The Traditional Fisherman's Forum

This is a screen shot taken from the film Passport to Pimlico and John Slater is trying to sell Barbara Murray something better than cod fillets, a 4lb Common Bream. Personally I have not tasted Bream but they appeared to be readily available post war. Has anyone in TFFLand ever tried Bream?

Yes - and roach and perch and pike. Plus zander in France!

I caught and baked a roach as a kid - very tasty - rather like a sea bream or bass shape - but bony!

Perch was too small and the bream and pike was like eating bones and more bones! Highly NOT recommended!!

In France zander (sandre) is delicacy and always on the menu in the local restaurants along with an eel, frog's legs and snail stew!

Not tried any bream but I do love a bit of smoked eel...food of the Gods!

My grandfather once boiled a tench and ate it..... he was not impressed. But look at the old paintings of kitchen scenes from years back, they ate all coarse fish in those days.

Great film Passport to Pimlico

RBTraditional wrote: ↑Wed Jan 17, 2018 5:57 pm Not tried any bream but I do love a bit of smoked eel...food of the Gods!

I'd agree with you on smoked eels, even better than smoked salmon in my opinion. It's getting harder to find and costlier, and I'm not sure how comfortable I am eating a critically endangered species.

That is a very delicate topic to discuss. Last time something similar came up, the thread has been deleted.

Some of you might know, that in Germany catch and release is against the law (in theory at least). So a German traditional fisherman would have to eat the coarse fish he catches to avoid beeing a criminal. But there are many ways to justify the release of a fish - it has slipped off the net, it was too small, it was caught during spawning season, ...

Hello, I'm Martin, I'm a German traditional angler and I eat coarse fish (and I break the law more often than not).
The bream is a species that would slip off my net. It is very tasty prepared as fish cakes, but you'd have to kill a fair amount of bream to get enough filets to work with. I wouldn't do that.
Smoked bream is considered to be a delicacy in some parts of Germany. There are still a few commercial fishermen on the lakes of the alpine upland and on some rivers who are allowed to use nets and fish traps. They prepare and sell their catch.
https://chiemseefische.de/shop/alles-fi ... raeuchert/

My transgression was back in the late 50's!

Now I very seldom fish for still-water trout, rainbow or browns, as I do not eat them. Salmon I am not allowed to take here in the south. So all coarse fish are safe from me - and most game fish as well.

In Vendee, France a catch return is required when eel fishing from both rod and line angles and professional fisherman. Smoked eel being a regional delicacy along with frogs legs and snails.

This is also in the Fishing Regulations:--
Eel Fishing in 2017
The Eel fishery follows a specific regulation which is likely to be modified during the year according to the obligations related to the European safeguarding plan.