White bass/white perch fillets. Why the hate!?

[Jigginforjumbos]

My first post on ice shanty! Love this site for info. Anyways, Where I ice fish I have the variety of panfish all around. I love eating them all fried majority of the time with family fish frys. I like to trick some of the kids and women n tell them they're eating blue gill meat and they can't believe that it tastes so good lol. But anyways. Why do white bass get all the flack of not tasting as good as jumbo yellows or crappies. In my opinion I love a big white bass fillet, even more than crappies.  Nice n thick, and doesn't fall apart as easy when being thawed from frozen. And if you can find the schools of them, your in for one Hell of a fun day. What are your guys thoughts?

[fishermantim]

White perch will give you more meat than sunfish or yellow perch.
And I agree, they are a flaky white meat fish that taste awesome!

[GCD]

If cleaned and cooked properly, they're excellent.

I prefer to remove the lateral line on all temperate bass for a milder taste that's hard to distinguish between other white meat fish.

[Jigginforjumbos]

Agreed. I started doing that last year on the larger fish. Just like do with striper. I fry mine with a milk and egg batter mixer and original "uncle bucks" breading from bass pro. Tried beer batter, think it makes the fish have a saltier taste.

[bee]

With White Perch I have learned that if after you fillet them you only keep the meat above the lateral line it is much sweeter. The gamey taste goes away.

[Kevin23]

People dont know how to clean them, then say they taste terrible. You have to get rid of the red/brown.

[maddogg]

White bass and white perch are two different fish are they not?

[GCD]

White bass and white perch are two different fish are they not?

Two different fish, but both are Temperate Bass just like Saltwater Striped Bass. They're all cousins Saltwater Striped Bass, White Bass, White Perch, Yellow Bass, and the Hybrid Wipers and Sunshine Bass.

[Dean Nelson]

Like said you have to cut out any of the red meat down along the lateral line. Problem with them is more of a summer thing as the red meat gets to be so much that you have little left after you cut it away.

[BLUJBURD]

Maybe out of context but would cutting the gills and letting them bleed out help any?

[rags]

We eat all the white bass we catch , just filet like I would other fish and I don't bother removing the dark meat

[Jigginforjumbos]

Maybe out of context but would cutting the gills and letting them bleed out help any?

Haven't tried. I honestly don't think they're overly gamey

[matzilla]

bleeding them right before filleting the fish does help a bit

[Kevin23]

bleeding them right before filleting the fish does help a bit

I bleed the whites i catch on ice. Matt, you have probably seen the blood spots at the breaks lol

It takes the pinkness out of the meat, but the red/brown meat is still there.

[quack]

I love white bass. I first got into them on the maumee river fishing the spring walleye and white bass runs. It was great because all the crowds leave as soon as the temps warm and the walleye thin out , but the white bass action is much more aggressive and fast paced! But out on lake Erie me and my buddies just filet them up and cook them on the ice while everyone else complains that there's only white bass and no walleye around.

[Jigginforjumbos]

I'd love it up there then lol I just love a bite. Doesn't matter what I'm catching. Whites put up a nice fight to stay interested.

[perchnut]

We used to smoke white bass.  Excellent.  Catch some white perch in the tidal rivers around here and they taste very good filleted

[slipperybob]

I eat all the white bass I catch, but getting rid of that mud meat makes a lot of taste difference.  People who don't know the meat difference aren't the same as people who knows the difference.

[AST]

Love to catch the little buggers. They put up a good fight on light tackle. My favorite way to eat them is to take them off the hook, quickly place back in the river, and have a Mickey D's filet o fish on the way home. By far the best recipe I have tried, and I tried em all!!

[WarBonnett]

   I've caught white bass when we lived in CA. and they tasted smiler to white perch.  That was the only time to try them, but here in Maine, give white over yellow, the yellows run much smaller and have worms, but they are fun to catch on light tackle !                         WB           

[UFCreel]

I fillet my white bass with my electric knife. I cut from the head down and then back right through the rib bones. Leave the fillet attached right at the tail, then flip it over and remove the fillet from the skin. From that point on I just cut out the back straps. Now we are talking some fine eats.

[perch chacer]

White Perch are good eating but many people confuse them with the Silver Bass which we have here in WNY, they have a very oily meat.