Printable View
I've eaten Crappie caught through the ice without complaints. I've never eaten summer caught Crappie because everyone I've talked with say they're mushy during the summer and not worth keeping here in Michigan.
Now I'd like to give them a try this summer, so I'm reaching out to you folks to find out which is the best way to prepare them to reduce the mushyness.
Throw them in a cooler of ice instead of livewell. :cheers2
:hesaid
I do prefer fresh over frozen.
Also prefer winter over summer.
Sent from my iPhone using Crappie.com
An ice water slush with salt thrown in will keep them firm.
I always wash my fillets and cover with water and add salt and let them set in the fridge over night then wash off real good and freeze em in water or have kept em in the fridge a couple days if going to cook them fresh but keep the water changed daily and don’t add salt after 1st night ! Approx 1/4 cup salt to 1 gallon bowl of water/fillets ! If only a few fillets i use a teaspoon or so ! They are always firm when I do this !
I am not sure hot your waters get in Michigan in the Summer, but on July 28th last year I caught these fish in deep water of course but the surface temperatures that day were over 90. Do what these guys have stated with ice and salt water and your fillets will be firm and tasty. Ice is your friend in the summer, and freezing your own to add to the live well or bucket is free and will go a long way in keeping your fish fresh.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ricko54
Attachment 424868
Attachment 424869
Cut the fillets into strips/smaller pieces and they will fry up crispier.
we often use a slush in the ice chest in the summer time , just ice and water though ....
got to keep them chilled good for sure ....during the filleting as well ....
right from the slush to a bowl of slush ice with the fillets
and right in the frig when you are done
any deviation in that in the hot part of the year will result in soft meat ....
I second SuperDave! straight on ice. I only take 5 out of the cooler at a time to clean the next day after they are firmed up. Warm livewell waters and also slow to chill down seems to make lake crappie mushy. If I'm keeping it goes in to cooler or I release. Easier to chill down one at a time. If too many in the box or adding too fast I add ice on top to melt and drip over the fish to speed their chill down.
Another thing I do is make block ice that fits my cooler, keeps the fish on the bottom from having Dents from the ice cubes.
Good idea
Don’t ever let them sit in water. Throw them straight into a cooler of ice.
I cut a plastic grate to fit in the bottom of my fish cooler. That keeps them off the bottom where the water is. When I get home I’ll take cooler out of the boat , and pull drain plug on the cooler. Add a little more ice to cover them. I like them to be on ice for at least a day before cleaning.
Never had a problem doing it this way for 30 years.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Being from Michigan, here's what I do. Keeping them in the livewell while you're fishing is fine as long as you have plenty of water for the # of fish, you need to keep them alive. As soon as you leave the lake get them in a cooler with ice and wait until the next day to clean them. Rinse the fillets a couple of times then put them in a bowl and cover with water. I don't add salt to the water. Leave them in the fridge at least overnight, changing out the water if you think about it. Give them another good rinse before you package them or fry them. I vacuum pack my fillets. I lay the fillets out on a bath towel, cover them with another towel and dry them as much as possible. Then I vac pack them. Works good for me, others may have different opinions.
If it isn't the dead of summer I will pull the plug on the live well and dump in some ice to cover them for the trip home.