I heard on a documentary that tilapia is the fish referred to in the New Testament, as it is apparently the predominant food fish in the Sea of Galilee. It had never occurred to me.
Although I found it boring when I was a child, I probably would enjoy fishing now but I don't know one fish from another, and Maine's fishing regulations are so convoluted that I'd probably end up in prison ten minutes after putting a line in the water.
Fish I can (usually) identify: catfish, gar, flounder. All the rest are just fish. (Not sure if that prehistoric looking gar is technically a fish, or if I should have included hammerhead sharks in my list.)
My dad had an ice fishing shack; actually, I think it belonged to one of my uncles but we used it a lot. Fishing wasn't so heavily regulated in the UP then. Although the regulations may have been there, they weren't so rigidly enforced. Dad would have a wood stove and a frying pan in the ice fishing shack on Lake Michigan, and it was kind of like an all-you-can-eat fish special, and the only ones that were counted against the limits were the ones we were bringing home after we were full. Throwing the scraps back in the fishing hole attracted more fish, I think. They don't come any fresher than that. The fish and game people would come by the shacks checking for licenses but I don't think anything was ever said about the ones we were eating.
I've fished since I was a kid and have eaten in lots of restaurants. I never heard of tilapia as a kid or as an adult, then suddenly it seemed to be everywhere. Wiki confirms that it was not only in the Sea of Galilee during days of the New Testament, it was in ancient Egypt in 1500BC. Wiki also says "Tilapia is the common name for nearly a hundred species of cichlid fish." I had cichlids in my aquarium. Tilapia reminds me of gold fish or carp. I don't know why the thought of eating it sounds unpleasant to me. It seems like a cheap easy-to-farm pond fish with a name made up by some marketing intern. I recall the first time I encountered Tipalia...it was on the menu at Outback Steak House. I asked the waitress what it was and she said "You don't want that. It's a bottom-feeder. It eats $hit." (That's a direct quote.) I guess I'm blessed to be the kind of guy people will be that honest with. I thanked her and ordered the chicken.
Since this thread is about eating fish I will refrain from any talk of my past fishing exploits, adventures, expeditions, and dates. I no longer fish and just the thought of it becomes punishment. I will share this one story of a fish fry. It was at a relative's in Colorado where fresh brook trout and homemade ice cream were being served. One cousin brought a friend that was dying to meet me according to my cuz. My grandpa said clearly without stutter as I downed my fourth or fifth trout fillet and was headed to the ice cream, "Faye don't eat ice cream for at least an hour and I suggest skipping it altogether. FRESH caught fish and ice cream made from heavy fresh cream do not mix well" I didn't listen or inquire further. I was just coming in home after hitting a nice fly ball over the fence and out in the pasture at our cousin and friends' grudge game when I realized I must slide in home and get as much dirt as possible on my cutoff jean shorts. Camouflage was the name of the game. I haven't eaten fresh trout since. I did eat Kokanee when I lived in the mountains and near a lake, but never with any dairy product. One local cafe whose ads bragged about Texas blackened catfish when they reopened under recent management from Texas, caught my eye. I remembered the Corpus Christi blackened catfish balls (named for the shape they were cooked) and how good they were, so I went out with a friend all excited to show her what Texas blackened catfish was all about. One bite and I said very loudly, "please, this is more tasteless than bleached artificial crab from China." They closed for good two weeks later. Can one of you boys get us an exciting fishing thread started?
I love fish, even for breakfast ! Catfish, flounder, tilapia are favorites. Shrimp. crab. I have even caught my own flounder and tilapia and fresh is so good ! But do not eat fish from foreign waters.
I've caught my own flounder, catfish and other fresh water fish, but never tilapia. Where in the heck did you go fishing for that?
That sucks. We've had the snakehead fish (our invasive species) hit the news every once in a while, but I don't believe it's edible.
Um , sometime one gets too much info on here. However may be the Gulf of Mexico ones are picky eaters...
Yeh, one can pick at any food item. I think we are all skeptical of anything grown in China, especially farmed aquatic foods. It kinda raises a question I had regarding the invasion of tipalia in Texas...why aren't there people out there harvesting this and selling it to restaurants?
I've had the frozen tilapia from the grocery store. Fried with batter. I thought they were good. But all the talk has almost ruined them for me. Apparently others too. You don't see them in the store as much. I prefer fried fish cold, or at most room temperature. When I've cooked the frozen battered ones at the store (Gorton's) I always pop them in the freezer for a few minutes before eating them. Those are Alaskan pollack.
Well, one reason right now is that diesel is keeping commercial fishermen/shrimpers sitting at the dock. Texas shrimpers are not even going out into the Gulf because they can't make a profit on a catch with fuel costs. So that means restaurants and grocery stores will be buying the chinese farm-grown crap to sell to unsuspecting consumers. The shrimping industry might never recover from this. I told my husband yesterday, why doesn't the damn government offer subsidies to the American companies that are struggling with fuel costs?? They have no problem paying farmers NOT TO FARM their land... so what's the damn deal.