Thanks for the comments folks...
jimsanger... YES - I love to eat those bass ... 4 of those were small mouth and one a large mouth, but they are all very good eating. I favor the largemouth bass (just a little) over smallmouth... because the flesh is whiter and a little flakier when cooked (more like crappie - which is no doubt one of the best eating fish there is).
I cook them 3 ways... deep fried, grilled and blackened.
In my younger (healthier) days... I always just fixed the deep fried...
But the older I get, the more important it seems to be that I eat healthier...and not so much deep fried stuff.
When I grill them I just soak those filets in a 50/50 mix of dales sauce and A1 sauce for about 30 minutes, then pop them on the grill. It does not take long to cook them, 3-4 minutes on each side... and when they start to flake apart, done... Eat em up. Very good and good for you too.
Blackening...
A little olive oil and some real butter in a cast iron skillet... med- high heat...
Prep your fillets by washing good, then dry off with paper towell so they are just a little damp. Then sprinkle/coat them with your seasoning well on both sides.
I use a simple mix of equal parts of (salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika).. and season them up good on both sides.
When your oil is nice and hot, just lay them in, and let them cook 3-4 minutes on both sides. They will start to fall apart when done.
Good stuff, and still good for you.
Most health nuts will tell you you should be eating wild caught fish (cooked in a healthy way) at least a couple times a week. You get lots of omega 3's from them.
I eat a lot of wild caught large and small mouth bass and black perch too, and crappie, every chance I get.
When I don't have wild caught fish that I caught myself, I often eat sardines... you can get wild caught sardines at my walmart. They are loaded with omega 3's and lots of other good stuff to. They are my go to fish when I don't have my own wild caught fish in the fridge. A can of sardines is an easy tote on a ginseng hunt too. In fact that Is what I had for lunch on my hunt this past Saturday.
PS.. on the size of the fish, the two smallies on the right were good ones. I would say more like 2.5 - 3 lbs. They hit like a freight train, and fight hard all the way in, they just never give up and if you are not careful they will get off right at the boat. I have a dip net in my kayak, and used it on both of those larger fish.
TNHunter
