# large mouth bass **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 29, 2007, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082 "2007-04-29T20:22:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mynizzel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/41988e/32.png) [@mynizzel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mynizzel)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082/1 "2007-04-29T20:22:53Z")
You know I do a little fishing and I was wondering if everyone is fishing for bass and it is so popular why isn’t it sold in stores and restaurants. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082/2 "2007-04-29T20:31:23Z")
I grew up in one of the prime large-mouth bass fishing areas of the world (NW Louisiana) and it is not even sold there. A think the main reason is that I have never heard of it being farmed. Other popular food fish like catfish and trout are farmed to sell. Largemouth Bass are a somewhat difficult fish to catch in the wild especially for larger specimens so I would think that the supply just isn’t there. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082/3 "2007-04-29T20:44:35Z")
Also, it’s a popular sport fish because it puts up a good fight, not because it’s necessarily any tastier than other species. If you’re going to walk into a restaurant and have a plate with a fish on it plopped down in front of you, you’ll may find catfish or trout a better choice. As noted, it would probably be difficult to fish commercially or farm anyway. ---
**Author:** ![feppytweed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/feppytweed/32/4280_2.png) [@feppytweed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/feppytweed)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082/4 "2007-04-29T22:18:59Z")
Also, being that bass is a game fish, I believe it is against the law to sell it. ---
**Author:** ![fisha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@fisha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fisha)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082/5 "2007-04-29T23:02:36Z")
Bass doesn’t taste that good, especially the bigger fish. The fight, the topwater action, is the attraction. ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082/6 "2007-04-30T00:57:14Z")
I tried to eat some bass I caught, it did not taste very good. It has a strong flavor similiar to the water it lives in. It was cooked with a beer batter too. I was told to soak it in milk for 2 or 3 hours to get rid of the gamey taste. I’ll stick to better tasting fish. ---
**Author:** ![Gbro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Gbro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gbro)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082/7 "2007-04-30T01:50:44Z")
[QUOTE=racer72] I tried to eat some bass I caught, it did not taste very good. It has a strong flavor similiar to the water it lives in. It was cooked with a beer batter too. I was told to soak it in milk for 2 or 3 hours to get rid of the gamey taste. I’ll stick to better tasting fish. [/QUOTE] pulled from cold water bass can be very tasty. they are a bloody fish and need to be processed pronto. They tend to inhabit shallow warm water, and take on that strong taste if caught later in season. The walleye is the top commercial fish in this area. It is a game fish, but are fished commercially on some large lakes. One lake 100 miles away was over netted and is now just getting back to levels where commercial fishing can begin again. Lower Red Lake in MN. Commercial fishing on Lake Erie is a big business. The nasty part of that kind of industry is a very small part of the catch is used as the restaurant industry wants a certain size fillet. lot of fish are wasted. ---
**Author:** ![cornflakes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@cornflakes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cornflakes)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082/8 "2007-04-30T01:58:16Z")
Bass are also predators, which might complicate things a little. Catfish and tilapia will eat whatever chow is scattered on the surface. Bass may not think of something that doesn’t move as being food. ---
**Author:** ![Rysdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7cd45c/32.png) [@Rysdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysdad)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082/9 "2007-04-30T02:56:30Z")
Although bass is in the same family as sunfish, they aren’t nearly as tasty. I can make bass palatable-to-passingly-good, but other fish are better. Just about any other fish is better. It’s the fight and the acrobatics that make bass fishing fun. ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082/10 "2007-04-30T13:24:59Z")
[QUOTE=Gbro] pulled from cold water bass can be very tasty. they are a bloody fish and need to be processed pronto. They tend to inhabit shallow warm water, and take on that strong taste if caught later in season. The walleye is the top commercial fish in this area. It is a game fish, but are fished commercially on some large lakes. One lake 100 miles away was over netted and is now just getting back to levels where commercial fishing can begin again. Lower Red Lake in MN. [/QUOTE] Big Winnie is coming back too. The slot helped (is helping). The allure for bass as an eating fish just isn’t there. Like others said, they’re fun to catch, just not all that fun to clean and eat. Now walleye on the other hand… ---
**Author:** ![rhythmonly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ee59a6/32.png) [@rhythmonly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rhythmonly)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082/11 "2007-04-30T18:49:43Z")
Also, a bass doesn’t have very much edible meat, especially when compared to more popular “menu” type fish such as trout or catfish. Possibly due to the fact that a big bass is mostly head, bones ‘n’ innards. My kid caught a 3 pound bass once. By the time that I gutted and filleted it, the pile of unused parts was considerably larger than what we could actually eat. ---
**Author:** ![Gulo\_gulo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bcef8e/32.png) [@Gulo\_gulo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gulo_gulo)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/large-mouth-bass/402082/12 "2007-04-30T21:05:33Z")
I used to work for a taxidermist. If the owner didn’t want the meat, we’d keep it after the fish was skinned. Maybe it’s our location or the size of the fish but it was always good. (Not as good as walleye though. Yum!)