Anyone know how long it takes for a ungutted fish to go bad? I dont mean just crappie or bream but other fish as well.
thanks
Mike
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Anyone know how long it takes for a ungutted fish to go bad? I dont mean just crappie or bream but other fish as well.
thanks
Mike
I have kept fish on ice for over a week in a cooler. Just make sure you keep the water drained off otherwise the fish tend to get mussy. The fish you get at the store most likely were kept longer than that on the commerical boat. Never had any problems. Most of the time the fish are easier to clean because they are firmer.
I Agree With Redeye.
John B.
I heard/read/thought or something that if the gills are still red, the meat is still good. Anyway, thats what I've always gone by and I ain't dead yet.
This is the method I use and it has worked for years, never had a bad bunch yet...Quote:
Originally Posted by IBNFSHN
I've always went by looking at the color of the gills. When their gills turn white I consider them spoiled. I use this as an indicator on all fish.:)
That is good to know about the gills... As mine are usually flippen accross the kitchen when I break out the electric fillet knife:D
Same here.Quote:
Originally Posted by IBNFSHN
Come on guys,1 week ungutted??They start the process of decay the moment they expire,ice will slow it down but not stop it.
I'll go 48 hours if put on ice immediatly-now if the organs and digestive tract are removed,I'll guess up to a week is fine.
Hospitals are getting too expensive to take a chance.
Quote:
Originally Posted by IBNFSHN
same here = 40+ years
Mine are never around long enough to question it! :D
I'm not real fond of fish sitting on ice more than a day. I like to get them cleaned and soak the fillets in cold water and a little salt.
I'm with you freeflow 23, A WEEK? thats gross. CHATCHUM-GUTUM-FRYUM!!!
I ahev heard that if the eyes are clerar still they are good.Once they go cloudy then dont consume.Never heard about the gills , I'll remember that.
I've had times after a hard night's fishin that I've had to let the fish stay on ice overnight while I rested up. Camping trips where there's too many fish to eat in one day, I'll clean them and then keep on ice for a day or two. That's about it. When I worked with my dad on a tuna boat, we iced the fish for up to 5 days at sea and the fish was not frozen but it didn't spoil. The main thing is keep it clean and cold until cooked. If you have no way to keep your fish iced down, don't catch more than you can eat or smoke that day.
all of the thousands of fish that i have caught were "un-gutted". as long as i took proper care of them till i got em in the freezer they were ok!! hahaha seriously, tho, fish is one protein that you will find more palate-pleasing the sooner it is taken care of. get out the knife!!!
prefer cleaned same day, bagged and iced up to 3 days or it's time for the freezer.
Before I was a "family man" I used give most of my fish to friends and keep enough to eat at least 3 maybe 4 meals on and would keep them in the frig and take out a few to cook until they were gone...usually about a week or so and I would change the water out daily and never really saw much difference in taste, texture, and never got sick.....now the wife frowns on me leaving my fish in the house.......go figure!!!
dunno about a whole week, but I have kept them on ice for 4 days without any sign of spoilage whatso ever !!! , the whole key to keeping the fish fresh is to keep the water drained off daily . IF you keep the water drained & plenty of ice, they look & taste just as fresh as the day they are caught
i've keep uncleaned fish for 4-5 months without any problems...........but they were all frozen. i was told long ago to keep fish from freezer burn not to clean them until you need them. i've since tried and still do freeze whole fish when i am too tired to clean or have too many to clean. just rinse and packed them to the freezer, thaw in water and you have fish that looks like they were just caught that day.
as for keeping fish uncleaned and not frozen, i would say 4-5 days with ice and keeping the water/slime drained out.
Now THERE is a problem I'd like to have!!!!!Quote:
Originally Posted by tomkat
I clean them within a couple hours of when I get 'em. Fillets either go right in the freezer or the deep fryer.
I now carry a 12 volt knife in the boat in the boat with baggies. I do not like to lose a good fish to its white gills. I will not chance a spoiled fish!
I am like most and cathc them, cut them, and eat them or freeze them. I was told by a guide years ago that 24 hours is about it. I fished all day and caught a bunch. Drove half the night to get home. Got home and went to sleep. Woke up and cleaned the fish. The gills were red but they had changed from their natural color. Don't know what it meant and I did eat them but I don't do that anymore. I cut em pretty quick just incase. Throwing up or crapping all over my boat is not a fun day on the water so I practice safe fish eatting.
I always ice my fish down to kill them and clean them the next day. I've never fussed over draining the water off the ice, I figure they're fish, and they just came out of the water, were perfectly created to live in the water, pretty much water proof, so what's the harm? From there it's either the freezer or fryer.
I keep mine in a bucket of water in a designated fish refrigerator. The frig is a pretty good cooler. I figure if it freezes my beer, then it prob freezes the fishes butt too. Water bucket usually freezes over. I watch the gills. Chilled fish are easier to fillet and by far a lot less bloody mess. 2 days max. You can catch live fish with cloudy eyes, especially a previously caught fish.
THIS COMES FROM A PROFESSIONAL COMMERCIAL FISHERMAN IN LOUISIANA
He told me that fish can be kept for 2 days on ice legally, and 5 days with a brine mixture. This is the standard at which the health department says its safe to keep fish chilled before cleaning. Although laws vary depending on what type of fish your catching. On professional fishing vessels, they are out at sea sometimes days or a week at a time without stopping to clean fish.
Rule of thumb is that crushed ice actually keeps fish colder than cubed ice. If keeping fish longer than 24 hours, it is recommended to sprinkle the ice with lots of salt. The salt actually drops the temperature even more, as we all know from making home-made ice cream.
Also, its the bacteria that grow on the fish after it dies that can make you sick. The feces and undigested food in the body cavity begin to breakdown even though it is on ice. The ice itself just slows the process, and obviously the colder it is the slower the bacteria will grow.
A good way to tell if fish is spoiling is if the gills have lost their red color, then the fluids in the fish's body have begun to breakdown. When the gills turn mostly white or brownish yellow, it is not recommended to eat them at that point.
I like to fillet the fish I keep as soon as possible. I would never put them 'on ice' and fillet the next day. (live on the lake, so keep them in a live box)
Went out today, trolled for 'dinner' catching about 20 small white bass and keeping 3 that were a little over 12 inches. Put them in the live box, went and worked in the yard for a couple of hours, had lunch, then went down to the dock, filleted them, getting all of the red meat out and placed the fillets in salty ice water, which will firm them up, and into the fridge.
Was fishing on Lake Wabesa in Madison, Wisconsin, a few years ago and was talking at the campgrounds to this older couple. They had caught a big mess of crappie. The guy told me the way he kept his fish was to freeze them whole--about 5 in a bag. When they want to eat some fish, he takes a bag out of the freezer, cleans them :eek: , and fries them up! Now I do not think I could do that!
that is the way i have always done it cloudy eyes bad fish.i like em flip floping around when the blade runs down there back bone.Quote:
Originally Posted by big "E"
Yep. That's what I like!Quote:
Originally Posted by crappie tracker
How long will they keep? I left some, by mistake, 4 days...:(
Sometimes when fishing a whole weekend I will put them in a big cooler covered with crushed ice and sprinkle some rock salt on top. They are nearly frozen and still very fresh when removed. By the time you get them out and get ready to filet they have warmed up just enough to make the meat easily to filet.Quote:
Originally Posted by Team M&M
Just keep the water drained several times a day. I will prop my cooler up on it's side to make sure it drains completely.
You can also layer fish/ice etc for a multiday trip.
In the summer, in Texas we usually have to put them on ice instead of a live well, even a good one. I fish year around but try to fill the freezer during the winter. I believe the fish tend to be a little meatier as well.
Always funny to tell folks that "Yeah we caught around 30 to 40 keepers today", "Wow bet you had some fileting to do", "Naw we didn't keep any".
:D