Eel pout thread!

[Stick in Mud]

So I am a proud lover of the eel pout...I don't eat fish, but when I do, it's eel pout. I used to love going up to Mille Lacs with my dad, catching a walleye or two all weekend, and a cord or two of eel pout. Plus, boiled in 7up and dipped in butter, they were the only fish I'd eat.

Fast forward a few years, and I went, oh I don't know, a couple of years without catching ONE of them. I thought they were gone, but this year I, my buddy, and my dad have all-together caught three of them, and I've talked to others out fishing who've also hooked some. All of them have been about the same size...no big ones, but fat 16-20 inchers or thereabouts. Seems as though the pout might be/are on the comeback!

In need of more evidence for my thesis, I'm curious if anyone else has run into them. All those I've talked to have been fishing the northwest end of the lake and a few of the big mud flats...I'm hoping others elsewhere are also finding a few of the beautiful fish.

So, anyone else catching the beautiful (and elusive) eel pout?

[FLAG!!]

I equally love catching/eating the pout and this thread. I was going to post something similar, however I have not yet run into any over the last couple years on the water or ice.

Any pointers on where to find them (or if anybody is)? If not, any lakes with a decent population to target?

[Bandersnatch]

Are you targeting them, or just picking them up as an incidental catch?

A small sucker minnow fished about 2 inches off the bottom will yield you more pout than wallys.

[pushbutton]

One of my favorite fish too! Only caught one small one last year on Mille Lacs. Far from a pout expert, but think they concentrate on the rocky slopes late jan/early Feb to get there groove on. They need clear water and ironically maybe the zeebs are helping them come back. Excellent tasting and will keep a few every year on LOW, but hate to throw that much carcass back for so little meat though. The highlight of my ice season last year was a mid teen monster.

Flag, there will still be good populations in many of the lakes in northern mn if you want to target them. Not that familiar with those areas, but some research on Lake Finder should find you some. For sure Bemidji, Leech, and LOW has good populations of them. Also, Carmike has a honey hole south of the Sartell dam on the Sipp

[jonnysnipe]

Greetinz' frum da-hood,

I just love the 3:15am call

POUT!!!!!!

[Stick in Mud]

Carmike has a honey hole south of the Sartell dam on the Sipp

That I do...but alas, most of them aren't very big. If you can find safe, walkable ice anywhere on the river, I'm pretty sure you'll find pout.

The guys I know who have caught them have found them pretty much everywhere....some very shallow, some on the mid-depth breaks off the reefs, some around the rock/mud transitions, and some out on the flats. It's been so long since I've caught any, however, that I don't have the first clue about where is best.

[TRZ II]

I'm overnight in my shack a minimum of 20 nights per season and I can't remember the last one I caught. Maybe 3 or 4 years ago and that was them little disgusting ones. I have not seen a keepable pout in at least 5 years. The climate change has doomed the great mille lacs pout, but has now produced enough panfish to keep Chapman in business for years!!! LOL

[Stick in Mud]

I have no idea why they "disappeared" for so long, TRZ, but I hope they're coming back....and like you, I can't remember (before this year) the last one I caught. But the ones we're getting are definitely cleanable...I'll be out again this weekend, hopefully with more good news from the pout front!

[Stick in Mud]

Well, we moved the house shallow, and I only fished out on the flats until just after sunset, so we don't have any pout to brag about this weekend. I know at least two people who caught at least one pout each, so we didn't fish them out last weekend. I'm hoping some of y'all have a few good pout stories to tell...

[FLAG!!]

Heading up Saturday for the day, crossing every body part that we find one! Will report back, hopefully with a pic of a fatty!!

[Muskiemanzan13]

I am also a proud pout lover. I haven't caught on since '09. And I do agree, they are SO GOOD!

[bobbymalone]

I pulled a decent one out of an ontario lake this summer. I was jigging a 50 foot hump in about 100 feet of water as the sun was going down. When I brought it up from that far down, it threw up it's swimbladder. So I figured it would be a good time to try it out. Boiled it up like everybody says, dipped it in some melted butter... I wouldn't say it's as good as lobster, but yeah, it was pretty good I'd take another eater home in a second.

Definitely got some trash talk from some old timers cleaning up their stringers full of walleye in the fishhouse as I'm hacking the backstraps off that thing.

And made some younger Canuck pout fans that were there pretty jealous

[leech~~]

No pic's on this thread? Here's the last one I got on LOW.Still haven't eaten one of the d@m things yet. But now that I would like to I haven't gotten one lately.

(

[Muskiemanzan13]

When I see that pout, my mouth start's watering! :-D

[lispeej]

ok now, so what's the trick to cooking them up?

[Stick in Mud]

Boil them in water, Sprite, or Seven Up and dip in butter. Easy as pie. Well, I can't cook pie, so it's easy as microwave popcorn.

I was out all last weekend and didn't catch any (but I was fishing in 11 feet or less, so that probably had something to do with it). I'm now pretty sick with a coldish fluish thing, so I'm taking this weekend off....the pout, I'm sure, are breathing a sigh of relief.

[FlyRodAddiction]

Has anyone tried making a vegetable stock lobster boil and fondueing pout? I think it would turn out great but i'm not sure of the consistency and if the pout cube would stay on the fondue fork while it was cooking in the pot.

[picksbigwagon]

couldn't you skin them like a catfish, cut the meat into nuggets and deep fry it?

[monstermoose78]

they fry it at the eelpout fest in walker

[Bandersnatch]

Any way that you cook Cod you can cook Pout.

[lawnbuilder]

I caught two at LOW a few years back but didnt keep them because at the time I was told they are trash. Now I wish I would have kept one and tried it. How do you target them, I was trying for eyes.

[bobbymalone]

you can deep fry about anything and it will taste like the deep fryer.

[pushbutton]

Bake, boil, broil, pan fry, deep fry, grill.....whatever.....just dont let the meat freeze first. Best way to target tem is to fish for walleys

[Bandersnatch]

I caught two at LOW a few years back but didnt keep them because at the time I was told they are trash. Now I wish I would have kept one and tried it. How do you target them, I was trying for eyes.

Small sucker minnow fished 2 to 3 inches off the bottom.

Set the sinker about 3 inches above the hook, and dead stick with a light neutral bobber.

[Heartman]

This right here sounds delicious, and I see no reason it couldn't be done. Great idea!

[Stick in Mud]

Bake, boil, broil, pan fry, deep fry, grill.....whatever.....just dont let the meat freeze first. Best way to target tem is to fish for walleys

+1

[Stick in Mud]

Time to bump this back up top.

We ended up getting two eel pout this weekend. Both were pretty small, so they're still swimming, but after a pout-less weekend last time out, it was nice to get some REAL fish for a change!

Anyone else finding them??

[TruthWalleyes]

Got my first pout ever this weekend.

[lispeej]

are pout all over the lake?

[JBMasterAngler]

Surprisingly, mille lacs is the only place I've ever caught eel pout. It's been awhile, would love to hook into a few more