646 Pound Catfish!

[Helevitia]

No joke!

http://www.scienceblog.com/catfish.html?q=node/8320

[Dr Mordrid]

Now all they need is 500 lbs. of corn meal, 50 dozen eggs, some lemon pepper and a helluva big vat of peanut oil

Dr. Mordrid

[ZokesPro]

You can eat catfish??

[Gurm]

You can eat catfish??

With hush puppies, ayuht!

[Dr Mordrid]

Catfish is considered a delicacy, especially in the south and among rural populations though its popularity is spreading fast. Smaller varieties are commonly called "bullheads" and weigh < 1 lb, but the big ones (mostly "channel cats") are much larger. In American waters channel cats can run over 100 lbs.

Catfish meat is flavorful and tender and they're pretty easy to catch, not that they're hard to find in fish markets. Here in the US they're farmed and are therefore in most decent grocery stores at relatively cheap prices. We pay about $2.99-$3.99 per lb. for fillets (1/2 to 3/4 lb each).

They also have the advantage of not having scales; they have a leathery skin which can just be peeled off. Once skinned they're easy to fillet and the flesh is quite bone-free

The traditional preparation is to bread Catfish fillets in a mix of cornmeal, spices, milk and eggs then deep fry them, but another popular recipe is 'cajun style. Here it's marinated in a sauce loaded with 'cajun spices (which are usually HOT!) then baked. Not for the timid

The most commonly served side-dish is hushpuppies; a fried ball of corn meal quick-bread and spices.

http://www.catfishinstitute.com/

http://southernfood.about.com/cs/catfishrecipes/a/catfish.htm

YUMMY!!!!!

Dr. Mordrid

[xortam]

You don't want to be grabbing those kitties out of the water with your bare hands ... youch!!!

[Jon P. Inghram]

You don't want to be grabbing those kitties out of the water with your bare hands ... youch!!!

Drat, I was gonna make a post about noodling but you beat me to it.

[Helevitia]

I eat Cajun Catfish 2-3 times per month. I love it! We usually make some white rice and corn with it. Sometimes we eat it with asparagus.

mmmMMM

[Dr Mordrid]

You don't want to be grabbing those kitties out of the water with your bare hands ... youch!!!

You just have to be careful about where you grab 'em in order to avoid those pectoral spines, though nothing is 100% as any noodler can tell you

I eat Cajun Catfish 2-3 times per month. I love it! We usually make some white rice and corn with it. Sometimes we eat it with asparagus.

mmmMMM

mmmMMM indeed!!

We usually eat it with dirty rice and either asparagus or broccoli w/cheddar sauce.

dirty rice: http://www.chefrick.com/html/dirtyrice.html

Dr. Mordrid

[Sasq]

Catfish is considered a delicacy ...
The most commonly served side-dish is hushpuppies; a fried ball of corn meal quick-bread and spices.

Dr. Mordrid

Hrm cats and dogs on the same plate... don't they fight? what does PETA say about this???

Right I'm off for more coffee, I think I need it.

[Jessterw]

Mmm... catfish and hush-puppies. Reminds me of Po' Folks

[Dr Mordrid]

I've eaten there while on vacation down south.

Good food

Dr. Mordrid

[Jessterw]

I have fond memories of it as a child (not sure if they would measure up now). It is after-all, where I purchased my first Moon Pie

Back on topic... While I doubt they would be anything but dwarfed by that mammoth catfish, there are some rather large (largest are about the same as an average sized man) ones at Fontana Dam in North Carolina. Been a long while since I've fished the lake there, so I couldn't vouch for the stock these days.