Sheapshead, Freshwater Drum?

[mellowyellow]

Re: Sheapshead, Freshwater Drum?

up in this neck of the woods, sheepshead are<br />considered a nuisence fish cuz they eat bass<br />eggs. dad used to kill everyone he caught.<br />have caught some pretty big ones, biggest was<br />about 8lbs. on a mepps #3 gold of all things.<br />never ate one, have been told they are a very<br />greasy fish. really not keen on eating any kind<br />of bottom feeder/garbage fish. they are full of<br />toxins I would guess.<br />fun to catch though, good fighters!<br />they will eat anything, but just LOVE crayfish.

 

[roscoe]

Re: Sheapshead, Freshwater Drum?

Scoop, we used to net carp out of my uncles spring fed pond. We smoked them mostly. Cooked a few up to eat, were ok, but not great.(i'm spoiled by walleye and perch)<br /><br />You have to cut a wedge out of the fillet around the "blood line" or "lateral line". Cut a strip about 1/2 in wider than the line, and about 3/4 to 1 inch deep. <br /><br />I have heard that soaking in a lemon juice/water solution for 10 minutes before cooking does wonders, but I have not tried this. This also "firms" up the meat, I am told.<br /><br />Lots of big sheep in Lake Mercury too, I mean Lake Winnebago.

 

[Scoop]

Re: Sheapshead, Freshwater Drum?

Thanks Roscoe. I am not sure I am up to trying it, but maybe some day. It was just interesting seeing that whole carp with skin and head being put in the oven. Everything I have ever read said that the biggest reason carp were introduced was for cheap food. I don't know if I can get past the smell. I also have no tolerance for the fishy taste of any fish. Whatever the chemical is, my body rejects it in a hurry. Out of the water and into the pan fresh water percvh are great, but put them in the freezer or buy them frozen from the store and they don't sit well. I did not have the heart to tell my friend that the last perch meal he cooked when we were over there did not stay with more than 10 minutes.

 

[slimmmerman]

Sheapshead, Freshwater Drum and pearl

Sheapshead, Freshwater Drum and pearl

When I was younger I did some commercial fishing for a guy in the South Basin of Lake Winnipeg in Manitoba. Whenever we caught Sheepshead (Freshwater Drum) I would cut the heads off to keep them. Kevin (boss) wouldn't release them because he felt they did too much damage to the nets. I was cutting into the top of the head down between the eyes and the brain to dig out the matching pair of stones each fish had. I was making them into jewelery, mostly ear-rings, to sell for $50/pair. I had them assessed and found out that they are in fact real pearl. My grandfather explained to me that Drum spawn on the sandy shores of lakes and when their eggs hatch the fry get two grains of sand in their head and this starts the formation of the pearl, not unlike oysters. The jeweler that assessed them for me said they wouldn't be able to mass market them and wished me luck in my venture. I eventually ended up making a few thousand on the things but it was difficult to drill into them as they kept cracking.

 

[Fisk Jagaren]

Re: Sheapshead, Freshwater Drum?

Here in nearby Lk. Erie, the sheepshead or freshwater drum is considered to be a nuisance fish. There are days when 30+ fish days of sheep are recorded.On Erie they do grow to over 30" in length. Most not attaining that size though. Below is local recipe from residents of a burg of Detroit, Hamtramck.

Fillet fish, brine overnight
Salt pepper lemon to taste
Grill on cedar plank for 1 hr
After 1 hr, discard fish, eat plank.