Crappie Fishing Tips: 3 Ways to Filet A Crappie
Catching a crappie is only the first step to enjoying a great meal. When prepared properly, crappies are most popular and make a wonderful meal.
Preparing them for cooking is the next step. This method is filleting. You will need a good sharp knife blade of about six inches for this method.
You will also need newspaper:
1. Begin gathering your supplies, while filling a bowl with saltwater. The first cut is parallel of the gills, right next to the directional fin. Push your knife into the fish until you strike bone; however do not cut the bone.
2. Upon meeting the bone, switch directions so the knife is parallel of the table. Cut through the rib cage and begin removing meat.
3. Keep the upper portion of the blade near the upper dorsal spine and lower part in the belly while cutting. When you reach the back fin all the meat should be separated.
Repeat on the opposite side.
4. Now you will remove the rib cage and skin, by sliding your knife between the bone cage and the meat and then between the meat and skin to remove them from the fillet.
5. You will now have two crappie fillets, rinse them immediately using cold water and then place them in a bowl of saltwater. Soak them for 24-hours and they are then ready for cooking.
Third Method:
Allow the crappie to dry out a bit to reduce slippage and then begin to fillet. Place a block of wood on the newspaper and place the crappie on top of this. The block will aid you in keeping the knife parallel with the fish.
Place your knife behind the gills under the front fins and begin cutting. The top of the knife should be near the top of the fish and the bottom along its stomach. Angling your knife towards the center, you will cut towards the head, stopping when you get to the backbone.
Do the same thing while cutting towards the crappie tail and then extend the top of the knife past the fin. Do not cut the backbone rather go through the stomach and then let the bottom part of your knife extend past the bottom fin.
You can cut the fillet off the bone in nice even sections using this method. Repeat on the other side, removing the stomach and rib bones by sliding your knife at a 30-degree angle between the bones and the fillet meat. You will discard the skin in a bucket after removing it the same way.
By following the directions of this method, you will soon enjoy a wonderful fish dinner, and then be ready to go crappie fishing again in no time.
Categories: Crappie Fishing Tips, Crappie Recipes Tags: crappie fishing, Crappie Recipes, crappie techniques, crappie tips
Cleaning And Storing Crappie After You’ve Caught Them…
After bring your catch home to show off to all your friends, what will you do with it? When you plan to eat it, you must keep it fresh.
Avoid Spoilage:
Until you are able to clean them, keep your freshwater fish in the live well of the boat or on a stringer. If you are not able to keep the fish alive, clean it and place it on ice as soon as possible. Catch and release quickly to avoid harm if you do not plan to keep the fish. Most saltwater fish will not stay fresh on a stringer or in a live well; you must put them on ice as soon as possible.
Clean Up:
Remember keeping your knife shallow helps you not to puncture the intestines. Insert your knife into the vent of the fish and cut upwards traveling from the belly to the head. Open the body up and remove the entrails. You can use a spoon to scrape out the kidney if your fish has one. Remove the head and then rinse the fish in cool, clean water. Place the clean fish in the ice chest or cooler surrounded by ice. Drain the cooler of water and do not store your fish in ice water.
Scaling or Skinning:
Fish scales carry bacteria, therefore scaling is beneficial, since it leaves the skin intact and locks in moisture, which keeps the fish from becoming dry. Hold a fish down to scale, while scraping up beginning at the tail and move towards the head. You can use a spoon or a fish scaler.
It is better to skin larger fish like bullhead and catfish. This will remove the layer of fat beneath the skin that holds the most toxins. It also enhances the taste of these fish. Clamp the head down to skin a fish and then cut through the skin behind the pectoral fins. Peel the skin downward towards the tail using pliers. Break the head off and pull it away from the body, while taking the inside, backbone and entrails with it.
Filleting:
Filleting gets the meat away, leaving the bones, using a fillet knife. Cut behind the fish gills to the backbone, but not through the backbone. Keep your knife inside the fish and then cut through the ribs towards the tail. Repeat on the other side. Cut away the fish ribs. Place the skin side-down and then cut through the fillet ¼ of an in above the tail and into the skin. Wash in cold water and dry using a paper towel. You may freeze it or cook it. Remember, fish last longer frozen with the skin intact.
Freezing Tips:
Slow the deterioration process by quickly freezing smaller packages. Wrap the fish tightly in an airtight freezer bag or wrap. You can lock in moisture and reduce freezer burn while vacuum packing. Label and date the package. You can keep white fish in the freezer for many months. Oily fish do not do well after the first couple of months in the freezer. Thaw your fish quickly by placing it in cold water after removing it from the freezer. Never place it in hot water or at room temperatures. Cold water is most effective; however, you can thaw it out in the refrigerator overnight.
When cleaning and preserving your catch, keep these essential tips in mind. When you take the proper precautions, you will enjoy an appetizing fish dish. Keep your fish fresh or cook it immediately however, be sure to freeze it as soon as possible if not.
Categories: Crappie Recipes Tags: Crappie Fishing Basics, Crappie Fishing Tips, crappie tips
What Size Hook Should I use to Catch Crappie?
This is a question that is commonly asked by novice anglers planning their first crappie fishing excursion. Unfortunately, there is no single right answer to this question, which is why it is almost invariably answered with another question: What are you using for bait?
Minnows call for a #2 light wire Aberdeen hook, since you don’t want to kill the minnow before it can attract crappie. This smaller hook also allows for more movement, ideal for slow trolling for crappie. I almost never use a #4 or #6 with minnows, unless I’m just dunking the bait in brush piles to see if there’s any response while trying to avoid getting snagged.
If you’re using minnows with a jig, I still say a #2 hook is the answer. If you want to use a jig with spikes or waxworm though, then go with a #4 or #6 hook instead. With Roadrunner jigs, a 1/8 oz jig with minnows, 1/16 for tubes, grubs and other smaller baits.
I should also mention that hook gap is actually more important than hook size. A live bait hook with a bigger gap lets you go with a smaller size like#6. A small hook is easier for your bait and reduces the odds of losing a crappie by tearing off their lip! Crappies have very soft, easily injured mouths. If you’re doing catch and release, then a smaller hook is better since it causes less damage and gives the fish better odds of surviving the experience.
00 sizes are good for Roostertail, Mepps and other French type spinners. You can go as high as 0 or even 1 if you have especially large crappie in your local waters. 1/8 oz Roostertail or Panther Martins are fine, but anywhere up to ¼ oz works pretty well.
With a Daredevil, go for size 0. If you use crankbaits, you want ultralight models (Rapala or Heddon are good ones); but something like a 1/8 oz Lazy Ike is murder on crappie.
Finally, for all the fly fishers out there, I recommend Clouser Minnow flies and Crappie Candy sized 8-12 depending on your local stock. Tied on a straight-eye streamer hook, these are about as good as crappie fishing gets.