There is something with their liver that mammal predators do not eat them ( 30% of body weight). So for a draw station or Boco jackpot not the best bait to use.

They are called Lush here and the number one fish I get asked for when my nets are catching. I only eat live ones, dead ones or froze are rubbery. I never had them smoked or dried, usually just boiled into chowder with a little butter. Folks here eat them frozen a lot. They also clean the intestines out and braid them attached to the head still and it's thrown in the soup there is a story they tell the kids while eating the head, they pick out the head bones that look like shapes of animals for the story.

Dont forget the liver, it's the best part, the eggs too if they have them.

They are excellent cut into small chunks and boil in 7-Up or Sprite. Then dip in a bowl of melted butter....poor man's lobster, and probably tastes better.

Ling poor man's lobster. Some great eating.

This is the best way IMO. I prefer a bit of crushed garlic in my butter.

Looks like what we call a bowfin/grinnel/willow bass/choupique (pronounced shoe pick)

Good when fresh out of the grease but once they cool it is like chewing cotton

Probably kin but definitely not the same

And these give birth to live young and are very protective of the fry, to the point of attacking if you get to close

Maybe similar, but bowfin love shallow weedy warm water, even in summer.

Burbot hang out below 100 feet most of the year, and like cool, cold, clear water

These are a different fish. Most folks herecall Bowfin "Dogfish". As for Hutchy's fish......they have as many names as Bowfin do. I have heard them called Ling, Loush, Lush, Lawyer, Poor man's Lobster, and of course the real name....Burbot. They are snot covered like a Northern Pike, slip, slide and wrap all over your arm when you unhook them, and are very edible. They are an under rated food fish here. I love eating them.

Burbot get big I've seen them up to 25bls

Don't know about smoking them but I would think they would be great.

The NH state record Cusk...caught a couple years ago

35 inch

12.8 lbs

well, we call them lawyer's here, they are great eating fish not much of a fighting fish, we freeze them in ice cream buckets covered in water, they freeze great that way, every bar used to server them in fish fry's.

Eel Pout is what we call them. Like a plague when ice fishing here at the Big Lake. I don’t know anyone who fishes them on purpose !

One species I've never caught or seen caught. We had them in the lake where our cottage was in Muskoka and my dad told us about catching them ice fishing but I never caught one.
I might have to change that this year.

I know some guys here who would rather be seen on a moped with a fat chick than be seen with a lawyer on the line.

We can have 6 cusk lines set...with a 24 hour check.

Just make sure you stick a big hemlock branch in your hole..

So that you can find it the next morning ...if you get a foot of snow

Branches are a good tip for beaver traps also. No one wants to look for traps under 2 feet of snow

Great job, Osky. I've eaten 1000's of pounds. My wife and I developed a real fine rod-and-reel fishery on the Tanana River near Fairbanks, and caught burbot every month of the year. Best bait was red-backed voles or lampreys. We had no problem freezing them, just put the fillets through the food processor and make fish cakes out of them. Just as good as the fresh, unfrozen ones.

Jack

i think they are now protected on mille lacs aint they,new law?stupid.i kinda consider them a bonus on LOTW when walleye fishing,best boiled in 7up and butter.i do remember the days when you would see them sticking out of the snow all over,people would just leave them on the ice