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Just when you thought...

Yes, there's a slight difference between the small population of past centuries taking the odd fish for food (or keeping a dedicated stock-pond) and proposing that todays 70(?) odd million take up the baton?

How about starting up The Anglers Cook-Book, Paul?

Otter, Duck, Cormorant etc.

Well, it's bleedin' sea-bird flavour, innit.
 
Paul Boote said:
... "our" fish were safe from Tarka, the Black Death and a host of foreign killers, I bring you Chub cerviche and Barbel fricassee...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2011/jan/17/freshwater-fish-fight?
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Don't forget that old Crabtree was into porking freshwater fish. Remember Patsy and his perch "one for the pot". And Crabbers seemed able to scoff pike, 7lb, soaked and salted. Can't recall if he carried it home, slung along the gaff handle or if he pouched it there and then on the bank, bit like the photo of the cormorant swallowing a pike. In the follow up book, Country Folk and Lore, the Crabtrees eat all sorts of things from the land - probably a hangover from the War days. Apparently, Patsy did a mean otter roast. The Otter had been trapped and shot by Tom. It would appear if it moved or breathed the Crabtrees were on to it. How things have changed.
 
"You would struggle to find any of the species above displayed on a fishmonger's slab in the UK these days"

Guess the author hasn't been to Bolton's Market! Tench are the pic of the crop closely followed by carp, but perch and pike have a decent following.

Roach, Rudd, Chub and Barbel are not considered 'valuable' - bream, however! Why would you want to eat one of those! Dreadfull.
 
So who's ever actually eaten freshwater fish then? The nearest I've ever come was when, in two rash moments of open-mindedness, I decided to try Vietnamese river Cobbler and Indian Kingfish(whatever that may be). Never again, on either count! Dreadful tasting they were, particularly the Kingfish, which for all the world looked like a lovely Swordfish or Marlin steak, but tasted hideous and stunk like a week old dead Bream.

And now, after watching Dispatches the other night, I shall be much more cautious about eating fish, and any seafood for that matter, farmed/produced in the far east. Some of the hygien, or lack of, as the case may be, was truely gobsmaking. Dogs walking round fish markets, eating scraps; flies everywhere; fish being frosted, and then defrosted repeatedly; injecting prawns with bulking agents.... the list goes on.

I can't imagine how disgusting some of our domestic freshwater species would taste, but after watching the above, and if I absolutely had to, then I'd go with the Tench Mornay.
 
If there was a war and rationing, or some environmental disaster that somehow had left fish still swimming and edible, I reckon I would be doing what Crabtree or Cherry & Peter or Jim once did: take a nice perch home for Patsy.
 
i don't see any problem in anyone eating what they want but i do if they get poached out or otherwise stolen, the tench in this market, i would like to know where they came from.
 
I tried pike 30 years ago and to be honest did not enjoy it. Soaked it in brine and cooked it wrapped in bacon but I wouldn't try it again. I think the author of the article is being irresponsible to say the least but was obviously courting controversy and has achieved his aim. His approach of buy a rod licence and off you go is going to get some poor soul in a world of trouble.
My main concern with people taking coarse, fish apart from the stock, issue is the water quality and potential for food poisoning. Most sewerage works only conduct a primary screening of solids so all sorts of micro organism and bugs go straight into the ater course. In the days of Mr. Crabtree that may not have been a problem but with the current population level of this spectred isle it certainly is.
 
Stuart Brookes said:
My main concern with people taking coarse, fish apart from the stock, issue is the water quality and potential for food poisoning. Most sewerage works only conduct a primary screening of solids so all sorts of micro organism and bugs go straight into the ater course. In the days of Mr. Crabtree that may not have been a problem but with the current population level of this spectred isle it certainly is.
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Now that's a concern I don't have. If people want to poach other peoples fish stocks and if they end up with a bit of Cyprinius' revenge then not such a bad thing in my book.
 
Haydn Clarke said:
So who's ever actually eaten freshwater fish then? The nearest I've ever come was when, in two rash moments of open-mindedness, I decided to try Vietnamese river Cobbler and Indian Kingfish(whatever that may be). Never again, on either count! Dreadful tasting they were, particularly the Kingfish, which for all the world looked like a lovely Swordfish or Marlin steak, but tasted hideous and stunk like a week old dead Bream.

And now, after watching Dispatches the other night, I shall be much more cautious about eating fish, and any seafood for that matter, farmed/produced in the far east. Some of the hygien, or lack of, as the case may be, was truely gobsmaking. Dogs walking round fish markets, eating scraps; flies everywhere; fish being frosted, and then defrosted repeatedly; injecting prawns with bulking agents.... the list goes on.

I can't imagine how disgusting some of our domestic freshwater species would taste, but after watching the above, and if I absolutely had to, then I'd go with the Tench Mornay.
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With the exception of Trout and Eel which I will very occasionally try , it was in my youth when I was keen on sampling my catch .

Roach , tried once, foul ,depite mums best efforts !
Perch , pretty tasty actually .
Gudgeon , eaten in France , again tasty , shallow fried .
Pike , not bad .
Eels , very nice .
Grayling , pleasant if delicate .
Chub , tried once , as with roach pretty revolting , and bones ....

Nowadays , too sentimental to kill many fish , although clearly less sentimental with trout and eels . With the eels I have resisted of late as they are in decline
 
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Mike Hodgkiss said:
With the exception of Trout and Eel which I will very occasionally try , it was in my youth when I was keen on sampling my catch .

Roach , tried once, foul ,depite mums best efforts !
Perch , pretty tasty actually .
Gudgeon , eaten in France , again tasty , shallow fried .
Pike , not bad .
Eels , very nice .
Grayling , pleasant if delicate .
Chub , tried once , as with roach pretty revolting , and bones ....

Nowadays , too sentimental to kill things , although clearly less sentimental with trout and eels . With the eels I have resisted of late as they are in decline
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And illegal since the law changes last year.:(

I was brought up in Wales and my grandmother owned a couple of miles of the river Rhue, consequently wild brown trout were often on the menu, lightly floured and fried in bacon fat they were delicious with a bit of brown bread and butter.
These days I tend to return everything other than the odd grayling, perch or trout which is accidentally deep hooked.
Perch is lovely though I've not had one for a couple of years.
 
Adrian Williams said:
And illegal since the law changes last year.:(

I was brought up in Wales and my grandmother owned a couple of miles of the river Rhue, consequently wild brown trout were often on the menu, lightly floured and fried in bacon fat they were delicious with a bit of brown bread and butter.
These days I tend to return everything other than the odd grayling, perch or trout which is accidentally deep hooked.
Perch is lovely though I've not had one for a couple of years.
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That wild brown trout sounds scrummy Adrian . Thanks for the information re the Eels ,I didn't know that .It was at least 3 years ago that I last ate an eel so hopefully I am safe from the long arm of the law :)
 
Tried Pike many years ago, too boney for me. Where I live out in Canada the place is famous for their St Lawrence Lancaster Perch which looks to be the same one as ours but doesn't grow as big (you think we have problems with cormorants). It is expensive in the restraunts and very popular.......tried it but it seemed a tad bland, evidently the sauce is the key. The majority of Canadians fish for the table and think I'm crackers fishing catch and release.

Best Regards
Dave
 
Tried Pike once, yuk! and full of bones.

I like grayling very much, better than trout in my book, but its years since I took one.
 
Had Pike in a French Restaurant many years ago, it was Ok...as a kid I used to take the odd fish home for the cat, and nothing better than wild brown trout to eat, marinade overnight and grill for breakfast, lovely.

But not at all interested in taking fish these days, I get my kicks seeing them swimming away, with hopefully minimal damage.
 
Back in my early teen years (c1975) a group of us got into eel fishing after the accidental capture of a 2lb'er. Now one of the lads mothers was from Hamburg and insisted we take some to her to cook. Well, I've got to say, they were delicious although very rich.

These days I prefer smoked fish/meat/cheese's , and like eels done this way.

There is a specialist smokery not too far away, although I've not had eel from there for 4/5 years. I wonder if they still do smoked eel for sale ?

Unfortunately no finished website :(

Also had Zander in Germany - It wasn't worth it (Then again German cuisine ain't really up to much) :D

As for other coarse fish - I don't see the point of going to all that trouble for what sounds like a very average meal.

If we need to think of making available alternative food sources then all alien species should head the list. I hear Grey Squirrel is very good and quite abundant .
 
Steve Cole said:
If we need to think of making available alternative food sources then all alien species should head the list. I hear Grey Squirrel is very good and quite abundant .
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You need a minimum of two and will spend more time pulling bones out of the buggers than you do eating them. I used to eat them years ago at a pub called the Mortimers Cross. We, the regulars, decided the only bit worth bothering with was the back legs and they were best if treated like chicken wings and deep fried in breadcrumbs.
 
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