Pogies are what the fishermen use for bait — but your great-grandmother's people smoked them for food and rendered their oil for cooking. This is a fish so full of omega-3s that the entire commercial fish oil supplement industry is essentially built on rendering menhaden oil at industrial scale. Your ancestors knew to eat the fish itself.
The tradition of smoking pogies for food and rendering their oil is documented in Black coastal communities throughout the Gulf South — a subsistence practice that predates commercial fish oil production. Omega-3 fish oil is a $1+ billion supplement industry built on what Black coastal families consumed directly as food.
Gulf menhaden oil has the highest omega-3 concentration of any commercially significant fish — 1.5-2.0g EPA+DHA per 3oz serving. The EPA:DHA ratio in menhaden (approximately 1:1.2) is optimal for combined anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects — EPA reduces the inflammatory cytokines that drive vascular aging while DHA supports hippocampal plasticity and reduces cortisol receptor hypersensitivity in the stress response pathway. CoQ10 content from the mitochondria-dense oily flesh is relevant to the energy production deficits in cardiac muscle — CoQ10 depletion is accelerated by statin use, which is prescribed at high rates in Black Americans with hyperlipidemia. Vitamin D at 600-800 IU per serving approaches the daily requirement — addressing the 70%+ Black American Vitamin D deficiency that impairs renin-angiotensin blood pressure regulation.
Fresh menhaden require immediate preparation — the high oil content causes rapid degradation. Gut, salt, and smoke over hardwood for 4-6 hours at low temperature (200-225F). Alternatively, salt-pack and dry as a preserved fish for soup bases and flavoring. The smoked fish can be picked and added to soups, stews, and greens as a flavor base replacing smoked meat products. The oil rendered during smoking can be collected and used as a cooking fat.
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