what do you do with bluegills?

[addicted to ice fishing]

Bluegill have a sweet tasting meat unlike any other fish and are delicious.

I prefer my smaller fish fried up whole, I grew up eating fish like this with my family.

These were 9" Crappie, but the same thing could happen to a 6" Bluegill.
(Image removed from quote.)

... and this is what they look like when I'm finished
(Image removed from quote.)

Notice that the tail and fins have been gnawed on, this is why I cook these fish like this. The tails and fins are very crispy and are kind of like fried fish flavored pototato chips.

My wife won't eat fish like this... so that means all the more for ME!!!

I grew up that way too.  Scaled all the panfish, never filleted them.  Kept them whole, or split them, and fried them up.

[ICE WANDERER]

Bluegill have a sweet tasting meat unlike any other fish and are delicious.

I prefer my smaller fish fried up whole, I grew up eating fish like this with my family.

These were 9" Crappie, but the same thing could happen to a 6" Bluegill.
(Image removed from quote.)

... and this is what they look like when I'm finished
(Image removed from quote.)

Notice that the tail and fins have been gnawed on, this is why I cook these fish like this. The tails and fins are very crispy and are kind of like fried fish flavored pototato chips.

My wife won't eat fish like this... so that means all the more for ME!!!

                           Is that Tartar sauce & Cocktail sauce on youe plate? Looks yummy!

[openingact]

Bait? In my belly is the only place they go. My wife had skin on fish so I'm stuck filleting everyting out. As long as there's going to be more fish than breading, it goes into the pan.

[fishlessman]

Just curious... Do you just Catch and release, eat them or keep 'em for bait? Have grown up in New England nobody I know targets them.

same here, nobody i know in newengland targets them except the kids in the summer. dont use them for bait in mass, its not a legal baitfish. except for vermont pretty much no one tergets the yellow perch either, white perch and crappie is good though

[jbird68]

I don't catch a lot of 8" hills on the local lake. Stop I will keep what I feel like would be big enough to eat. But sometimes they end up being a potato chip. I'm lucky if they are 7" sometimes. There are so many gills because the muskie need something to eat. So I don't feel too bad keeping some smallish ones.

[john t.]

[quote ]
How long and how heavy were those 2 gills  the one on the right looks huge
[/quote]
left one was 11" the one on the right was 12"

[harpenter]

If they're big enough, eat them for sure.  Gills are great to eat, and they put up a great fight for their size.

[NatefishNY]

Same here... Some times they get filleted on the ice and eaten before noon...

x2

[squ1rr31_]

I have been eating bluegills since before I could walk, those and crappie I have to say are my fav type of table fare. We usually keep anything above about 5", its pretty amazing how small a fish you can filet and still get quite a bit of meat. Most of the ponds we fish have an abundance of these angry little boogers so I'll help out the population as much as I can by putting them in my face hole.

[Rebelss]

Eat 'em like candy. Fish poppers.

[falconcg]

Any links or videos on how to filet or prepare them?

[BLUJBURD]

I tend to bathe them in beer overnight on occasion then bread and pan fry

[stripernut]

I live in New England and have kept some nice blue gill for the pan in the winter and have not bothered since... To many other better tasting, easier cleaning, bigger fillet fish to go after... They just get in my way, if I am using a small jig. I have gotten a number of nice size ones on a small Chubby Darter. If any one is in my neck of the woods, and want to take the time to chase gills, please feel free to contact me and I will put to on all you want...

[openingact]

I live in New England and have kept some nice blue gill for the pan in the winter and have not bothered since... To many other better tasting, easier cleaning, bigger fillet fish to go after... They just get in my way, if I am using a small jig. I have gotten a number of nice size ones on a small Chubby Darter. If any one is in my neck of the woods, and want to take the time to chase gills, please feel free to contact me and I will put to on all you want...

Better tasting?!?! Some of the most mild, best tasting fish out there. Especially taken out of cold water.....mmmmmm..... getting hungry just thinking about it.

Easier fish out there to clean, yea, but after doing it for so long now, it's pretty much like riding a bike.

[ryanmolnar55]

Any links or videos on how to filet or prepare them?

 

[panfisherman]

Hoard em away and not share them anyone.

[Fontona19]

I eat the heck out of em. 

Gills are awesome. Some of the best tasting fish in my opinion.

[GCD]

                           Is that Tartar sauce & Cocktail sauce on youe plate? Looks yummy!

It's cocktail sauce and leftover tater salad scraps.

[Wingthing]

Eat them through the ice! I had never targeted them until a few yrs ago when one day I ran into a school of hogs and decided to keep some for the table. They also add to the table fare when the Crappie turn off,

[falconcg]

Really like the second link.

Thanks.

[shake]

I have been eating bluegills since before I could walk, those and crappie I have to say are my fav type of table fare. We usually keep anything above about 5", its pretty amazing how small a fish you can filet and still get quite a bit of meat. Most of the ponds we fish have an abundance of these angry little boogers so I'll help out the population as much as I can by putting them in my face hole.

X2...the lake I normally fish is loaded with stunted gills...I eat more gills than anything else.

[da man cave shack]

EAT them if they are big enough to take the time to filet them.

[princecraft]

Are you serious??? I eats em.  Some of the best eating fish around.

[blue mule]

Just curious... Do you just Catch and release, eat them or keep 'em for bait? Have grown up in New England nobody I know targets them.

all of the above. if they're big enough, through the ice, they're the best eating there is. summertime they make great flathead bait. the big ones i've got lately get eat, the guts and little ones are coon and mink bait. lots of folks around here, that's all they fish for.

[Invader440]

Nothing like a stringer of bluegills for a fish fry.  This was 2 of us fishing a local lake earlier in the year. 

[MNcrappiecontrol]

Any tips on cleaning them I always have trouble on gills

[Icefisher40]

Fillet and eat!

[kl3377]

It is funny but I do not know any people that target Gills in NH.  I usually mess around with them if things get slow but they will always bite.  I did catch a couple of hogs this summer trolling with my fly rod while targeting brookies.  I will give them credit for a good fight for their size.

[hesseltine32]

Toss most back down the hole. Once and a while ill keep them.

[fastribs85]

into the bucket they go and into the pan dad loves when i bring home a good pile of big gills but only target them between late fall and early spring  while the water is cold after that ive found they get a little mushy