Hey guys-
My dad, brother, and I just made our first trip down to Corpus Christi Bay/Upper Laguna to fish this weekend. We were hoping to catch some reds and trout, but we ended up catching a whole bunch of sheepshead. We put them all back because we did not know if they were good to eat or how to clean themm. Turns out a lot of people really like them. So my question is, how do you clean them?

Lol they are great eatting but you better have a real good electric fillet knife those armour scales are tough .

Man, you missed out on some really great eating!! They are very difficult to clean and the best advice I can give is to have a very sharp knife and a sharpener handy...but if you make it through the cleaning, the reward is worth it.

I bought a storm brand electric knife with the filet knife blades and i cleaned 40 sheephead in 2 days and it worked great. I have cooked them on the grill but I like them better fried

so it took you two days to clean them?

It took me about a hour to clean 20 of them..

y have smelly sheeps head when u can have trout...go get em

One quick tip that I figured out after much cussing and one torn up fillet knife .you fillet them backwards it REALLY goes much quicker and you get a cleaner fillet. You need a knife with a REALLY flexible blade....just start at the tail and scrap out a good patch of scales....fillet back to the bony "abdominal cavity--for lack of better term"...then flex the blade and slice up and out....This way you dont have to "hack saw"...the "ear area"..to get you knife into the meat. Much easier on you and your knife.

I'd eat a Sheepshead over a trout any day!

Me too if I didn't have to clean them! The key word being "eat"

They are excellent eating. I believe they are also know as the bay snapper.

Thanks for all the help guys.

Sheephead (Bay Snapper), Drum, and Reds can be tough on those electric knives. The tail first version works good, but you can also make the 1st cut with a sharp knife and then use the electric to filet it out. I had to do that this weekend with the drum and sheephead I caught.

1/2 shell, fried and blackened are the way to go on these Bad Boys!!!!

Whats the limmit on SH?

I think it's 14" minimum and no bag limit

I just cleaned a few yesterday. I used a mister twister electric fillet knife. They are similar to cleaning a black drum but the rib cage is alot tougher!

I forgot to mention there teeth are kinda creepy

The bag's 5 on sheephead right? Since I end up doing all the fish cleaning, that's what I'm going to continue to tell everyone on my boat even if it's wrong. I can just see my fishing partners wanting to keep everyone they catch.

Yep, THOSE....I mean that's a sheepshead!!!!!!!

Dang Huchleberry I bet you can use those for a measuring stick even after the new limits take over.

Sheepshead 5 13 —g No limit
Sheepshead: Special Regulation: Beginning on Sept. 1, 2008, the length limit will be 14 inches. Beginning on Sept. 1, 2009, the length limit will be 15 inches.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Those are keepers on that women . also nice fish .

I just about fell out of my chair!

Thanks guys. Maybe next time we will be able to get some good food for la cena!

Hucklebery you got a fishing partner that's easy on the eyes.

fakesters