CatFish Man's Tasteful, Toothsome, Tantalizing Recipes… FRIED CATFISH FINGERS Ingredients: 1 to 2 lbs. Catfish fillets cut into 1" wide fingers (dry on paper towel) 1 to 1 1/2 cups enriched flour 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 2 to 3 inches of vegetable oil in a skillet Mix cold tap water with the flour, stirring until batter-like (thin but not watery). Stir in salt and pepper. Heat oil to medium high to high. Dip fingers into batter. Fry in oil until golden brown or flesh does not smell fishy. Serve hot with tarter sauce, ketchup, or cocktail sauce. Want it spicier? Add cayenne pepper.
The Catfishing Industry Today... THE PUBLISHING BUSINESS: In-Fisherman is the only fishing publication that regularly features stories on catfish. Its Catfish Guide Annual is the only publication dedicated solely to catfish. Catfish are featured in the In-Fisherman TV Show. Other magazines such as Outdoor Life and Field and Stream are beginning to also feature catfish articles. THE BAIT BUSINESS: Prepared baits like dip baits and pastes were the first products marketed especially for catfishing. Cattracker and Berkley are two of the more well known brands. Some companies are even manufacturing lures for catfish. More than a million pounds of prepared bait was sold in 2000. More than 750,000 dip worms (bait holders) were also sold. THE ROD BUSINESS: Well known makers of fishing rods such as St. Croix, Berkley, and Shakespeare now make a line of rods especially designed for catfishing. Sales are slow, but growing. The problem is not convincing the fishermen to buy the rods, but the retail stores to stock and sell them. THE MAIL ORDER BUSINESS: The Catfish Connection is a mail order company specializing in catfish stuff, but more recently catfishing gear, supplies, and baits can be found in the Bass Pro Shop and Cabela's catalogs. THE BOAT BUSINESS: Boat companies are getting in on the action. Some companies now offer the catfish rig, a boat wider and more open than their bass and panfishing counterparts. THE ASSOCIATION BUSINESS: Memberships in catfish associations are on the increase. Local clubs are being established. Two of the better known are the American Catfishing Association and the National Catfish Association.
CatFish Man's Trivia…
In some mid-western states more than 60% of all the sport fishing effort is for catfish.
The upside down catfish of Africa relaxes by swimming belly up.
Saltwater catfish are good to eat.
The first fishermen were given the name "angle-liar" - because they held out their hands to describe how big the fish they caught was. As you can guess--the measurement was seldom anywhere near accurate. Over the years the word developed into "angler."
Flathead catfish are 100% predators.
The world record flathead catfish was caught on 14 pound test line.
Catfish Being Given More Recognition…
The Ten-Tom Sportsman is a magazine published by the Mississippi and Tennessee B.A.S.S. Federation. In a recent copy there were 30 pictures of fish catches. Catfish were featured in 63% of the pictures. Largemouth bass were featured in only 8% of the pictures. Know what? Only one of the bass would pass Florida's minimum size limit.
