Cleaning and Cooking Smelts - After a Day of Ice Fishing

[Fishinfosho]

I'm so glad that there is people like you on YouTube.. Looks like you are having an absolutely amazing time.. Thanks a ton! Tight lines!

[thundermistlures]

@Fishinfosho Glad you are enjoying our videos and we do try to have a good time :)

Until next time, good luck and good fishing....thanks for tuning in.

[momo2317]

whats your favorite fishing rod?

[thundermistlures]

@momo2317 Can't say that I really have one favorite, but I really like my inshore Salt Striker rod by Cabelas - I use it for both fresh & in-shore salt water and must admit, it's a real nice rod!

Thanks for writing in and good lcuk on the water.

[13orchardst]

This is an excellent video. I have some Hooligan smelt I caught in Alaska over the summer. It's been sitting in the freezer because I haven't figured out how to properly clean or cook it, until I saw your video.

[thundermistlures]

@13orchardst Hope you enjoy them! Good fishing!

[thundermistlures]

@13orchardst Glad you enjoyed the video and hope you have a fantastic fish fry!

[sdebassige]

I really enjoy your show. Wish you had more vids to watch. Great lessons Thanks a million. Awesome vids.

[thundermistlures]

@sdebassige We'll surely have more videos to come! Good fishing!

[APJeux]

What lake did you catch the smelt on if i may ask?

[thundermistlures]

@APJeux These were caught on Lake Erie, in Port Colborne.

Thanks for tuning in and good luck on the water

[josh19ify]

does anyone know what they use for bait for smelt

[thundermistlures]

@josh19ify Smelt will take small whole minnows, small pieces of fish or clam, small artificial flies and many other small pieces of natural or artificial baits. The key is that the bait must be very small small. The main thing is to move your bait as smelt actually attack their food. The movement of bait makes them aggressive. Thanks & good fishing!

[thundermistlures]

@josh19ify Smelts like very small bait - like a small piece of minnow. We have a great video fishing for smelts and it is loaded with tips.

You can find it on our youtube channel or by doing a search for smelt on our Thundermist Fishing tips Web Site - it's worth watching!

Thanks for writing in and good lcuk on the water.

[mikeswan1970]

I love how the Canadian accent comes across, aside from the French Canadians anyway...

[thundermistlures]

@mikeswan1970 Thanks! Good fishing to you!

[chaosmage99]

Do smelt not have any scales ? what would happen if you decided not to Gut and behead the fish ? and just bite the belly off while eating them ?

Or even eat the inards ?

[thundermistlures]

@chaosmage99 Smelt have very fine scales. We have eaten very small smelts without cleaning them. Those smelts had empty stomachs and were small enough that we were able to cook them entirely without cleaning and with the heads included. We cooked them to become very crispy. On the larger fish, we would recommend cleaning them as they usually have full stomachs and full intestines. The heads may be left on and will crisp up nicely.Thanks for your enquiry & good fishing!

[scientifico]

I'm going to chinatown to buy a couple of pounds. Rather than fried with flour, I'm going to salt and pepper them. Once cooked, I remove them. With a some of the oil left in the pan (and all the stuff that fell off after), I'll add 1/2 cup vinegar, onions, allspice, crack a couple of cloves of garlic and most importantly a cut up, de seeded habanero (scotch bonnet) pepper and cook that till it boils and the onions are al dente. Drizzle that solution on top. BAM! Escovietch smelt. Jamaican style

[thundermistlures]

@scientifico Thanks for writing in and sharing your recipe with us! We'll have to give smelts "Jamaican style' a try some day.

Thanks for writing in and good fishign.

[chaosmage99]

do u have to gut em or could u just fry em whole.. guts and all ? i did that with some sardines we netted.. and lemme tell u have the fish tasted bitter cause of their inards.. I have popped a couple raw smelts back in the day (but gutted and scaled)..

[thundermistlures]

@chaosmage99 I imagine you could just fry the smelts whole, but I wouldn't think they would taste good all - it doesn't take long to clean them, so that would be best and besides - they taste great!

Thanks for writing in & good luck on the water

[SPORTSxKiiD12]

Are the bones so thin u can just eat the whole thing?

[thundermistlures]

@SPORTSxKiiD12 That is correct - the bones just fry up and you eat the whole thing - you can't even tell there are bones in it - they just fry up to be nice and crispy.

Thanks for writing in and good luck on the water!

[thundermistlures]

@PsychoSeaweed Those fish, being so small, may be fried whole. Fry them untill they're crispy. Of course, they may also be cleaned if you wish. Either way, they're great!

Enjoy!

[littlebitch231]

good shit

[cosmicku]

How long is "a few minutes"? and what kind of oil do you use?

[thundermistlures]

@cosmicku Vegetable oil is good to use & canola oil is even better. Cook the smelts for around 2 - 3 minutes on each side.

You can tell when it's time to tun them because they will be golden brown.

When done, the smelts should be golden brown & crispy. They are best when eaten hot and are delicious! (they go soggy when cold)

Thansk for writing in & good fishing!

[tulsa4life]

That was fun to watch! very well put together!!!! I dont know what to do run out and fish or stop in the KITCHEN and eat the house down!

[thundermistlures]

Glad you enjoyed the video and thanks for your comment.....it made our day.

Until next time, good fishing (or cooking!)

[respectbluder]

where did u cath thoes fish

[respectbluder]

sorry about spelling i ment catch

[thundermistlures]

Those fish were caught in Port Colborne Ontario near Lake Erie.

Thanks for writing.

[respectbluder]

is dat near the uk

[thundermistlures]

No, it is in Canada.

Thanks.

[XxvidsforfunxX]

wow, it is always cool to learn other peoples techniques. when i clean my smelt i cut there heads fully off and then cut the gut open to get the intestines.

then for cooking i deep fry them in an special batter my father makes.

[thundermistlures]

Thanks for writing in & sharing your feedback with us! We are glad you enjoyed the video & until next time, good fishing!

[thundermistlures]

Glad you enjoyed the video & good luck on the water!

[asiansinsation3]

nice a true life of a redneck just how i like it lol

[thundermistlures]

Glad you liked the video - thanks for writing in & good fishing.

[Jockin187]

nice keep them comming