do people really eat Northerns all that often?

[Flukeman]

I know that many people travel to Black Lake for pike season. Do that many people actually keep pike or are they trying to catch a trophy to mount?

If they are keeping them, what are some good ways to cook them? Seems like a lot of work to clean them for a very average tasting fish.

Thanks,

[Phil]

I will keep, clean/filet a Pike I catch through the ice - maybe a half dozen through the ice season. I think they are one of the best tasting fish there are, in our area.
I learned, many years ago, how to filet a northern and remove every bone, wasting the least amount of meat. I can do a pike in less than 5 minutes now a days.
There are several videos on You-Tube these days, depicting the process.
I like my fish fried! wet filets, dowsed in flour with salt and pepper added, then dowsed in beaten eggs, then breaded with cracker crumbs. Hmmmm - Yummmm - I think I need to go get a package out of my freezer - I think I might have one left in there, somewhere.

[savichkycrew]

My uncle does pickled pike. You don't even have to remove the bones. The white vinegar dissolves the bones. It's a great way to enjoy pike. We keep a few that we get through the ice. He pickles them and by the time we go up for spring fishing the batch is ready!

[Flukeman]

Thanks guys. I guess quite a few people do keep them. I was looking around the various rental cabin websites last night and saw many pictures of pike people kept. I usually only eat perch and walleye, didn't realize how many people actually ate pike.