For the past year, online series Perennial Plate has been giving folks an inside look at adventurous eating and sustainable living in Minnesota. (Check out TakePart's coverage here.)
Now Daniel Klein and his vegetarian girlfriend Mirra have hit the road to take the show national.
This episode follows Daniel as he tries his hand at catfish noodling: the crazy activity of sticking your hand in the mouth of a giant fish in order to catch it.
Okay, this episode was especially adventurous. When you first heard the idea, it must have seemed wild. Was it what you expected?
Honestly—like most of our episodes—I wasn't exactly sure what to expect. But in this case it was especially unknown, as the recent flooding had raised the water levels so much that we weren't sure we would see any catfish at all. On top of that, catfish noodlers (or hand grabbers, hand fisherman) are quite secretive about where they go fishing, so it was difficult to find anyone to take us out.
We finally found Squirrel and Robin (the subects of the episode) when they responded to a note we put on the Mississippi Fishing Forum. So while we normally would have been more diligent in checking them out, we were just so thrilled that we had a noodler [that] we didn't want to press our luck.
TakePart: Is catching a catfish that way unique to this family in particular? Or is it customary by Mississippi standards?
Daniel Klein: This method of fishing isn't unique to that family...nor is it unique to Mississippi. It actually has a long history in the U.S., though (last time I checked) it is only permitted in 17 states.
TP: One of the men you were with got pretty bloodied up because of the catfish’s teeth. Why do they use this method instead of hook and line?
DK: Many noodlers see it as the purest form of fishing because of the direct contact between them and the fish. This is a form of fishing that has been passed from generation to generation, specifically in the South, so it is a challenge as well as a tradition. Most noodlers wear gloves.
TP: Normally you take a crack at whatever local custom you’re exploring. In this video, you didn’t. Did you try the catfish catching off camera?
DK: Because of the flooding, there weren't a lot of catfish available. Squirrel says that he usually comes back from a day on the water with 250 pounds of catfish (which amounts to about 5 to 7 fish). I actually did catch one fish, but it was very small...and I decided not to include it in the episode. I can tell you that it was quite unnerving sticking my hand in a hole, feeling around for a fish.
Additionally, I like to mix the episodes up a bit. So, if you notice, I didn't show any cooking in this video. I liked the fast-paced energy of the catch and decided to leave it at that.
TP: How did you prepare/cook the catfish you caught?
DK: We ate with the fisherman. And they prepared it as they always do: by hanging it up, fileting it, and frying it.
I let Homer do most of the work, but when I saw that the cheeks and liver were not going to be used, I jumped in and fried them up. Though everyone was hesitant at first, they all took to those pieces of the fish pretty quickly. Liver and cheeks are some of the best parts of many animals. And when it comes down to it, most things taste good fried.
TP: As always, we’re insatiable. What can we look forward to next week?
DK: After Mississippi, we headed to New Orleans and got enough footage for two episodes. The first, which we will be releasing next week, highlights the incredible urban farmers and what they are doing within different parts of the city. The following week, Ill leave as a surprise.
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