channel Catfish, Bluegills, Yellow Perch, any type of bass.

While hard to catch if they are caught and released once, Channel Cats, filleted with all the red meat and fatty tissue removed are very good. Cornmeal or light breading, cooked in hot oil. Yum. Very different in taste from CC caught from the same pond without the red meat and fatty tissue removed. To be honest, you couldn't tell it was the same fish.


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I am for crappie too but a pond smaller than about 5 acres will not work very well.
But what I call a pond about 2/3 acres or less CNBG #1, CC#2, Bass#3 in southern ponds.

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My vote would be bluegill. Plentiful and delicious. Crappie and walleye are certainly contenders, but they're either not recommended (crappie), or are not adapt to small pond habitat (walleye). If you're not afraid of a little work filleting a bunch of bluegill, there is no more delicious entree as far as pond caught fish go.

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Have you had a type of fish called "Barramundi"? I had this fish once (bought live from a market), and it was really good. Anyone can compare this fish to the other fishes?

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What is good eating is up to your taste. Bass, to me, has very little taste. Even had it smoked and it was still bland. For someone not real keen on fish, it would probably be good...

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In my opinion...bluegill first,then crappie,then largemouth bass. Most people fillet now but... If you leave the skin on the lmb it will have a wonderful flavor. Skin seems to absorbe the seasoning making it much better. I think we fillet to get away from bones but we are missing out on a lot of flavor by doing so. That's just me.


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I think the best thing you can do is try all these fish that are suggested. Nobody can tell you what your taste buds like. You will find in this thread, and past ones, that about 4 or 5 fish will consistently come to the top of the list.

I would find a friend or nearby lake that has these, go get some, clean them yourself(this will keep the "test" factor more on equal terms) and see what you like. I don't think you can even try all of them fairly if different people cook them, because it won't be like how you do it. Perhaps you will like ones of these more than the fish you mentioned trying.

Certainly worth the time and effort if you compare it to what managing the pond, stocking costs, and changing you mind later will cost if you don't like it.

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For me, it depends on how you want to cook them. We like to put down a piece of alum foil on the grill and baste them in garlic and butter. Cook in about five min, turn them once and take them off. Bass taste pretty good this way, yellow perch even better, however crappie are too tender. They fall apart. If you are frying them up, then it's a different story. Everything's good fried up. smile


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RES, YP, GS, FHM (no longer), HBG (going away), SMB, and HSB (only one seen in 5 yrs) Restocked HSB (2020) Have seen one of these.
I think that's about all I should put in my little pond.
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I found a new one that is top of the list and not mentioned yet, Tilapia from my pond was great !! really surprised me. My favorite is goggleye (warmouth,rockbass) 2nd is southern fried lmb. A 2.5 #er out of good water is hard to beat.

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Bluegill ranks tops for me also, but YP and WE are delicious. I find crappie, tilapia, and LMB bland, but if you don't like the taste of fish then they may be alright. I'm over home-grown CC....I will eat the meat from the tail up to right behind the rib cage. Anything else I find has an off flavor, and the texture of an inner tube.

Then again, we have big CC. That may have something to do with it.


"Forget pounds and ounces, I'm figuring displacement!"

If we accept that: MBG(+)FGSF(=)HBG(F1)
And we surmise that: BG(>)HBG(F1) while GSF(<)HBG(F1)
Would it hold true that: HBG(F1)(+)AM500(x)q.d.(=)1.5lbGRWT?
PB answer: It depends.
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Sparkie, living in Louisiana (on the Texas Border) our lmb, crappie and Tp are not bland. smile Cajon cooking can be pretty spicy when frying some fish up. In fact, it might be as spicy going in as it is coming out. lol

Tracy


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I hear you Tracy, but I hate to HAVE to add so many spices in order to be able to taste something. I want my fish to taste like, well, fish? I want to know I'm eating fish, and not something that's just absorbed whatever I've sprinkled over the top.

Got to agree on the spicy food though, love that stuff! Wish I could eat it like I used to!


"Forget pounds and ounces, I'm figuring displacement!"

If we accept that: MBG(+)FGSF(=)HBG(F1)
And we surmise that: BG(>)HBG(F1) while GSF(<)HBG(F1)
Would it hold true that: HBG(F1)(+)AM500(x)q.d.(=)1.5lbGRWT?
PB answer: It depends.
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Fresh water:

1.Crappie,
2. Warmouth
3. BC or CC
4. BG
5. LMB


...when in doubt...set the hook...
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My first choice is YP but all the ones mentioned are good. IMO it really comes down to the right recipe and cooking method for each kind of fish. A bad cook can screw any of them up while a good cook can make any of them great!


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Can be subjective and what you're used to. Here in my area many frown on trout caught in local lakes, and will go as far as to call them "greaseballs." But bluegill are king.

Conversely in New England trout are king and bluegills are considered trashfish although I've seen a few exceptions.

And we all know how carp are worshipped in Europe, and most here turn their noses up at them for eating.

I know a taxidermist in Idaho that says local anglers throw huge walleye up on the bank as to them they look similar to a fish known as a squaw fish, which locals consider undesireable. Walleye are not native to his area.

Last edited by Cecil Baird1; 03/19/16 09:17 AM.

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I do have to agree with Rockbass yum but hard to get many of and large size to be worth while.

1) crappie
2) yellow perch
3) walleye

I am not one for the fish taste that trout and salmon have.

There was a thread going around here about best tasting fish and the best tip was to place the fish on ice right away. Let them die of hypothermia on ice. This pushes all the blood into the organs. Natures way to trying to save the life of the fish. This alone with make 90% of the fish giving it the flaky texture and ease of filleting.

Cheers Don.


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Originally Posted By: Cecil Baird1
Can be subjective and what you're used to. Here in my area many frown on trout caught in local lakes, and will go as far as to call them "greaseballs." But bluegill are king.

Conversely in New England trout are king and bluegills are considered trashfish although I've seen a few exceptions.

And we all know how carp are worshipped in Europe, and most here turn their noses up at them for eating.

I know a taxidermist in Idaho that says local anglers throw huge walleye up on the bank as to them they look similar to a fish known as a squaw fish, which locals consider undesireable. Walleye are not native to his area.




Nooooooo walleye cheeks are so good.


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Originally Posted By: RobertFisher
Have you had a type of fish called "Barramundi"? I had this fish once (bought live from a market), and it was really good. Anyone can compare this fish to the other fishes?


A fish grower by me grows Barramundi for the live market. Never had any tho.


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3/4 to 1 1/4 ac pond LMB, SMB, PS, BG, RES, CC, YP, Bardello BG, (RBT & Blue Tilapia - seasonal).
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There was a great recipe a couple issues back in Pond Boss mag, used brown sugar, mustard and garlic! I tried it on lm. It was delish. I like most any fish, fried is my least favorite way to eat it though. Butter, lemon and a pinch of garlic, broiled or grilled.

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Originally Posted By: esshup
Originally Posted By: RobertFisher
Have you had a type of fish called "Barramundi"? I had this fish once (bought live from a market), and it was really good. Anyone can compare this fish to the other fishes?


A fish grower by me grows Barramundi for the live market. Never had any tho.


I did some research about this fish and found that fish farmers breed them in freshwater, then put them in bay water to grow. But at the same time people said they can be grown entirely in freshwater. So I am not sure what is needed to grow this fish.

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Originally Posted By: Flame
In my opinion...bluegill first,then crappie,then largemouth bass. Most people fillet now but... If you leave the skin on the lmb it will have a wonderful flavor. Skin seems to absorbe the seasoning making it much better. I think we fillet to get away from bones but we are missing out on a lot of flavor by doing so. That's just me.


Absolutely blew me away when we tried this at the urging of our Hong Kong exchange student. Scaled the bass (14 - 17 inches about the best), took out the viscera organs and gills. Then steamed about ten minutes with some ginger & garlic in the empty viscera.

Used soy sauce as dipping sauce and it was FANTASTIC. Leave the bones in! I bet it would work for BG too.

Walleye, bass, and BG are my personal freshwater favorites. Unlike many, I don't care much for Crappie. CC I've had both good and bad experiences. Hard to beat BG from clean, cold water!

Last edited by anthropic; 03/19/16 10:30 PM.

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Originally Posted By: RobertFisher
I have heard large mouth bass is not all that good eating, although excellent as a sports fishing fish.

What are the best eating fresh water fish choices?


Fortunately, the answer to your question includes many types.

The type of fish is somewhat important, but the fish's water quality, food source, latitude, altitude, and other factors probably contribute more significantly to any final answer.

Largemouth bass from good water and good forage, are excellent eating. Unfortunately, when grown in certain waters, or primarily live on certain forage, they can be nearly inedible.

Every fishery is different. My largemouth bass are great fighters and great table fare. So are my bluegill and my hybrid bluegill. My hybrid striped bass are incredible sport fish that are really delectable.

Overall, my channel cats are by far the most versatile. They are not only fun to catch, but they can easily substitute in recipes for many different species of fresh and saltwater fish. We even substitute their fully skinned bellies in crab and lobster recipes. They are also pretty tasty when brined and smoked.


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