Can you eat eel?

[metalhead666]

Just wondering if you can eat long finned australian freshwater eel and how they taste.
I have heard alot about them having poison in their blood and i would not want to take a risk with this if their is one that could be taken.

[Feral]

Well lots of them used to be collected by professional eel catchers for the food market, so doubt they are poisonous!

Have heard the trick is to smoke eels, if you like smoked food they are supposed to be delicious.

[Dignity]

They are exported mostly so I would presume that they would be ok to eat although I suspect it would depend on whether they were caught in a free flowing river or a mine sludge pond.

[gpz1991]

We caught them years ago, the small ones weren't to bad but the bigger ones have a strong flavour that's why the smoke most of them

[Stik-ugly]

When I was young we use to eat them all the time,clean them by hammering a nail into an upright post stick the jaw through the nail cut around the head and remove skin by pulling it down with a pair of pliers. Soak them in milk overnight and cook.

[aus2045]

I lived in NZ for 12 months. While I never fished for eels, too busy catching Trout, Kingfish, Kahawai and Snapper, I ate eel many times at restaurants and cafes, where its a regular table fish. It's a little boney, but great flavour especially when smoked.

I tried my first Eel at Cob & Co, Taupo. Yum.

[Makita]

I'm born in NZ , we use to catch & eat them out of the creek behind our house , my mum use to smoke them & pickle them for sandwiches . Taste great !

[Spiderpig]

I'm born in NZ , we use to catch & eat them out of the creek behind our house , my mum use to smoke them & pickle them for sandwiches . Taste great !

I know a bloke from NZ, his girlfriend says they taste baaaaaaaad.......

[Gon Fishun]

I was probably about 13-14 at the time, lived in Templestowe Vic, just a short ride to the Yarra river where we used to catch eels and red fin if you were lucky. We always took an old fry pan with us, got a fire going and what ever we caught was thrown in the pan. We used to get the odd eel, cut the skin around the back of the head then skin im, not easy Jan, then throw it in the pan for 15 mins and from memory they tasted ok.
Have a friend in Kilcoy that catches and jellies them. (ugh).

[aus2045]

I know a bloke from NZ, his girlfriend says they taste baaaaaaaad.......

Case closed then, Spiderpig's mate's GF has the answer. Those of us that have actually eaten Eel are obviously mad!

[Andy H]

I know a bloke from NZ, his girlfriend says they taste baaaaaaaad.......

I suppose she should stick to eating grass then.

[aus2045]

I suppose she should stick to eating grass then.

I'm so dumb sometimes, I missed that Baaaahhh. Cheers.::)

[tunaticer]

Vietnamese use a lot of eel in their fish cooking recipes. I quite like them as a soup or smoked or done with a sweet and sour sauce.

[metalhead666]

Thanks guys, really appreciate it. I will give it a go tomorrow and see how they go. Suppose they would be mostly fillet.
Any ideas oh how to fillet them?

[dnej]

Quote
Have heard the trick is to smoke eels, if you like smoked food they are supposed to be delicious

I would agree with that , but I find that they are very difficult to light.
David

[goat boy]

I ate a few as a kid, started a fire, and just threw it in the coals. The skin went all black and charcoal but was easy to peel and poke off. The meat was really white from memory, and tasted surprisingly ok. But mostly we just let them go

[Apollo]

At our previous farm, we use to have a heap of eels in one of the dams. Many times our guests ate eel for dinner before they found out what it was. None complained. We use to soak in milk/vinegar/salt water (tried them all) overnight after skinning them by the hang and pliers method, then fillet them for either frying, soups, pickling, smoking or grilling (smaller ones).

[gunna]

As a kid I used to catch them and eel tailed catties in Bulimba Ck at Carina. Ate them all. Caught them just under the old Tannery so heaven only knows what else we ate. Don't try to fillet. Just skin them, cut into chunks and cook in oil. Then just pick the flesh off. Lots of bones.

But the obvious question is - why bother. Go and catch a nice flatty instead.

[tuppence]

we dont know how lucky we are go to a deli and price a smoked eel about $70 a kilo

[hungry6]

One word, "Unagi" if you want to know what they taste like before you go smoking and catching a heap, any sushi joint would have unagi on the menu and feel free to woof one down.
But I'm not a fan of them, abit too oily for me.

[Triple]

Second video down on this page shows how eel should be done ;) -
http://www.cookingissues.com/2012/06/26/the-practical-philosophy-of-fish-killing-and-the-ike-jime-man/

[cqfreshie]

Second video down on this page shows how eel should be done ;) -
http://www.cookingissues.com/2012/06/26/the-practical-philosophy-of-fish-killing-and-the-ike-jime-man/

Crickey ... Now I'm starving

[gruntahunta]

As a kid I used to catch them and eel tailed catties in Bulimba Ck at Carina. Ate them all. Caught them just under the old Tannery so heaven only knows what else we ate. Don't try to fillet. Just skin them, cut into chunks and cook in oil. Then just pick the flesh off. Lots of bones.

But the obvious question is - why bother. Go and catch a nice flatty instead.


Gunna is right except for the Flathead part....Flathead is the worst tasteing fish in the ocean. River mullet beats an old dusky Flattly any day. Sand flathead aren't too bad, if there are any left, I o ly ever get duskies.

With regards to the Eels, skin them, cut into steaks like Mackeral, crumb them in seasoned cornflake crumbs and deep fry in peanut oil....yum yum yum.