# White Bass - Table Quality?



## BMTMirrOLure (Aug 17, 2013)

Advance apologies if this is the wrong forum for this question:

I'm taking my sons on a Sabine River White Bass trip soon, and it looks like we're gonna end up with a world-class mess of fish.

What's the collective opinion on these fish as table-fare? Do they freeze well if properly handled? How do they handle the deep fryer?

Thanks for any input!


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## danmanfish (Jun 17, 2010)

don't handle the freezer very well unless for short time. handle deep fryer in a tasty way.. 
if you have too many fillets feel free to share..  lol..


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## texcajun (Feb 22, 2009)

I freeze mine in water and serve them up in May and no one complains about them. I just put 100 fillets in the freezer this past Saturday. They are delicious. Some people will trim the red meat off their fillets and I have to admit, I used to do this as well. Now I just rinse them thoroughly with a high pressure nozzle on the garden hose till the water runs clear then bag 'em up with water and freeze.


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## BMTMirrOLure (Aug 17, 2013)

Thanks guys....am planning a Memorial Day fish fry, so sounds like I'll be OK as long as they are frozen properly.


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## hopn (Jul 5, 2012)

Agree with the deep fryer part. As far as freezing is concern, you need to freeze them WHOLE, do not filet and do not clean the outside of their natural oil. Cut the fins, lightly rinse dirt off. put in air sealed bags, done. The very skin that protects them from extreme colds will preserve them until a later time. At least, this is what my grandma/mom says.


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## Bankin' On It (Feb 14, 2013)

We fillet ours, cut the red off and use a vacuum sealer. I've thawed them out 2 months later with no issues. They taste great fried. My wife is now baking them too and they aren't that bad with some hot sauce. Heh.


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## A Draper (Aug 14, 2007)

Freeze in water and you will be fine in May. I have to admit though I don't freeze whitebass anymore. I keep fewer and fry them fresh.


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## Ditto (Apr 18, 2005)

I used to freeze in water. Now freeze with a vacuum sealer. Works just as well and takes up a lot less room. Easier to thaw too. I almost always have some frozen white bass in the freezer.


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## teamfirstcast (Aug 23, 2006)

Great fried! You can take the blood line out when you fillet them... make a v notch at the tail end and you can lift and pull it right out pulling toward the head end. Jane at River Ridge showed me that yrs ago.


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## csmcg (Jan 20, 2008)

I first trim all red meat and rinse fillets thoroughly. To me, taking the red meat out is key. I put approx. 20 filets in a 1 gal. Ziploc (the zipperlock type). Then add enough water to completely cover fillets and then purge all air out of the bag. Then I stack the bags flat in the freezer. I swear we have eaten them after almost a year and they are still good. We fried 100 fillets at our mid-june family reunion last year and everyone raved!

Oh, by the way, Zatarans Southern Extra Crispy will make ya look like a chef.


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## CarolinaPartimer (Mar 22, 2013)

We use Ziploc bags, careful to squeeze all the air bubbles and excess water out and seal the bag in a sink full of water. No air in the bag that way. 

Also, there was a tip here last year about soaking fillets in water or milk with about a capfull of Zatariain's Crab Boil concentrate mixed in, pouring it off and rinsing before coating and frying. That's my standard way of doing it now. (Thanks - whoever posted that!)


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## alldaylong (Mar 6, 2011)

Great fried. Have a friend that soaks them in milk to draw the blood out, seems to work. It doesn't take it all out but, a great deal of it comes out, rinses, seasons with Slap-Yo-Mama and look out tongue and stomach. Be careful not to let a piece get on your head. Your tongue will beat your ears up getting to it!!! :rotfl:


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## whsalum (Mar 4, 2013)

X2 on csmcg, I filet them and then filet the red meat that is left where the meat was against the scales. I then soak them repeatedly until the water is clear. The meat will be snow white when you get it right. I freeze mine in water and mix Zatterans with a little "Slap yo momma". I gotta be honest I commercial catfished for years and used to throw the whites back. My wife likes them almost as well as crappie now and that's saying something. The good thing about them is they are plentiful and you usually don't have to keep them in the freezer a long time.


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## Crusader (Jan 31, 2014)

teamfirstcast said:


> You can take the blood line out when you fillet them... make a v notch at the tail end and you can lift and pull it right out pulling toward the head end.


Neat trick... I'll have to try it. Thanks!


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## markbrumbaugh (Jul 13, 2010)

you kiddin' me?...isn't a better fish for a deep fryer. I use a vacuum sealer on filets and they are just as good 12 months later.


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## markbrumbaugh (Jul 13, 2010)

hopn said:


> Agree with the deep fryer part. As far as freezing is concern, you need to freeze them WHOLE, do not filet and do not clean the outside of their natural oil. Cut the fins, lightly rinse dirt off. put in air sealed bags, done. The very skin that protects them from extreme colds will preserve them until a later time. At least, this is what my grandma/mom says.


I am thinking that is a cultural thing, having great Vietnamese friends give me whole white bass before. Personally, saving the head and guts inside the frozen future fish fry is not for me. But, I am not saying not to try it...just that I won't and don't recommend it for the common *******.
I don't worry the red line either except for stripers.


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## whsalum (Mar 4, 2013)

You can get the blood line out by cutting the "V" but I still like to filet the thin red layer on the outside of the filet. It's very thin but to me makes all the difference in the world in the taste.


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## pYr8 (Apr 17, 2012)

Freezing in water (e.g. a block of ice) works well for about anything. It even preserves mammoths & the like  Lightly salted water if your freezer get's cold enough.

Vacuum sealed works for about a year to 16 months as far as I know, freezing in water works for an unknown time period, several years tested here.


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## sac-a-lait (Feb 19, 2009)

Throw them nasty things away and go catch you some crappie.


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## hopn (Jul 5, 2012)

sac-a-lait said:


> Throw them nasty things away and go catch you some crappie.


Where can we catch some crappies sac-a-lait? I would do it if I knew where. ;-)


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## whsalum (Mar 4, 2013)

I love crappie but you can throw them whites at me  I threw them back for years but never again


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## Yort69 (Jan 31, 2011)

This ! I do it exactly the same and have no issues at all with year old fillets...Cut the blood vein out when filleting them. Its nasty stuff !



csmcg said:


> I first trim all red meat and rinse fillets thoroughly. To me, taking the red meat out is key. I put approx. 20 filets in a 1 gal. Ziploc (the zipperlock type). Then add enough water to completely cover fillets and then purge all air out of the bag. Then I stack the bags flat in the freezer. I swear we have eaten them after almost a year and they are still good. We fried 100 fillets at our mid-june family reunion last year and everyone raved!
> 
> Oh, by the way, Zatarans Southern Extra Crispy will make ya look like a chef.


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## jamesgreeson (Jan 31, 2006)

hopn said:


> Agree with the deep fryer part. As far as freezing is concern, you need to freeze them WHOLE, do not filet and do not clean the outside of their natural oil. Cut the fins, lightly rinse dirt off. put in air sealed bags, done. The very skin that protects them from extreme colds will preserve them until a later time. At least, this is what my grandma/mom says.


It sounds right ,makes sense!


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