LAKE HENSHAW – A transplant from Moscow, Mikhail Nakhmanovich can't understand Americans' lack of appreciation for carp.
"In Russia, we consider it very tasty fish," said Nakhmanovich (pronounced Nack-man-o-vich). "American people don't like this fish, but to me, it's tastier than trout."
Nakhmanovich, 80, and his fishing partner, Ura Glosman, 72, another Russian immigrant, worked the Lake Henshaw shoreline recently for some fine stringers of carp. Considered a junk fish by many American anglers, carp is a delicacy in many other cultures, including many Eastern European countries.
"In Russia, we drive 1,500 kilometers to fish for carp," Nakhmanovich said. "Here, the drive is not so long."
Both San Diegans now, the anglers have carp fishing down to a science. They use long saltwater poles and reels loaded with 14-pound test line.
"Carp are very strong fish," Nakhmanovich said.
They also have their own recipe for doughballs, a special bait they use to entice carp into biting. Nakhmanovich mixes cornmeal and corn flour and boils it. He then cooks kasha separately before mixing it with the cornmeal and corn flour, along with a tablespoon of wheat flour and one tablespoon of sugar. The concoction forms a doughball that has good consistency and texture and stays on treble or even single hooks.
But that's not all of their tricks. When Nakhmanovich puts the doughball on the hook, he sometimes tops it with a little dab of peanut butter.
Many East Coast carp fishermen use Karo syrup instead of sugar. Everyone has his own secret ingredient. Some even throw in some garlic.
Nakhmanovich said he had to convince his wife that carp tastes good if prepared correctly.
"When I clean the fish and present it to her, she takes it and grinds it, like hamburger," he said. "She adds oils and fried onions and maybe an egg or two. Then she makes patties out of them, cutlets, and fries them in a pan. This fish, she eats. But she won't eat other fish."
Nakhmanovich said he and Glosman "present" their fish to many others in their neighborhood, to both friends and relatives. They're very popular guys when they return from Henshaw or Lake Wohlford, their two favorite carp fishing spots in the county.
