Fish not tasting right

I have a problem with some of my fish guys. Every so often when I get fish from the freezer to thaw them, when I take them from the bag there is a chemical smell almost like chlorine coming from the bag. They end up tasting the same way. I just can't seem to figure it out. Here is what I do after catching them.....After filleting I put them in salt water to soak in the fridge and change the water the second day, rinse them off and freeze in ziplock gallon baggies filled with enough water to cover the fillets. I put them in the deep freezer until thaw time and I let them thaw in the fridge. Any ideas out there?

Hey, Mike. Are all of these fish coming from the same body of water? My first thought would be it having something to do with the water the fish are caught from. If that is not it, I would have no clue.

Wonder if you tried distilled water if that would help, at times I seem to have a more chlorine smell in our water every now and then.

That could be the answer. I just fliet mine and fill the ziplock bag with water and getting ALL of the air out. No smell that I can tell

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by DonDon

That could be the answer. I just fliet mine and fill the ziplock bag with water and getting ALL of the air out. No smell that I can tell

---

Yeah, sometimes the water does have a chlorine smell, dang city water. I do get all of the air out and all of my fish come from the same lake, but not all of the fish taste that way. I think I may try narrowing it down this spring by trying a few different methods. Could too much salt cause it? I usually sprinkle some salt in with the fillets on the first soaking.

Mike, the only time that mine smell a little funky is when they have been in the freezer too long. That's not really a chlorine smell, though.

I assume that we are on the same water system and I have never noticed it with mine.

I don't put any salt in my water when I freeze.

You aren't having unknown freezer issues, are you?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Quackrstackr

Mike, the only time that mine smell a little funky is when they have been in the freezer too long. That's not really a chlorine smell, though.

I assume that we are on the same water system and I have never noticed it with mine.

I don't put any salt in my water when I freeze.

You aren't having unknown freezer issues, are you?

---

No issues with the freezer. I think it's probably the salt or the water. The fish don't tasted or smell spoiled, they just have a slight chlorine or chemical smell and taste, but what has me stumped is it's not all of them. It seems like just a bag or so out of 4 or 5. It's got to be me doing something, I just can't figure it out. I'm going to try cutting out the salt and see what that does. We are on the same water system, but on the opposite sides of town so that might make them different, but I'm not sure.

just vacuum seal them it keeps the fillets fresher and you wont have any issues such as your having now

Freezing them in water is the culprit! Get yourself a good vacuum sealer and forget about water. You will have more space in the freezer and your fillets will stay fresh tasting much longer.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by feelay

Freezing them in water is the culprit! Get yourself a good vacuum sealer and forget about water. You will have more space in the freezer and your fillets will stay fresh tasting much longer.

---

I have a vacuum sealer, but have you bought the bags lately? They are EXPENSIVE to say the least......but hey, I might have to do that if the water is the culprit.

I hear ya Mike. The expence is worth it to me. You can wash them and re-use.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by feelay

I hear ya Mike. The expence is worth it to me. You can wash them and re-use.

---

I didn't think about reusing them......Thanks.

I think I may have figured it out when cleaning some crappie yesterday. Normally my wife fills a gallon jug up with water to change the son's fish tank with. She normally leaves the cap off and lets it sit for 24 hours to allow the chlorine to "evarorate" out of the water as to not hurt the fish.

When I put my fish in the fridge I usually put a top on the container to keep the fridge from getting fish smelly. Maybe keeping the top on the tupperware prevents the chlorine from escaping and it goes into the fish fillets....what do you guys think? Do you guys cover your fish when you let them soak before freezing?

I don't cover mine in the fridge but the water that goes in the ziploc comes straight out of the tap and into the freezer.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Quackrstackr

I don't cover mine in the fridge but the water that goes in the ziploc comes straight out of the tap and into the freezer.

---

Hmmmm, back to the drawing board I guess.

sounds to me ike it is your water supply...........how do the fish taste if you cook them fresh? what does your water taste like straight from the faucet, better yet, an ice cube?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mepperson

No issues with the freezer. I think it's probably the salt or the water. The fish don't tasted or smell spoiled, they just have a slight chlorine or chemical smell and taste, but what has me stumped is it's not all of them. It seems like just a bag or so out of 4 or 5. It's got to be me doing something, I just can't figure it out. I'm going to try cutting out the salt and see what that does. We are on the same water system, but on the opposite sides of town so that might make them different, but I'm not sure.

---

I do mine the same way, soak in salt water then rinse off & freeze in water. Try soaking them in milk a couple of hours after you thaw them. Don't remember where I heard this but I have been doing it for years & it seems to help, even after they have been in the freezer a long time.

Why freeze in salt water? Salt's chemical elements are NaCl. Guess what the Cl is ......chlorine... May be the problem.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by BlackWidow

Why freeze in salt water? Salt's chemical elements are NaCl. Guess what the Cl is ......chlorine... May be the problem.

---

Don't freeze in salt water, soak overnight then rinse off & freeze in plain water.

I would bet it on the city water, if that is what you have. Just try buying a few gallons of spring water and freezing them in that. Might be a relatively cheap solution.

Try this. Bag some up WITH NO SALT but use normal water supply and then bag some with NO SALT and USE BOTTLED WATER (go buy a couple of gallons for this test). Put a big X on the No salt and a check mark on the no salt, different water and them. Then un-thaw the fish and see if there's a difference.

Why in the world are you soaking them in saltwater anyway?

Yes if you let the tap water sit out for a few minutes the chlorine will be gone. Also human flesh soaks chlorine up so why not fish flesh? Test your water to see how much chlorine is in it.

Saltwater doesnt have the same freezing point as water..it actually has to be cooler to freeze. Could it be they are partially thawing if the temp in your freezer rises (although still below freezing for your other products)? I agree though.. I wouldnt freeze in salt water.

I haven't checked this thread in a while so let me point out a few things:

1. I do not freeze them in salt water, I just soak them in it to remove some of the blood, they get rinsed and then frozen with enough water to cover the fillets.
2. My water and ice cubes taste fine and it is city water.
3. This funny taste only occurs every once in a while even though I do the same thing each time.
4. Fresh fish never have a bad taste so I think it is somewhere in the process.

Since my last post I started vacuum packing my crappie and will be testing the taste later this summer. I have also started using a different cooler if I have to leave them on ice for any amount of time. Thanks for all of the ideas guys.

Try thawing by soaking. Gently running cold water and continuing to change cold water over the fish as they thaw, instead of thawing in refrigerator, when ready to cook. Sorta like thawing frozen shrimp. It thaws better in cold water. Too, if you freeze in water, which is the way my granma taught me, be sure that the crappie are completely covered in water, utherwise, they will have an anmonia taste.

ive had good luck for years with this method wash filets after cleaning put them in a plastic bowl refridgerate overnight pour water out the next day rinse and put in plastic bags with water never use salt

It's the salt that makes it taste like chlorine. Salt is Sodium Chloride and it's the chloride that is the culprit easpecially when soaked in the solution for any length of time. Also, one way to remove a bad taste from fish is by soaking the fish in milk for an hour.

Keep a gallon or two uncapped jug of tap water in your house, the chlorine in the water will dissipate in a matter of hours and can be used to bag fillets. I do this for watering my indoor plants.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by sac-a-lait

Also human flesh soaks chlorine up so why not fish flesh?

---

How much human-steak do you have in your freezer and what's your best recipe? :eek:

I just rinse and put them a good gallon size freezer bag. I neve use salt or bag in water and I have never had a problem