Filleting and transporting

[Trig]

Ive recently taken to trying to fish from my kayak,sea fishing.
If i was to catch and fillet some mackeral while out, what would be the best way of getting it home.

Can i just fillet it and chuck it into some sealable bags/tupperware, or does it have to be on ice?


And whilst im at it, how do you determine where a river ends and the sea starts for legal purposes?
Is there a map showing these boundaries?
Probably fairly obvious most places, but im trying to find out for the River Clyde estuary and cant seem to find much info.

 

[Janne]

Mackerel is really tricky, as it goes off very quickly.

When we fish ( including mackerel) in the Lofotens summertime, we chuck the fish in a large plastic through to bleed out.
All except the mackerel, that one goes into a large cooler that has ice in it. It can lie there and bleed out. When they die, the ones destined for food I go and straighten them out and place them beneath the ice.
The added benefit them being in a lidded container is that the boat does not get so dirty either, as mackerel jump around a lot while bleeding out.

I hate mackerel that is not 100% perfect.

When we lived in UK, I was unable to find fresh mackerel, to my taste all fishmongers including supermarkets, sold mackerel that was ‘off’, by a long way.

 

[Janne]

Having a box with ice in has another benefit, you can store your beverage and sandwiches there, cold and safe.

 

[Robson Valley]

Best to ask locally where the "Tide-water Limit" is located.
Here in BC, it's quite arbitrary and is defined by some really obvious landmark = no logic at all.

 

[dazcon]

Most of the Clyde estuary is covered under the river Leven and Loch Lomond permit. Bailiffs do patrol it. It only covers salmon and sea trout. You can pretty much fish anywhere you like for sea fish but the further up the river you come the less mackerel you will encounter. I clean my fish then bag them and keep them out of the sun.

 

[Janne]

Trig: if you are one of us that love to eat fish Sashimi style ( raw) I recommend you take some Wasabi paste and a small bottle of Tamari sauce.

Bleed the fish as soon as you catch it for a cleaner flavour.

I can polish off two Mackerel as soon as I catch them!

 

[Trig]

Never tried it raw, but i dont fancy it. I have tried wasabi flavoured something before, and thats not for me either. Good old fried, or battered is the way for me. I dont eat alot of fish tbh, but i do enjoy it. Figured if i can catch some fish its another skill worth learning, and could possibly make a tasty meal on a multiday kayak trip.

Box with ice would be handy, but i dont have alot of room on the kayak itself. So was thinking more along the lines of an insulated coolbag if that would keep them for maybe 4-5 hours till i got home if on a singleday trip.

Most of the Clyde estuary is covered under the river Leven and Loch Lomond permit. Bailiffs do patrol it. It only covers salmon and sea trout. You can pretty much fish anywhere you like for sea fish but the further up the river you come the less mackerel you will encounter. I clean my fish then bag them and keep them out of the sun.

So theres no magical line across the clyde where i suddenly need a river permit for fishing from my kayak then? I launched under the erskine bridge before for a paddle, but i figured that was classed as river so would need a permit if i intended to fish there. I saw some people fishing from the raised walls further up river, which is what got me thinking about sea vs river.

Like you say probably not really sea fish further up, but its all new to me so im just trying to work out whats legal and whats not. I was told before that some river permits cover a mile out into their estuary. Its all rather confusing for a beginner to be honest
Im still trying to not strangle myself every time i look at the fishing reel, and lure selection is just lucky dip

 

[Janne]

Coolbag with a bit of ice is perfect too!

If cooked, I find wood roasted (?) mackerel is fantastic. The heat makes much of the fat melt away.

Mackerel is a hugely undervalued fish!

Lures - pick the ones that look like fish to you!

I like the Finnish lures Rapala, the silvery one with grey-blue back. A lot of North Atlantic fish bite on it.

A rule an old professional fisherman in Norway taught me: the quality of the fish starts to go down rapidly if the fish is kept in temperatures above the water it came from.
The first part to go bad is the blood.

 

[dazcon]

As long as you don't have any dead salmon or sea trout there wont be a problem. The area you talk about can fish well. Plenty of big flounder, a few codling,big mullet in the summer and I'm hearing that small bass are starting to show up. Mackerel are few and far between until you get down to Port Glasgow.

 

[santaman2000]

I just throw the fish (whole) into the cooler and clean then later. Actually it's mandatory in Florida that fish be kept whole until you leave for inspection by the Game Wardens to ensure compliance with bag and size limits.

 

[Janne]

No bleeding?

 

[santaman2000]

No

 

[Janne]

Bad rule then.

 

[santaman2000]

Why? Nobody bleeds fish anyway.

 

[Janne]

No? The vast majority of the Skrei cod is bled. Hence the pure white flesh, clean taste and a premium the customer pays!

Try it yourself next time you fish. Bleed one anf do not bleed another. Cook and taste the difference.

Blood is the first thing that goes bad, and in the OP’s case, where he can not chill the catch quickly, can make a big difference.

 

[santaman2000]

We don't have cod.

 

[Janne]

I do it to snapper ( red, black) and Tuna too.
Tuna is very similar to Mackerel. Wonderful to catch, wonderful to eat!

 

[Billy-o]

Mackerel raw is lovely, but I find that most of the Japanese restaurant stuff here now tends to taste more like rollmop herring, it being so soused in sugar and vinegar.So, you kind of have to make it yourself

Give it a go if you haven't tried it. It really is very good ... just off the top of my head can't think of another raw fish that I prefer to it.

Horse mackerel, which isn't the same, is good too. Nice and strong.

 

[santaman2000]

I haven't been lucky enough (or maybe I should say "good" enough) to catch a tuna yet. However I ice all my saltwater catch immediately/ For freshwater I either ice them immediately or keep them live on a stringer or in a live well.

 

[Janne]

Good? In fishing I think "luck" is a better expression! For me at least!

Mackerel and the other 'tuna' family are fantastic fighters. I use a 010 mono line and silver lures for mackerel..

The mackerel used for Sushi is fermented or something? I hate it too, it tastes 'off' to me.

Many people do not like Mackerel because of the stronger taste. I was tought a trick by a friend this year, which is to remove that dark meat that is around the midline on each side before you cook it. Fiddly though! Wife is not 100% in favour of Mackerel, but she enjoyed it with the dark bit removed.