# Sweep ............sweet !



## solatree (May 30, 2008)

I picked up a nice Sweep plus a couple of Snapper on the weekend. We've eaten Sweep before and thought they were pretty good so it was kept for the table along with the snapper.








Cooked them all up yesterday for the family, filleted and shallowed fried after being coated in egg and salt and vinegar bread crumbs and served with potato wedges. Good old fasioned fish'nChips. The Snapper was expectedly nice but the family concensus was that the Sweep was even better...unexpectedly delicious... yummo. 

Any other fans of Sweep as a table fish out there ?


----------



## solatree (May 30, 2008)

Gatesy said:


> They don't fight badly either, how did the 30cm one fight?
> cheers
> Gatesy


Yep, pound for pound, Sweep are great fighters. I thought I had a legal snapper initially (ie 38cms+). We get some pretty nice sized Sweep off South Oz (up to 40cms+) and they are a popular rock species. But the bigger ones are usually offshore or in more remote areas. I got this one took a half pilchard on a 3/0 hook but I've also caught them on SPs and HB lures before







. 
Legal size in SA is 24cms.


----------



## john316 (Jan 15, 2009)

coule of years ago was out with a friend in his stinker and caught a matched pair of very large sweep out where we were chasing snapper. Caught on an overhead boat rod combo and it was not just a case of "wind them in". Both were big, fat and heavy in the 40cm category and I remember them as being very good as a table fish. Soft white flesh that was sweet as and would be more than willing to catch more of them on the light tackle I use on the yak but they haven't come out to play... Suprisingly beautiful tucker...

cheers

John


----------



## anselmo (Aug 26, 2008)

totally tasty

butter bream are even better
especially when they get to a pound or so in weight
caught off the rocks on fresh conjevoi
good sport good eating
whats not to like


----------



## grinner (May 15, 2008)

hay sola, catch em off the seaway but never any size to em. 
funny little mouths they have.

congrats on yours


----------



## robbiew (Jul 27, 2008)

Don't mind a feed of sweep myself. Plentifull off the southern nsw coast berly up and watch the trail, no sinker and light tackle a great little fighter up to 40cms and fat. The banded sweep off the Vic. southern coast is slightly different and superb eating. They are much sought after off the cliffs from apollo bay to port campbell. Poor buggers have been much maligned, often refered as the carp of the sea,. good hunting cheers Robbie .P.S. sitting here looking at a bitch of a sea belting hell out of a trawler sheltering in the lee of an island for the last 2 days, turn up the heater and look forward to better weather.


----------



## Squidder (Sep 2, 2005)

Nice sweep andrew  I'm also a sweep eater, used to chase them a lot when I lived in Vic on line and with the spear, great fighters and great tucker.


----------



## solatree (May 30, 2008)

leftieant said:


> The key for us was they had to be super-fresh (same day fish).


Thats what I'd heard about Sweep too - but my catch was taken at about 10am on satuday - gutted and on ice by 11.30am - filleted and skinned Sunday arvo - cooked and eaten tuesday night. I wasn't expecting it to be as good as it was after more than 3 days after it was caught. So I reckon the trick is looking after your catch and getting it cold and on ice as soon as possible. Having said that, it is true that even taking care, some fish still keep better than others.


----------



## Ubolt (Dec 8, 2009)

Yeah i dont mind eating sweep best eaten fresh tho
there are actually two varieties found in SA the Sea Sweep which is very common and the banded sweep not so common
the banded sweep are even better eating in my opinion the key differences are the band (derr) and a longer dorsal fin


----------



## justcrusin (Oct 1, 2006)

Yeap use to get lots of them in my beach fishing days, up around one mile beach / anna bay they use to be big enough for a feed and were always quite tasty. I use to go for the wrapped in foil with a bit of white wine for them.

Cheers Dave


----------

