# Sheepshead to eat or not???



## Railslinger

Anyone have any good ways to cook the Sheepsheads??


----------



## Bocephus

I have a friend that leaves them whole, cuts off the head guts & scales them. He cuts a few slits along the sides into the filets, like you would when baking a flounder. Then he covers it in Kraft bar-b-que sauce wraps it in foil and bakes them for a couple of hours at 350 degrees.

He swears they are delicious that way...but I've never tried it.


----------



## Treble J

Great fried.


----------



## Aggie Chris

EAT! They are awesome.

Agree with the cooking whole. The bones are big and easy to pick the meat from.


----------



## C.Hern5972

Cut the head off, gut and scale clean. Cut slits in fish 

Wrap in a cheese cloth and tie up
Drop in a pot of boiling crab boil
Cook until tender done. Very good. Taste like crab meat


----------



## Cody C

They are a white flaky meat. When I was in hs we shot a ton of them. Just fillet them, put them in a 'boat' on the grill with some lemon juice and seasoning. 

They aren't much different than filleting a snapper


Cody C


----------



## Muddskipper

We eat the heck out of them!

Their fillets are beutiful, but there are a few tricks ..
1- dont keep barley keepers, we like em when they get about 17" and up
2- cut a gill and let them bleed out in the box
3- when filleting them, try not to cut the internals open, it makes a mess, and I believe it makes the meat taste off, but it's not a big deal

The fillets I get are great, there is a technique to filleting them, but you need to do a few to get a feel for it ....

BTW
I used to work for a resturant that sold them and called them bay snapper .... and the fillet looked like a snapper too!!!


----------



## steverino

*Sheepshead*

They have large bones, not a lot of bones, and white flaky meat. I've cleaned more than I care to mention. They can be filleted but not with a fillet knife. I use a carbon steel knife or a heavy serrated blade knife. The real secret is to scrub out all of the black lining in the body cavity with your thumb and once you do they will not taste muddy. My fishing buddies use to turn their nose up when they caught them and I just said give them to me. Kind of like trigger and angelfish!!! Waste not, want not!!!


----------



## Captain Dave

From Ceveeche to Halfshell, to Herbsaint to poor mans lobstah to whole creole style etc. Their diet of crabs n barnacles helps produce this unique flavor of Feech.

Sheeps have it all. tender white . I filet em with a sturdy but flexible serrated knife from the tail and they have an inset to stick the knife in just below the dorsal fin. .


----------



## mrs puddle shuttle

Next to spanish mackerel...my favorite fish!


----------



## bender

the meat on a big one around the shoulder is just like lobster. Great fish!


----------



## spurgersalty

As everyone else has said, EAT IT!! Far better than trout and flounder IMO.


----------



## Brady Bunch

I make mine into a scrimp and sheepshead poeboy with tabasco mayo sauce.....DELISH!!


----------



## bubbas kenner

I cleaned 4 of them today made a good bag of fillets,they taste just fine just a lil more trouble to clean.Posted a report.


----------



## mas360

I gave up on scaling Sheepshead and simply threw them on the grill for 15 minutes on each side. The scale and skin then easily came out. I peeled the meat off of the skin and made great tacos with it.


----------



## RLwhaler

Eat it!! I actually preferred sheep heads over trout! solid,white,firm meat.Deep fried it.Run to a Vietnamese restaurant and order ya some already mixed lightly spicy fish sauce,put together some lettuce and mints,rolled the fish in lettuce,dip in fish sauce...and you gotcha a fish spring roll!!:whiteshee


----------



## cloudy

Thanks 2coolers great info


----------



## DrummerBoy471

I speared a bunch of them suckers off shore last year and took it home and fried it all. Its up on my list of best fried fish. 

Sent from my XT907 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## kunder3006

rough on knife but taste great


----------



## kneekap

Yeah, they are bit difficult to filet because of their deep body.
Great tasting fish alright. Sometimes I use to make fish/potato pancakes.

Mix chopped up meat with grated potato and egg, spices.
Fry'em up.


----------



## Southern Solutions

Caught about 6-10 the other day while using shirmp under a popping cork. They kept getting to it before the trout could. We did manage 20 trout though.

Anyways they were all around 20"s, I will keep them and try it next time fo sho..


----------



## oc48

this right here. cook 'em on the half shell or skin and fry them up!


----------



## Fishin' Soldier

Abaoluty amazing fish to eat. Shoot a bunch bowfishong and they are lovely.


----------



## spurgersalty

.


----------



## Fishin' Soldier

spurgersalty said:


> .


Oh yeah?

Sent from my MB886 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## bubbas kenner

spurgersalty said:


> .


On the halfshell paprika lemon butter.Bay snapper for sure cleaned one today for a friend.


----------



## spurgersalty

Fishin' Soldier said:


> Oh yeah?
> 
> Sent from my MB886 using Tapatalk 2





bubbas kenner said:


> On the halfshell paprika lemon butter.Bay snapper for sure cleaned one today for a friend.


I needed to bring it up to the top to find it on my phone browser to text a link to a biddy of mine. 
Poor guy threw back probably 6 or more sheepies not knowing just how good they werehwell:
Now, QUIT BUSTING MY BALLS!!!!

Editaprika huh Bubba? Kind of a strong herb IMO. I'll try it though.
Â©


----------



## Fishin' Soldier

spurgersalty said:


> I needed to bring it up to the top to find it on my phone browser to text a link to a biddy of mine.
> Poor guy threw back probably 6 or more sheepies not knowing just how good they werehwell:
> Now, QUIT BUSTING MY BALLS!!!!
> 
> Editaprika huh Bubba? Kind of a strong herb IMO. I'll try it though.
> Â©


Haha OK. I will...

I do like a "sprinkle" of paprika on lots of things. Especially on the grill.

Sent from my MB886 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## bubbas kenner

spurgersalty said:


> I needed to bring it up to the top to find it on my phone browser to text a link to a biddy of mine.
> Poor guy threw back probably 6 or more sheepies not knowing just how good they werehwell:
> Now, QUIT BUSTING MY BALLS!!!!
> 
> Editaprika huh Bubba? Kind of a strong herb IMO. I'll try it though.
> Â©


Ok sorry bro just bored.Be well lets fish sometime.


----------



## spurgersalty

Fishin' Soldier said:


> Haha OK. I will...
> 
> I do like a "sprinkle" of paprika on lots of things. Especially on the grill.
> 
> Sent from my MB886 using Tapatalk 2


Really?? If I didn't have a XXs in hand I'd head inside and do another taste test. 
I have used a VERY light sprinkle of ground mustard seed with good results from guest.



bubbas kenner said:


> Ok sorry bro just bored.Be well lets fish sometime.


Have a few weekends to spend with the kiddo and warden and may hit you up for a guide on boat for east bay or trinity Reuben.
BTW, its Jason
Oh, anybody tried sheepies for nigiri sushi?
Â©


----------



## Fishin' Soldier

spurgersalty said:


> Really?? If I didn't have a XXs in hand I'd head inside and do another taste test.
> I have used a VERY light sprinkle of ground mustard seed with good results from guest.
> 
> Have a few weekends to spend with the kiddo and warden and may hit you up for a guide on boat for east bay or trinity Reuben.
> BTW, its Jason
> Oh, anybody tried sheepies for nigiri sushi?
> Â©


Are we all drinking beer and hungry?

I like light mustard seed as well. Mustard is a strong and unique flavor. Works well with certain foods.

Sent from my MB886 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## spurgersalty

Fishin' Soldier said:


> Are we all drinking beer and hungry?
> 
> I like light mustard seed as well. Mustard is a strong and unique flavor. Works well with certain foods.
> 
> Sent from my MB886 using Tapatalk 2


I finished off a ling ceviche about 4 and the lil' lady cooked a hand made pasta and homemade sausage dish and I'm full. But!!!! I'm always thinking about new dishes
I've half a notion to try a bit of dill with the next "darker" fish I keep and try. Maybe redfish???.....hmmmm.

Â©


----------



## Fishin' Soldier

spurgersalty said:


> I finished off a ling ceviche about 4 and the lil' lady cooked a hand made pasta and homemade sausage dish and I'm full. But!!!! I'm always thinking about new dishes
> I've half a notion to try a bit of dill with the next "darker" fish I keep and try. Maybe redfish???.....hmmmm.
> 
> Â©


My blackened drum I ate earlier had a sprinkle of dill and other spices. Ate earlier as well. I'm always thinking about eating though. Hmm. May explain the 30# weight gain in 5 years after leaving the army.

Sent from my MB886 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## tspitzer

I have wanted to try this--a man at POC told me to scale and cut the heads off and gut--place in a WET Towel and cook in a micro way-one that your are not going to use again!! peel of the skin and pick the meat out and use in anything you would use crab in--just never have a extra micro way when we go fishing--


----------

