PIKE, im maybe touching on a sore subject

[felipe felop]

in other parts of the planet, the latin name esox lucius (pike) may be part of there natural diet however in the uk its not, what i will say possibly to the wrath of others is try it but take it from open running water ie;a river not a canal,but first & foremost is try a snorkel dive in your nearest river not alone i might add,have back up but remember what u see & too check out whether the water is healthy the eyes &brain thing will say so much

[jimy286]

As long as realy fresh(withing hours) it is realy good

[ReefTroll]

Can somebody please fill in the blanks?

[flyflicker]

This would be illegal in the UK, please check the EA website before venturing into a UK river or lake with your gun

Environment Agency - Fish

[spaghetti]

Originally Posted by flyflicker

This would be illegal in the UK, please check the EA website before venturing into a UK river or lake with your gun

Environment Agency - Fish

Flyflicker said it all.
As far as I know, in the whole western Europe, spearfishing for pike is legal ONLY in 3 italian lakes on the southern edge of the Alps (Lake Garda, Lake Iseo and Lake Como). And also there, the regulations are strict in terms of bag limits, size limits and season (no catching fish during the reproduction season).
Take care

[Erik]

We can shoot them in Saskatchewan Canada and I have eaten many, but have lost my taste for them. They prefer the warmest part of the lake and start to taste like mud and swamps depending on where and when you get them. Plus they are full of bones that are impossible to filet out (in my case).

[spaghetti]

Erik this is a traditional recipe from my mother's town (I posted a pic of the town in my last Pm to you, remember).
The recipe is called "Luccio in salsa" (pike in sauce, although it's not exactly a sauce, it's more of a "dressing").
- A pike of a half kilo
- a pickled green pepper
- a pickled yellow pepper
- 150 g. capers
- 100 g. extravirgin olive oil
- 3 salted anchovies
- a handful of parsley
- a glass of white wine vinegar
- a glass of dry white wine
- the zest and juice of one lemon
- 4 bay leaves
- two cloves of garlic
- one onion
- one carrot
- one stick of celery
- salt and pepper to taste.

Preparation
Simmer the pike in abundant water with the bay leaves, onion and carrot, vinegar, salt and white wine; drain and leave to cool. Meanwhile, chop finely the capers, parsley and peppers. Pour the extra-virgin oil into a pan and add the anchovies which have been cleaned of salt and bones. Fry the anchovies gently until soft, then add the chopped mixture and a little vinegar; add salt and pepper to taste and cook gently for about 10 minutes. In the meantime, remove the bones from the pike, cut it into pieces and arrange on a serving dish; grate the lemon zest over the fish and add the lemon juice; then add the hot sauce. Leave to rest for a few hours; serve the pike cold accompanied by hot slices of grilled cornbread and a cool dry, fruity white wine.
...
Luccio in salsa:

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The ancient and noble town this recipe is from:

[Erik]

Oh that looks fantastic!

[felipe felop]

mmm, i,ve watched this thread with interest,cos over a period of time i get the feeling its tits on a windscreen kind of view,don't stop to admire the view too long cos your going to put your booties,fins & your guns back in the water again anyway,no pun intended, too make some sense out of this is to say,in privately owned waters pike will still be taken too eat.shall we say not to offend the purists,don't even go there,take a swim down your local river, no gun mind,for f***ks get permission first, dont forget the salinity thing cos you might be bottom happy hmmm!!! ,, forget the political altercations, and the righteous brothers inc. Pike are a predatory fish and they will hunt brackish water as well its in there nature,laws are made to stop the hungry from eating,ask any supermarket manager,to the french ,spanish & portuguese its a more acceptable fish for there culture to eat or am i in need of much edumacation, bottle of collapso i have quaffed!!

[Spaniard]

Vino collapso!

[messey]

I am from Saskatchewan and like Erik said we can hunt them there. I agree they don't always taste the best but if you know what lakes to hunt then they can taste a lot better then the stereotypical pike. The pike that eat shrimp as there staple food taste the best and there flesh will be very pink. We eat a lot of pike since they are easy to come by and fairly easy to shoot. I have swam along side some large pike (over 20lbs) and they just watch you, the largest one I have ever seen I poked with my gun just for kicks. If you know how to fillet them you don't get any bones, it takes a lot of practice to get good at actually cutting the bones out and leaving the meat.

We cook most of our pike over a fire right after hunting so our recipes are simple, our favorites are…

-Beer and pancake batter (Aunt Jemima’s) this one hides the fishy taste well and the taste changes depending on which beer you use.

-Flour and lemon pepper

-Salt and vinegar chips crushed up

[felipe felop]

you have such a..... ok you got me there,i took a recce trip today between dawlish & teignmouth in devon just past the smugglers,vis was as long as a cats tail but it did change further to the east of the bridge,about 3m, but it was a tough swim on a strong tide knackered after a day of the slaves saying wheres me surf & turf

[Mr. X]

While it's illegal to spearfish for freshwater fish in the UK, you are allowed to catch pike with a rod. I caught one spinning as a teenager. They get some huge pike on the Norfolk Broads. Although I believe Mike Ladle fishes for pike around Dorset in winter. [BTW E. Dorset was listed as the top place in the UK to live to a ripe old age for both men & women in today's Mail.] By the way, some angling clubs with exclusive fishing rights, now require that pike be returned live to the water.

[felipe felop]

thanks for your info mr. x,i have pike fished all of my snotty nosed days , still do now and again, but if the water is privately owned is the owner still open for prosecution under uk law , if i take a fish from his owned stretch, i can't ask him cos he is out in the blue yonder somewhere along the bahamian chain of islands ,jammy scrubber,no point getting jealous,anybody know?

[Jon]

You're not allowed to spear them around here, but I've eaten some in the past that we're caught on hook and line.

My grandmother used to pickle the smaller ones in her younger days, but I've never cared much for pickled anything- unless it's me after a good beer or two.

The best way that I've eaten them was as part of a fish boil. This, basically, involves throwing the fish, carrots, potatoes, onions, and seasonings in a big pot and cooking it over a campfire. At some point it boils over and dinners ready.

They might be good out of some of the lakes around here, but since they are higher up the food chain they would have a lot more toxins in them than a panfish.

What's the ratio of beer to pancake batter?

Jon