cooking drum and redfish

[retiredmgn]

I guess I should keep reading the posts before posting...

Sorry for the repetition

I'm in the same boat. Takes me so damm long to type, 13 people have already responded by the time I hit <enter>.

 

[Bird]

I've probably actually used more sheepshead than any other fish for blackened fish because dad & I both liked to fish for them. As for the recipe posted above (and it's correct), I think you must use a cast iron skillet, and I always melted some butter so I could just lay a fillet in it, then turn the fillet so both sides got buttered before I applied the blackened redfish magic and put it into a very hot cast iron skillet. I always did it on an LPG burner outdoors. The first time I ever heard of blackened redfish was when my mother told me about it many years ago and I thought that just couldn't be right; that burned fish couldn't be good.:laughing: Boy, was I wrong!

 

[schoolsout]

I don't do blackened much for the simple reason of going outdoors, although we have a few burners always hooked up downstairs under the house.

Easiest is to just coat filets in olive oil, sprinkle on seasonings of choice (I still use Prudhomme's stuff for this) and cook a few mins on each side until flaky.

 

[retiredmgn]

I've probably actually used more sheepshead than any other fish for blackened fish because dad & I both liked to fish for them. As for the recipe posted above (and it's correct), I think you must use a cast iron skillet, and I always melted some butter so I could just lay a fillet in it, then turn the fillet so both sides got buttered before I applied the blackened redfish magic and put it into a very hot cast iron skillet. I always did it on an LPG burner outdoors. The first time I ever heard of blackened redfish was when my mother told me about it many years ago and I thought that just couldn't be right; that burned fish couldn't be good.:laughing: Boy, was I wrong!

Not aware of Sheepshead. Nothing in Maine I'm aware of by that name. Is that a flatfish?
Cast Iron skillet all the way!

"Here son, eat this burned fish, it will put hair on your chest".

 

[schoolsout]

Sheepshead are in southern coastal waters...they like to eat barnacles, fiddler crabs and things like that. Usually hang around pilings/structure.

During the winter months here, they go offshore to some of the shallower reefs. Fun fishing if you can get out there on a calm day.

 

[Bird]

Not aware of Sheepshead. Nothing in Maine I'm aware of by that name. Is that a flatfish?
Cast Iron skillet all the way!

"Here son, eat this burned fish, it will put hair on your chest".

Nelson, not too many years ago, there were no restrictions in Texas at all on fishing for sheepshead. Not many people wanted them because they have very big bones and head, tough scales and skin, and a black lining in the abdominal cavity. So the percentage of live weight that you get with the fillets is less than most fish. However, I think anyone would be hard pressed to distinguish a sheepshead fillet from a redfish fillet by taste alone. So, as some of the other species became more scarce, more and more people started fishing for sheepshead and then the state made them a game fish and gradually started tightening the restrictions. So now, it's a bag limit of 5 and minimum length of 15" in Texas, and you'd be very lucky to get your limit, where Dad & I used to go catch 10 to 20 in the morning, fillet them, eat lunch, and go back and do it again in the afternoon. The last time I went to Port Aransas was January, 2009, and the minimum length limit at that time was 13", so the picture is some my 2 brothers and I caught one day. We caught quite a few that were an inch or two too short and had to throw them back.

 

[schoolsout]

In SC, we are allowed to shrimp over bait for 2 months out the year...

Long story short, we are heading shrimp off our dock (popping heads off) and tossing remains in the water. We hear a porpoise (dolphin) coming our way, up the dock line near channel. It comes under our dock (about 5' deep or so) and splashes around. We see him heading to the middle of the ICW and his head pops up with about a 5lb sheepshead in it. He tossed it up in the air a few times playing with it and disappeared. Pretty cool sight.

Porpoises terrorize the redfish in the winter time, too, when the water gets really cold. Almost killer whaleesque

 

[Bird]

At Port Aransas, I've seen porpoises come up and throw flounders that way; don't recall seeing them with any other fish, though it's a sure bet they do play with other species of fish, too.

And speaking of the shrimping, one time when I was down at Port Aransas, before the restrictions on sheepshead, one of the shrimp boats came in and the guy knew my dad and knew we liked the sheepshead, so he gave us a washtub full of sheepshead they'd caught in the shrimp nets. Dad & I sure had a lot of filleting to do.:laughing:

Incidentally, the sheepshead can be a rather bloody fish, too, so we always cut their throats a few minutes before filleting to let them bleed out as you would do with hogs and steers.

 

[Western]

I've had Red Snapper "Blackened" and it was excellent, Beliners too. Of course I just like the Red Snapper cooked just about any kinda way.
Wish they wouldn't have changed the limit on the Texas coast, or I'd keep going down each Spring. 5 hr drive for 2 fish is extreme for me, when I can go after Striper, Sand bass or their Hybrids here in our local lakes.

This photo is last Thursday's "shopping" trip, caught quite a few SandBass, but only need a few for the skillet.

Bigger one is the Hybrid striped bass thew smaller 14-16" fish are the Sand Bass.

 

[schoolsout]

We can't even keep any Red Snapper here any longer...None..nada...zilch