Because of this year’s struggle to catch keeper size crappie, I have searched for an available alternative fish for the table. One would think of sauger or walleye, but these too I find difficult to catch in any numbers.
For years I have been told that yellow bass, the smallest of the white bass family where excellent eating. I have even passed this information on without ever verifying it for myself. While white bass fishing with a guy from Indiana earlier this spring, I noticed his enthusiasm changing when we caught a yellow bass that he encouraged us to put them into the live well for him. He went on about how good they are to eat, comparing them to walleye or yellow perch. Both I would consider the best that fresh water has to offer.
Recently I was invited to an evening fish fry on Watts Barr Lake. They had planned to catch enough fish in two days while camping to feed about twenty people. That morning while fishing I gave them a call to see if they needed anything. They replied fish. After two days and desperately converting to jug fishing they only had three catfish. I know that history has shown that a multitude of people could be feed with three fish and a loaf of bread. But, this time I thought I would help out. I started keeping the yellow bass and a few crappies that I was catching.
Returning home I cleaned the crappie and then the yellow bass, which I was surprised on how white the flesh was, and that there was no red streak (blood line). The fillets look very similar to the crappie. I also defrosted some additional crappie and bream that I had from last year to bring.
Because I spent many of my childhood weekends near where the fish fry was being held I did not give any additional time to get there. In 30 years, things change and I was lost immediately, arriving just as they were getting the fryers going for the three fish, they were glad to see me pull up. Keeping the fish separated everyone agreed that the yellow bass was excellent, even better than the year old crappie. These were people who knew their fish and I valued their opinion.
There is several ways to identify yellow bass from their bigger cousin’s white bass. First they are usually smaller with a yellow tent on their belly’s hints their nick name “yellow bellies” and the bold black horizontal strips. Upon catching them and removing them from the water they arch their bodies extending all their spines and sharp gill plates to leave you something to remember them by.
Take someone fishing, Greg