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Pout?


Duckfisher

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I am headed to the lake for a couple nights the last two days in january. A lot of the guys in the group have never seen an eelpout. I personally have only seen a couple, what are some tips to catching these fish. Is the best chance on a rattle during the night and how do i set up? Thanks for the help!

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Deep sand/muck. Usually 30-35 feet.

JIGGING- at or after dark with a bright green glow buckshot and a full minnow or minnow head. If you use a minnow head be sure to leave some guts hanging down, it's usually better to pinch it off instead of cut it.

Rattle reels- any hook with a medium sized shiner close to the bottom has produced pout for us in years past out of a permanent.

ALL have come after dark.

We never purposefully fish for them but that's what we have caught the most on when we were walleye fishing.

Nasty things, but goodluck!

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Keep your baits within a foot of the bottom or better yet about 6 inches from the bottom and if they are around they will come:) I agree they are nasty looking but they sure are a tasty treat.

Tunrevir~

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yes they are tasty, remember it is illegal to leave them lay on the ice make sure you take them with you or release them. good luck

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Just got home from the pond. Gave the walleyes and perch to my buddy, and I kept the pout. Thats whats for dinner tonight, a nice meal of "Lake Lobster"! MMMM! With butter, lemon, and garlic salt.

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Stupid question, but I have never filleted a pout before. Is it the same as a walleye? Any tips for cooking?

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Are you guys serious? I didn't know they were edible. How do you clean/cook them. Maybe i'll give em' a try.

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I boil bite sized pieces in sprite and dip in melted butter...... Lobster! I fillet out the tail and backstraps. They have to be decent size to be able to clean them.

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Boiling in Sprite, interesting. If you go after the backstraps and cut into the gut cavity, best have a clothespin on your nose.... nasty.

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Yup, they're probably my favorite fish to eat that I can actually catch in Minnesota(halibut would be #1 in my book). I always boil them in Seven-Up, but I guess Sprite would work, too. One of the biggest tragedies of my year last year was my complete inability to catch ONE eel pout on Mille Lacs, despite being out there twenty nights or so. frown In the past we used to catch them by the dozens...I sure hope they make a bit of a comeback.

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They're still there. I saw 4 of them caught out of the Garrison access last month. 2 of them went home with me. The other two got off at the hole. And this was under 20 feet of water.

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I brought 3 nice ones home from Winni this weekend. Cleaned them when they were partialy frozen and that helped alot. Filet them from the belly to the tail like you would a regular fish and then from the gills back I cut them as if you were taking back straps from deer. Look on line for cleaning them,worked for me.

Boiled some in water and milk,and the rest in sprite and water. Both tasted great in butter and garlic powder. The family loved it. When my wife and daughter looked at them, there response was I'm not eating those things. That changed onced they tried it.

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If you want a pout just fish next to me. For some reason, regardless of the time of day or bait selection, I'll catch a pout when everyone around me is icing jumbos and slot eyes......

Pix2-09173.jpg

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