# Bullheads



## rmest (May 6, 2011)

I have caught more bullheads in my life than I could ever possibly count. I have always thrown them back, because I was told when I was a kid that they were junk fish and not worth keeping. Since I have moved from out west and now live in Michigan, people here are telling me that they are wonderful table fair and are worth keeping. Have I been missing out on good eating all my life, or are they junk. Does anyone else eat these fish?


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

It largely depends on the water quailty, and size of the fish.

A smaller one from clean water will taste OK most of the time.

With "trash" fish such as that, I use them for bait or throw them on the bank for the buzzards rather than put them back and letting them breed


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

Bearfootfarm said:


> It largely depends on the water quailty, and size of the fish.
> 
> A smaller one from clean water will taste OK most of the time.
> 
> With "trash" fish such as that, I use them for bait or throw them on the bank for the buzzards rather than put them back and letting them breed


So according to you they are junk fish and not worth the time. So I was informed correctly when I was young, and these Michiganders are pulling my leg.


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## DENALI (Mar 25, 2008)

Nooooo! Dont throw them back! They are VERY good eating! I like them just as well as any of the catfish Varieties. Panfried with a flour/cream of wheat breading is my favorite!


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## oth47 (Jan 11, 2008)

I never met a fish I didn't like the taste of,maybe some people are picky.


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

DENALI said:


> Nooooo! Dont throw them back! They are VERY good eating! I like them just as well as any of the catfish Varieties. Panfried with a flour/cream of wheat breading is my favorite!


I guess one way to find out is try it for myself. I was told that they have a dark mud line that you have to cut out or it will have a strong taste. See, what is going to happen is, I will cook it, like it, then kick myself in the rear for throwing them back all my life.


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## brownegg (Jan 5, 2006)

They are excellent table fair...I simply filet and skin....then soak in milk for 12 hours in the fridge. You won't be disappointed. Yep, you've been throwin back good eating all your life!


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

The other evening I went out and fished a lake that I usually only ice fish in the winter. I caught 22 bullheads in about 4.5 hours, thats not counting the bluegill, crappie, yellow perch, and bowfins(the bowfins definitly go back). I threw all the bullheads back ranging from about 11 to 14 inches. They do fight good on light tackle. I probably should have kept a few to give it a try.


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## big rockpile (Feb 24, 2003)

If they weren't edible when I lived next to a little creek for years I would have done without.

I had a Guy freaking the other day because I was keeping Small Drum,truth I was going to use them for Bait but if they would have been Bigger I wouldn't have a problem eating them.Had a Guy freaking at the Conservation Department because I eat Turtle.

People are just way too picky anymore.

big rockpile


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

I love turtle. I have had snapping turtle a few times. I love frog legs also. I was just told as a kid that bullheads were muddy, and mushy, and to throw them back. So thats what I have always done. I am 34 now and have never eaten a bullhead.


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

Bearfootfarm said:


> It largely depends on the water quailty, and size of the fish.
> 
> A smaller one from clean water will taste OK most of the time.
> 
> With "trash" fish such as that, I use them for bait or throw them on the bank for the buzzards rather than put them back and letting them breed


Throwing them on the bank to rot has absolutely no impact on the population so there is no need to waste them or stink up the place.


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

I agree. It does not matter what kind of fish I catch. I never throw them on the bank to rot. If it is a fish I do not intend to eat, it goes back in the water.


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

> So according to you they are junk fish and not worth the time. So I was informed correctly when I was young, and these Michiganders are pulling my leg.


It all depends on what else is available.

They aren't my favorite freshwater fish, especially from the warmer waters we have here

From clean colder water such as in Michigan, they may taste better.

Try them and see if *YOU* like them, because that's what matters most


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

> I caught 22 bullheads in about 4.5 hours, thats not counting the bluegill, *crappie*, yellow perch, and *bowfins*(the bowfins definitly go back).


I'd eat the Crappie before anything else, and I've know people who love to eat Bowfins, but like you, I dont even consider them


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

Yes I love the crappies. They are not my favorite though. I guess it differs from person to person, but my particular favorite is a nice platter of deep fried bluegill. I do not do the scaling and gutting. If they are not big enough to fillet I don't mess with then. After that it would have to be perch, and walleye.


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## Murray in ME (May 10, 2002)

As others have mentioned, how good they taste probably depends a lot on the local waters. Here, they're delicious.


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

> As others have mentioned, how good they taste probably depends a lot on the *local waters*. Here, they're delicious


Down here they just taste "muddy".
Channel Cats taste a little better since they tend to eat more fish


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

There's a lot of fish prejudice out there that has nothing to do with taste.

My favorite fish is deep fried breaded crappie taken in the winter. I've eaten heaping platefuls.

In winter fish put more oil in their cell walls. That's why they seem firmer when taken from cold water.


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## Esteban29304 (Apr 29, 2003)

I have eaten 1000's of Catfish, all species, in my life. I always skin them. I have caught some from a couple of different places that were NOT good ! It is all their environment . 
The best bait I have ever used for catching Southern river cats,, was Helgramites. Once, I caught 12 on one helgramite & the last one swallowed the hook. When I cleaned him a couple of hours later, the bait was still alive !


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

A friend of mine who grew up in IA said they never skinned their bullheads before cooking. Just gut, cut the head off and snip the fins.

I know a place that's got 16" bullheads. I need to get over there some evening and catch a bunch for trapping lure.


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## TraderBob (Oct 21, 2010)

I love bullheads. My old man and I would purposely set out to catch them.
We've smoked a lot of bullhead, besides pan frying them...mmm.


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## whatrset (Apr 13, 2010)

Bullheads are very good eating. Especially if taken in streams that support channel cat (moving water). Also, the bowfin iss a good meal too. Just fix it up like gar. MMMmmmm


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## ||Downhome|| (Jan 12, 2009)

Never ate a bullhead though most I catch are small 4-5" tops. There are a few catfish variants here, 

black bullhead
yellow bullhead
brown bullhead
channel catfish
stonecat
madtom
margined madtom
brindled madtom
northern madtom (En)
flathead catfish 

I've only caught a few flatheads in my life, mostly channel cats and black and yellow bullheads. I know a lot of folks that swear that bullheads are the best eating. like i said though most I catch are itty bitty, If I cant fillet it , I don't mess with it. prefer my channel cats legal(12") to 18-20" tops. though most times I don't catch them to much bigger then that.

bullheads are catfish so if I did keep them I'd treat them the same. its advisable to not eat the bellies. unless your sure of how clean the water is. most running water has some kind of contamination and even the lakes. 

as has been said by others, water quality is important. I don't care what species of fish it is. not all our water runs clear and cold. I often hear of a mud vein there really isn't one. there is a vein in the mid section of the fillet , I pull it out not appetizing to find when eating. you can improve the flavor of fish from muddy water in a couple ways, purge in clean,clear water for a few days,or soak in salt water over night or salt water and milk mix. rinse a few time before cooking. what ever you do always get your fish taken care of as soon as possible is the best thing for flavor. mine are still kicking when I come home, if it had been a long night sometimes I put them in a garbage can filled with water (oxygenate it as I fill.), to keep them alive till after I got some sleep.they can go a full 24 ours most times.

as far as leaving them on the bank I suppose it depends on how many you leave.
lots of folks here leave certain species on the bank. they don't rot though just easy meals for those that live along the river. never seen one last over night. 
I know the logic your using fish, but its still a limit on population.

people have been using gobys for bait here, there are sections of river that are teaming in the spring by mid summer hardly one to be had.its not just the anglers though the predators impact those that don't get caught for bait. everythings learned to eat them as they have supplanted the native bait fish.


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## big rockpile (Feb 24, 2003)

Around here Conservation Department stock Musky.There is Clubs that just go catch and release Musky.But on the other hand there is several if they catch one they will cut the Head off and throw it back.

Me I don't waste any Fish or Animal.

big rockpile


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## moocow (Jan 6, 2010)

Eat the heck ot of those bullhead! They taste just like channel cat to me and are very good. If I can catch it I will eat it if it is big enough. I ate that drum I caught the other day if was very good also, it tastes like a cross between bass and channel cat to me.


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## Cabin Fever (May 10, 2002)

Most people who live south of Minnesota enjoy bullheads.

When I fix bullhead, I nail the head to a board and then rip the skin off with a pliers. Lastly, I remove the bullhead from the board and eat the board.


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## blynn (Oct 16, 2006)

My grandmother's favorite fish was bullhead. I am told they are very hard to clean. My dad said you'd have to nail the head to a tree to clean them. I didn't quite follow. My grandmother was in her 30's during the great depression and one thing she never did was waste food, so I don't know if she just learned to love them or if they really are a treat. Have never tried them myself.


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

> My dad said you'd have to nail the head to a tree to clean them.
> I didn't quite follow.


You nail the head to something, and cut through the skin behind it, all around the fish

Then grab the skin with some pliers and you can pull it right off like peeling off a sock


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## springvalley (Jun 23, 2009)

When I was younger bullheads was the fish of choice, we had them in our creek. And they would get large here, some 12in. or better. My Dad could skin them in no time because he liked them so well. We use to set bank poles out and go back and haul in the fish, was easy fishin back then. Now we don`t have a single fish in the creek anymore, to many chemicals I think. Use to get crayfish out of the drainage ditches also, but havn`t been any in them for years either. > Thanks Marc


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

Does anyone leave the skin on?


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

fishhead said:


> Does anyone leave the skin on?


That was my stepmother's way of preparing them but she also would only deep-fry them. 

There's a bullhead story which I must share with you members. I once went out to Albert Lea, MN for a weekend visit with a cousin. We decided to go fishing bullheads. There were a choice of lakes and the local ones were such that you could land a bullhead every 2 or 3 minutes but a 10-inch one would be the exception. But, cousin knew of one obscure lake where there might be a 15-minute wait between bites but also nothing smaller than 15". You don't have to guess which lake I opted for! Cast out as far as the reel would allow and then watch the line go down into the depths until it looked like one were fishing just a few feet off shore. Probably 7 or 8 hours of fishing resulted in only about 25 fish but they were the biggest black bullheads that I had ever seen before or since. Don't know what MN has for permits now but I'm probably one of very few people who ever bought a 3-day non-resident license just to fish bullheads for one night!

Martin


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

Those were big for black bullheads. Usually it's the yellow bullheads that get large.


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## Ray (Dec 5, 2002)

there are several ponds around here that have the bull head. they never get very large because of kind and environment, but a couple of the old timers seine the ponds with nets in the fall and have a great fish fry with the 6 to 8 inch yellow belly bull heads, and I have never seen anyone back away from the table. Of coarse there are many better tasting fish, but here you eat whats on the table or you don't eat and with all the other fixins they are fine eatin. I don't know anyone that goes fishing for them, but I don't know anyone that will walk away from them fixed either. just sayin


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

fishhead said:


> Those were big for black bullheads. Usually it's the yellow bullheads that get large.


They were definitely blacks in that small but deep lake. Reason for large size was apparently due to small numbers. It may even have been stocked or unable to support a large breeding population. I just know that they were really fun to catch. 

Martin


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

Bearfootfarm said:


> You nail the head to something, and cut through the skin behind it, all around the fish
> 
> Then grab the skin with some pliers and you can pull it right off like peeling off a sock


I fillet all my fish. It is so much faster. On a catfish I simply cut right behind the dorsal fin to aviod the big bone that it is connected to. Twist my knife and cut down to the tail. Then I flip the fillet over so the meat side is up, and slid my knife between th meat and skin and take the skin off. Flip fish and repeat. It seem like you are wasting a lot of meat, but really your not because the fish is nothind but bone from the dorsal fin to the head. Some belly meat is wasted but I don't want that anyways. So really on a 14 inch fish your getting about a 7 inch fillet off of each side.


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

fishhead said:


> Those were big for black bullheads. Usually it's the yellow bullheads that get large.


Here in Michigan, brown bullheads are by far the most common, and the largest. There are some yellows but they are relatively small. Have never even seen a black bullhead here.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

fishhead said:


> Those were big for black bullheads. Usually it's the yellow bullheads that get large.


Did a little more checking and the blacks are the most common in southern Minnesota lakes and like bottoms with sand and gravel. That's exactly what was in that particular lake. I was well aware of all 3 main varieties so I knew what we were catching. They are the overall smallest of the 3 but also turns out that the biggest on record in both states were blacks. 

Record for black in MN: 3-13 (WI 5-8) 
Record for brown in MN: 3-1 (WI 3-12) 
Record for yellow: 3-10 (WI 3-5)

Martin


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

I stand corrected.


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

Ate my first bullheads Sunday night. I can tell you that I have in fact been throwing back good eating my whole life. They were excellent. I found them to be quite firm. more so than channels even. Just rolled in seasoned corn meal and pan fried in oil until golden brown. Perfection. They were not muddy, or mushy at all. I will not be throwing them back from here on out. In fact I will spend a little more energy actually targeting them, instead of just catching them while after other fish.


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

If you can use set lines you can just about count on a bullhead on every hook in the morning.


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

fishhead said:


> If you can use set lines you can just about count on a bullhead on every hook in the morning.


I am not sure if set lines are legal here. I will have to look into it and find out.


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## whatrset (Apr 13, 2010)

not sure about there, but here. Chicken liver kills the channel cat, but beef liver is the ticket for wholesale bullhead slaughter


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

I just checked the DNR site. Setlines are illegal here. To bad, it would have been nice to be able to set one and see what happens.


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## ||Downhome|| (Jan 12, 2009)

rmest said:


> I am not sure if set lines are legal here. I will have to look into it and find out.


they are not. pole only.


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

At least I can use more than one pole.


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## rmest (May 6, 2011)

||Downhome|| said:


> they are not. pole only.


Yeah, I got that.
Thanks


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

rmest said:


> I just checked the DNR site. Setlines are illegal here. To bad, it would have been nice to be able to set one and see what happens.


But then you'd miss all the fun of catching them, especially at night when dealing with a black fish in the darkness! With few exceptions, bullheads were often just annoying incidental annoying catches when after channel catfish in still shallow water. It took a few years for me to catch on as to how to beat them rather than have them nibbling on big bait. I'd chop up a few nightcrawlers and toss them out into 2 or 3 feet of water. Then bait a throw line with a nightcrawler head and attached to a bush. When the bush began shaking, there was a bullhead on the line! Baited area had to be off to the side where landing the bullheads didn't interfere with the rods which were in front where the lantern lit it up. Worked great and for several years even had a Spitz dog that would patiently watch that line just to be part of the excitement. (She'd also try to catch spawning carp but that's for another story.) 

Martin


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## backwoodsman (Jan 21, 2010)

I dress bullheads every day off our throw lines and set lines. If the water quality is really bad I doubt anything besides them and maybe carp would be present. I dressed about 10 today. We prefer them about 8"+. smaller ones we either toss abck or use as live bait for flathead fishing. They are prolific breeders and we have a few in our biggest pond although I advise most to not stock them. We fish them heavy i nit and remove alot for live bait or to eat. Dressed like a channel or we have filleted big ones, a soak i nsalt water for at least a few hours, breaded lightly and fried=good eating. You can also fillet them off, soak the fillets in salt water. Boil the fillets lightly and serve either warm or cooled with a cocktail sauce. They werent pulling your leg, they are good eating. We eat at least one meal a week this time of year of bullheads. Great fish for kids to chase too(one of the reasons we keep them in the ponds).


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