# stingrays



## pthunter (Oct 17, 2008)

Does anyone know if you can eat a stingray?Ive seen reciepies on the internet but it doesnt specify if theye are a certian type.Took the boy fishing today we did prety good. Probably could have filled a cooler with rays but I wouldnt know how to start to clean one. I appreceiate any help with this.


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## crackerdave (Oct 17, 2008)

If that's all there was and I was REAL hungry,I'd eat 'em!


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## earl (Oct 17, 2008)

Check On Fla Sportsman Site In The Recipe Section. Them Florida Crackers Will Eat About Anything. I Tried Frying Up The Wings But They Had Too Much Cartlidge In Them For My Taste.


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## Ed in North Ga. (Oct 17, 2008)

I got some once in Sanibel Island, Florida- they used a cookie cookie cutter, and deep fried the round nuggets- the folks told us it was scallops- I grew up on the water, and never have really liked fish....unless it was covered in some red shrimp sauce.
It was rather good- not fishy at all.


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## bigkga69 (Oct 17, 2008)

start on the ridge that runs down their back, use a small filet knife and filet the wing out from the ridge to the tip of the wing.  The meat is white and shaped like fingers, just filet the wings out and fry it up, I bet you wont throw any more back after trying it, I dont!!


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## FishingAddict (Oct 17, 2008)

If you like scallops and have eaten them in a restarant before, you have actaully eaten stingray.  

If you ever get a scallop and you can see the "grains" in it (like meat or fish)...it's stingray.

Excellent eating- less fishy and more tender than scallop (which is why it is used). I have no idea how to fix it, however.


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## Steve762us (Oct 17, 2008)

For me, unless it's a 2'+ span southern stingray, it's not worth the bother.

In the boat, just cut the wings off--watch that tail!--and toss the center "box" back in the water.  No reason to bring that ugly mug back home 

You can filet each wing horizontally along the cartilage fan...you'll get a thicker upper filet, and a thinner lower filet.  In the pic, the edge of the cartilage is visible as a 
white line in each wing.

I like em breaded and deep fried--they have a mild scallop flavor.


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## pthunter (Oct 18, 2008)

*thanks*

thanks for the help next time Ill keep some to try


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## Steve762us (Oct 21, 2008)

*Shark Ideas*

Someone asked if I ate the bonnet head shark in the pic I posted ( I did ), and how I prepared it...I figured I'd post that info on the board, also.

-------------------------
The BIG thing I've learned with shark, is to gut them and bleed them out as soon as you have them in the boat.  Sharks have a lot of urea in their blood, which converts to ammonia after they die--you can imagine what THAT will do to the taste of the meat.

I usually gaff them into the boat, then come around behind them and get on top; put a knife down thru the head, to cut the spinal cord.  They sometimes keep flipping around, even after it's cut, but it usually helps a lot. Next is gutting--keep your hands clear of the mouth.  I loop some rope around the tail and dunk it over the side a few times to get the blood out of it.  Pack the belly with ice or whatever you use and put it in the fishbox.

At home, you can steak it out or cut filets.  Easiest way to cut filets for me is to slice vertically lengthwise from the top, then cut meat from the skin, from tail end towards the head. On fatter bodied sharks like bulls, you can cut each side into multiple filets.

I like to marinade the meat for 1-2 days in something acidic in the fridge, to ensure any remaining urea/ammonia is neutralized.  Oil & vinegar dressing, tomato paste, and spaghetti sauce have all worked for me.

I like breading and deep frying it.  Unused meat goes in ziplock bags, with the marinade along with it.

-----------------------------------


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## Ol' 30-30 (Oct 21, 2008)

Steve762us said:


> For me, unless it's a 2'+ span southern stingray, it's not worth the bother.
> 
> In the boat, just cut the wings off--watch that tail!--and toss the center "box" back in the water.  No reason to bring that ugly mug back home
> 
> ...




Do you skin the wings or is it like a mackerel or salmon skin?


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## jkp (Oct 22, 2008)

One thing came to mind while reading the post, make sure you keep rays and not Skates.  If you don't know the difference then don't keep it unless it is at least 2ft across and smooth.
J


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## dapper dan (Oct 22, 2008)

Pretty sure. but the cutting the wings off and throwing the rest back in the water is probably illegal. Carcasses must remain in whole so the law can see what it is. Pretty sure they could figure out it was a ray. But it's an easy ticket. Rule of thumb never have just fillets on the boat, no matter if it's a trash fish or a grouper.


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## Rem 742 (Oct 23, 2008)

I've eaten it. It's good.


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## Twenty five ought six (Oct 23, 2008)

> If you ever get a scallop and you can see the "grains" in it (like meat or fish)...it's stingray.



Read the fine print on some frozen and breaded "ocean scallops" sometime.  Manufacturing scallops is a big business in the far east.


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## Steve762us (May 14, 2009)

Whoops...sorry about not responding.  I hit the subscription "Add" button, never noticing the default was "no email notification"!

30-30: I'm not averse to eating the skin, but if it's a big ray, you can skin it.

Zachary:  The GA 2009 regs show no listing for rays.  There's actually quite a few fish that are not regulated, and any size/qty is legal.

Dapper Dan: the 09 Ga regs state "All saltwater finfish under state or federal regulation must be landed with head and fins intact." AFAIK, the ray's aren't regulated under state or federal law, so you can pretty much hack `em up as you like...and the wings are unmistakeable for anything else.   If anyone knows otherwise on federal regs, please advise!


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## GONoob (May 14, 2009)

How do you fish for stingrays?


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## HOBO (May 14, 2009)

*GONoob*



> How do you fish for stingrays?



Fish for something,,,,,, anything  else and you will be sure to catch stingrays!!!

----------<" ){{{{{*><


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## DBM78 (May 14, 2009)

I have never heard of anyone keeping stingray to eat. But the smaller skates a hear and great eating. Most people call them stingrays because of their barb tail but they are smaller, round size and lighter in color.


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## Sharkfighter (May 14, 2009)

HOBO said:


> *GONoob*
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Its more like how do you NOT catch ray's


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## Steve762us (May 14, 2009)

HOBO said:


> *GONoob*
> Fish for something,,,,,, anything  else and you will be sure to catch stingrays!!!
> 
> ----------<" ){{{{{*><



Yah!   Dead on the bottom, with live or cut bait...I've caught them when I was after shark or whiting.


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## SFM1975 (May 15, 2009)

AS long as McDonalds is still in business I think I will stick to double cheeseburgers.  There are enough other fish in the ocean to bother with a sting ray.


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## hunter 84 (May 15, 2009)

sting ray is good especially if you dont like things with a fishey taste cut the wings off fillet them above and below the membraine and fry them up.when i fish for them i have found that squid works the best but any kind of cut bait will work.i have eaten scallops and to me stingray has a totally differnt taste and texture to me stingray looks more like ground beef kind of texture.shark is also very good but steve is right you need to gut them as soon as you land them and get them on ice otherwise it will have a  stronge ammonia taste shark sometimes will still have a strong taste to them the way that i solve that problem is soak it in milk over night in the fridge it really takes away the strong taste. i like to fillet my shark and deep fry.


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## soggysod (May 16, 2009)

i guarantee anyone on here whose had scallops at a Chinese restaurant has had stingray (and it was good too!) wonder why they were so big and flat?

never kept em my self, but after my last year scallopin trip at san blas, i plan to from now on!!! man anyone who thinks cleaning a ray is trouble aint shucked a gallon of scallops!!!!
keep up the tips, im taking notes!

soggysod


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## Mako22 (May 16, 2009)

soggysod said:


> i guarantee anyone on here whose had scallops at a Chinese restaurant has had stingray (and it was good too!) wonder why they were so big and flat?
> 
> never kept em my self, but after my last year scallopin trip at san blas, i plan to from now on!!! man anyone who thinks cleaning a ray is trouble aint shucked a gallon of scallops!!!!
> keep up the tips, im taking notes!
> ...



Yep lots of scallop at the restaurant is just good ol sting ray.


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## Steve762us (May 16, 2009)

Look at it this way...tomatoes used to be considered poisonous.
Google "love apples".

Whiting, as late as the 1960s, was considered "trash fish", unfit for human consumption, and used only for animal feed (according to stuff I found on the net).  Now, you can find it described as "fine eating" on most fishing forums.

Tilapia, until recently, was something you could ONLY find in southeast asian/Filipino food shops.  It's another-guess what--"trash fish", that will live in rice paddies or a roadside ditch.  Now, you can buy frozen tilapia filets in any respectable grocery.


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