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CNR is neither hard to clean or eat IMO. Hack off the wings ASAP and ice them down. Filet them either side from the center cartilage line on each wing and marinade overnight in your favorite marinade. Plenty of good youtubes on the subject. Grill it up in slabs and ends up with the consistency akin to pork. Everyone has a different taste profile so obviously opinions vary but my entire extended family has eaten them with no complaints. Guessing if guys are having issues with flavor it was because they weren't bled out quick. Andrew Zimern has cooked them up a few times on Bizzare Foods and Wegmans in VA still carries them on occasion btw..
One last word of warning to you though. Bleeding them out is a straight mess and not for the squeamish. It's best done when the ray is alive and they are about as hard to put down as a bluecat if that paints a picture for you. I look at it like this though... Something has to eat them to keep the Bay/Rivers in balance and not enough sharks to do it so bon appetite.
Edit... the video shows cleaning off the whole ray but you get the picture here. I like to cut the wings off completely and ice them down good so they are stiff and filet easy. Also, you'd have to be bat a$$ crazy to bring a CNR in the yak with you. Catch em from land or wrangle them to shore and dispatch. Some are easy going and others go straight crazy when they hit the deck.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fv9QKcRfCU
One last word of warning to you though. Bleeding them out is a straight mess and not for the squeamish. It's best done when the ray is alive and they are about as hard to put down as a bluecat if that paints a picture for you. I look at it like this though... Something has to eat them to keep the Bay/Rivers in balance and not enough sharks to do it so bon appetite.
Edit... the video shows cleaning off the whole ray but you get the picture here. I like to cut the wings off completely and ice them down good so they are stiff and filet easy. Also, you'd have to be bat a$$ crazy to bring a CNR in the yak with you. Catch em from land or wrangle them to shore and dispatch. Some are easy going and others go straight crazy when they hit the deck.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fv9QKcRfCU
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