I learned this from an old 'Bama catfisherman. He brought a 22LB cat to a fish fry. I thought that it would taste like heck. It was great. He said the secret starts when you catch them. They are such a heavy blooded fish that you have to bleed them before they die. He cuts the tail off about 1" or 2" into the meat and hangs them over the side of the boat. It will breed like crazy until it bleeds out. Then put it on ice or fillet it at once. Cut any yellow fat off the belly. He cut this big cat cross grain into strips. Batter it to your choice, but only deep fry it in peanut oil. It was not strong tasting at all. I do it all the time now. The secret is to bleed them and not let that strong blood stay in the fish.