I agree with others who say that crappie is better tasting than smallmouth. But they are both good eating.

Lately I have been baking fish instead of frying with batter. I like to taste more of the fish without the added breading/batter.

Preheat the oven to 350.
Put fish on non-stick sprayed aluminum foil lined baking tray.
Brush olive oil on filets.
Sprinkle with smoked salt, garlic powder, italian herb blend and ground pepper.
Bake uncovered for about 15 minutes.

I like Tilapia as a store bought freshwater fish. One of the better tasting frozen store bought fish I have started eating lately is Pacific Ocean Perch (it is nothing like surf perch). It has a nutty flavor that is really good. It is probably about twice the cost of Tilapia.

 

Preheat the oven to 350.
Put fish on non-stick sprayed aluminum foil lined baking tray.
Brush olive oil on filets.
Sprinkle with smoked salt, garlic powder, italian herb blend and ground pepper.
Bake uncovered for about 15 minutes.

Simple, tasty and I did not light the stove on fire.

Appreciate it.

 

Here is my Stupidly Super Simple crappie/panfish recipe:

Ingredients:

Crappie/panfish fillets
1 cup flour
1 bottle of beer (I like to use Blue Moon or a Hefeweizen)
Salt
Lemon Pepper (roughly a Tablespoon, but I don’t measure)
Peanut Oil

Heat oil to 350-375 degrees

Lay fish on paper towels, pat dry, and lightly sprinkle both side with salt.

In a large bowl, combine flour, lemon pepper, and ALMOST one bottle of beer. Leave enough beer for you to take a swig. If batter is too thick, crack open another beer and add a little bit at a time, until it is the right consistency. (Batter should be like runny pancake batter) Drink remaining beer.

Coat fish in batter and place in hot oil until light golden brown. Cook about four pieces at a time. Remove from oil and place on clean paper towels.

Serve with lemon juice, tarter sauce, or Frank’s Red Hot. Drink more beer.

 

 

I’ve actually made the above recipe IMMEDIATELY after catching a limit of crappie at Silver Lake. That was one of the best fish fry’s EVER.

 

Fish Fried Rice Recipe by Lyii G

Great recipe for Fish Fried Rice. MY VERSION DELICOUS AND TASTY FISH FRIED RICE "MY CHILDHOOD ALL IN A PAN FAVOURITE DISH " LOVING IT

cookpad.com

I cook this up when I get a bunch of good sized bluegill or a couple nice bass

 

That sounds guuuuuuud

 

Warning, this will clog up some arteries.

it is also a bit messy, but it's worth the time and mess

1 can evaporated milk (not sweetened condensed milk)
1 cup all purpose flour seasoned to taste
1 package panko bread crumbs

Depending on number of fillets,
3-4 eggs beaten to omelette consistency
2-3 sticks butter
Sizeable sheet of aluminum foil

Take the fillets and put them in the milk, transfer a few at a time to the flour mixture and coat liberally, from the flour into the eggs, from the egg to the bread crumbs and then onto a plate.

Sometimes the egg will "run" from the flour, I pat the area with the egg on my finger till it "takes"

I try to maintain a dry hand (flour/panko ) and a wet hand (milk/egg) otherwise the buildup on the fingers becomes untenable.

Take your sheet of foil and turn the edges up to make a "cookie sheet" place this on your BBQ, depending on the number of fillets and how large the "cookie sheet" add a stick or so of butter, once melted and beginning to bubble, add fillets, cook four minutes per side on low to medium low heat.

Your target is golden brown.

And no worries about burning the house down.

 

I bet this could be done on a Blackstone griddle… hmmmmm

 

If you like your fillets crunchy try this recipe. Pat dry chilled fillets. Season to taste, I use a little seasoned salt, California style garlic powder and some white pepper. Toss fillets in all purpose flour until coated. Dip in beaten egg and roll in panko bread crumbs. Fry in hot oil until panko turns golden. Canola or peanut oil both work well. Do not overcook! two to four minutes should do depending on fillet thickness. Enjoy! Really good with crappie , perch and bluegills.

 

This is money. My go to for years. Then I started feeling guilty when I turned 60.
And when I started feeling sluggish after that meal. Maybe those fried potatoes and onion didn’t help. On yeah! Please grab me another beer.

 

Don't see why it couldn't, tilt it slightly forward to keep the butter from running out the drain port.

 

EVERYTHING is good in Bacon grease. nuff said

 

 

Great! Now I have to catch a lot more bass and crappy this summer to try all these amazing recipes!

 

I’m a horrible cook. Not sure why I even have an oven in my house. Other than to cook a Papa Murphys pizza, I truly have no use for one.

So, how do all of you fine people cook up your pan fish? Crappie and bass.

The more complete the details the better the odds I won’t burn down my house.

Salt, pepper,lemon pepper on the fillets. Quick sear and Sauté in butter.

 

If if want a bit of crunch, dip in cornmeal.

 

I've kept for consumption only one Smallmouth. I had heard the good eating ones were a foot long or less and this one was around 3 1/2 lbs. Got it out of Oxbow will jigging for Crappies at 1:00AM. Anyhow, it wasn't particularly good, light years behind Crappie, Bluegill and perch. I like Largemouth on the table but always release them.

If I'm going to coat my fish with gunk, I use the same thing for all fish. Finely crushed saltine crackers mixed half and half with cheapo Kraft Parmesan cheese. Maybe a little corn starch tossed in and spices to taste. About the only spice I use is a bit of garlic. Heat oil to 375 like doing razor clams. The fillets are thin and don't need lots of cooking. The gunk mixture browns quickly so you gotta be right there like doing Razor Clams. If you use Panko or other bread crumbs, it doesn't brown as easily and you end up over cooking the fish or clams.

 

Best Bluegill Recipes | MissHomemade.com

I have many easy bluegill recipes for you. How about blue gill stir-fry, grilled bluegill

www.misshomemade.com

I found this about a month ago...I plan on trying most of them this year

 

From my Grandpa he started using in the 1920's. Ive Been using this for many years Marinate filets overnight in milk, egg, salt, pepper, lemon, garlic and Worcestershire sauce

Bread in 50/50 flour and corn meal. You can add salt to breading if you like, I salt after they're cooked. Hot oil 375+ for 3 min for smaller perch/crappie filets

 

A friend of mine once said the best way to cook any white fish is Krusties pancake mix. Mix it thin and deep fry. Tried it a couple of times and I can not find anything to argue about.

 

In Bacon grease too!
With this too.....
Louisiana Fish Fry Seasoned Fish Fry Breading Coating

 

I second the Louisiana fish fry breading. Good on any fish that is what we put on trout fillets.
one caution I don’t recommend adding salt.

 

10-4 on the bacon grease😎

 

Cooked up some bass with a recipe I found on line that I actually had all of the ingredients for.
Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 large egg white
• ¼ cup seasoned breadcrumbs
• 2 tablespoons cornmeal
• 4 (6-ounce) bass fillets, skinned
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon butter
• 4 lemon wedges
  It turned out pretty tasty.
  
  I’m still searching for more recipe items for your guy’s suggestions. Not a lot of places in town carry very many spices or cooking stuff.

 

Cooking pan fish can be a breeze, even for those of us who aren't kitchen wizards. For crappie and bass, keep it simple. Try seasoning with a mix of salt, pepper, and a squeeze of lemon. Pan-fry in olive oil until it's golden brown, around 3-4 minutes per side.

If you're feeling adventurous, you can whip up a delicious dipping sauce to elevate the flavors. Personally, I've been hooked on adding a homemade yum yum sauce to my fish dishes. It's a game-changer – versatile and easy to make. A quick search will land you on a fantastic recipe that complements the delicate taste of panfish perfectly.

 

With crappie season close at hand, I was looking to broaden my crappie cooking skills to include the air fryer.

Anyone try it and what temperature and for how long?