I was just curious if anyone knew the difference between cc and bh? We have both here in the southerntier and all that I have heard is a cc won't muddy the water like a bull head would. I don't see much difference besides color.

Bullhead have two dorsal fins including one adipose fin, tail only slightly notched, barbels around mouth. They have a shorter stockier body than a Channel Cat. Brown bullheads reach sexual maturity at three years of age, and their life span does not exceed six to eight years. The average adult brown bullhead is only eight to 14 inches long and weighs about 1 pound

The Channel Catfish also have two dorsal fins including one adipose fin, forked tail, barbels around the mouth, However they have a slender body with speckled sides. Sexual maturity comes later than Bullhead at five to eight years of age, but these fish live a great deal longer, some as long as 25 years. In the Great Lakes, this advanced age can be accompanied by a body size of 30 pounds.

Channel cats prefer cooler, deeper, cleaner water than bullheads, and water with a sand or gravel bottom.

Brown bullheads are nocturnal bottom feeders. They consume algae, plants, mollusks, insects, fish eggs and fish. Channel cats feed both day and night, although they are best fished from dusk through early night. They take a large part of their food from the bottom, but they also feed at the surface.


I hope this helps.

That was great Eric, what about the difference in taste?

Actually there is a big difference in taste as well. If you catch the bullhead any time other than spring, the bullhead will have a muddy unpleasant taste due to the muddy water conditions they like to live in. During their spring spawning run they are in clearer water that tends to clean up the flesh a bit and they get a sweeter and firmer flesh than other times of the year. Some people catch the bullheads and put them in a cage in cleaner water and let them sit a week or two prior to eating them to clean up the flesh.

The catfish does tend to have a very strong flavor but less pungent than the bullhead. In a channel catfish you have to be careful to only take the shoulder meat. If you cut too deep you will hit the belly flesh and that has a very strong and shall I say nasty flavor. The shoulder meat on a larger catfish can be cut into steaks or chunks to be grilled or beer batter dipped ( my personal fav ). The over all texture of the meat is firmer and sweeter than the bullhead.

Now I bet all you good southern ladies and gentlemen thought that the only thing us Yankees appreciated was a good YP or Walleye!!

Great info Eric As long as were talking about these fish, How do you clean them? Do you skin and gut them ? Or do you filet them? I never cleaned one but, I would like to know how to.

The bullheads and catfish can both be skinned. The skin itself is very tough, thus you take it off ( Unless you want to grill the steak and then its handy to have on for holding things together) I then just take the top shoulder meat and stay away from the meat below the lateral area.

So you cut the piece out in shoulder and stop when you get to start of bib cage?

Yup

Try this link for some good ideas and details. This is typically how I do it.

http://www.utahoutdoors.com/fishspecies/catfishhowto.htm

Kris,
I fillet nearly all fish, including saltwater flounder, so don't go by opinion on that. :p

I'm sure Eric is correct wrt bullhead vs. CC habits, but I would like to say that we caught bullheads from muddy water last summer and they had a fantastic flavor! I honestly could not tell the difference between them and CCs. I contemplated not even trying them, since they are considered a "trash" fish in most places, but they were actually very good.

I marinate them in garlic herb seasoning or italian dressing, and dump it all on a sheet of foil. I then turn up the sides of the foil to make a "boat," so that the marinade won't drip out. The boiling marinade is what actually cooks the meat, and it is yummy.

The main diff between the bullhead and CC is that the flesh of the CC is typically firmer and less mushy than no spring run bullhead. However if you are not grilling or deep frying them and doing what Davatsa did, then they flesh can taste very much the same and have a similar texture. I know that I can tell the diff between a spring run bullhead and CC and a non spring run bullhead, but it may be the conditions up here vs. other areas of the country.

Either way, if done right both are great meals!!!!

CC Skinning:

Nail the CC through the head to a 2"x4" (some use a tree) about 3' long. Break off the spine on the dorsal fin and cut the rest of the fin off. Slice through the skin on each side from just in front of the dorsal fin, down and back toward the belly. There are some prominant bones jutting from the side that you will want to slice behond as you go down. Take a good pair of pilers and pull the skin off, starting from your incision and working toward the tail. I like to have running water available to rinse off the pliers; the mucous on the skin builds up and hampers getting a good grip.

Cleaning & Eating:

After skinning, I fillet. This works well on CC up to about 4 lbs; with larger fish there is a noticeable disparity in thickness between the rib area and the tail, which makes it hard to get the whole fillet cooked evenly.

I am going to have to reinvent the way my Grandpa used to cut very large CC into steaks (of uniform thickness) for cooking. These came out roughly "C" shaped; the main cut was perpendicular to the CC body length to get a cut about 3/4" thick.

Belly meat (which is quite substantial on larger CC) is indeed quite different - IMO tougher and stronger in flavor. I no longer remove it for cooking either. At least one fourm member is record, however, for preferring belly meat over the rest of the CC.

I like the tail meat behind the rib cage best.

Thanks Theo, great info.

With a sharp enough knife, skinning is not necessary. Filet just as you would a BG, but I don't cut through the ribs...just around them. Otherwise, skin as above, then filet.

Leave the belly meat (UNLESS it's a flathead...that's the best part on them). Larger fish, I also "filet the filet" and get all pieces roughly the same size/thickness, so they all cook at the same rate. No more than 3/8" or so...

Don't care much for bullheads...but some adore them.

I prefer dry breading (Shore Lunch or Andy's are both great), but to each their own. I also trim off ALL red or yellow meat (mudline and fat) as that's the part that contributes an "off taste". Rinse over and over, until really clean, then refrigerate in water. 10-15 mins before frying, add a couple tablespoons of lemon juice (fresh or Real Lemon)...drain well, bread and fry @ 350F until golden.

CC are not the prettiest fish...but they look great surrounded by hot oil!

I may try to get a short video or several pics next time I clean one of 'em...easy enough to do.

Thanks Matt, great info. It's amazzing what you can learn on the form.

I'm going to try "filleting the fillet" this year, Matt.

I'm tellin' ya, it makes a HUGE difference. I prefer BG filets, but if you thin them down a bit, CC filets are awful close. Nothing worse than getting a piece of fish that's overdone on the edges and not quite cooked in the middle.

Keep them filets the same thickness, and cooking's easier and the results are WAY better...

I don't skin my CC. I use a sharp limber knife, filet the sides and then filet the skin off the meat. With a good knife, you will lose very little meat with the skin. It is much easier and quicker.

That's what I was talking about H20...I guess I never said it.

Works well, specially on mid-sized cats...say .75-2 lbers...

Good point, Matt. I do this as well, and it works great. I've found this method especially helpful with larger CCs and saltwater redfish (red drum). You are right on about them cooking up much better when the fillets are the same size.

Most people will overcook fish. I would rather come across a little bit of undercooked meat than eat a whole batch of dry, hammered fish. This is especially true if I'm confident that I'm eating a healthy specimen. A little bit of raw fish won't kill ya.

Fearing "undercooked" fish is especially funny when you eat bloody beef with gusto.

I've worked in very expensive restaurants and typically the goal is "barely cooked through" for most white fleshed fish, and something like "medium" for richer fish like salmon, or swordfish. Tuna is rarely cooked past medium-rare.

yank...good point, however I don't want fish "wet" meaning uncooked. Turns me off, right quick.

Undercooked fish are bait.

Absolutely...

If we had been raised eating undercooked fish it would look as good as this.

Huh? Dreaded red "X"...

I always think it's best to nail a catfish to a board, also. But then I skin it with needle nosed pliers or a skinning tool.(Available at bait shops or Wal-Mart). Then fillet the fish as any other fish. Look at theinside of the fillet when you are done, and look for any dark meat along the lateral line. Cut it away. And that is it. By the way, I've eaten channel cats and bullheads in the spring and summer. They are both delicious in both seasons.