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I went crappie fishing for the first time in ages yesterday and caught enough for a decent meal. I had them in my livewell while I was fishing and then let the water drain out for the ride home with the fish still in it. Three hours later I opened the livewell expecting to find a pile of dead fish, but to my surprise, they were still flopping around even after all this time with out water. What do you guy do with the fish in between the time you catch them and the time you start filleting?
Put em on ice, either during the day or for that ride home. I've done like you - kept them alive in the livewell (in case i wanted to toss some smaller ones back) but hate to deal with them floppy things when i get home. Dumping a bag of ice on them for the ride home does the trick.
And...welcome to the forum!
Thanks Wasabi.
Crappie are without a doubt the best tasting fish I've eaten.
If they will stay alive in a cooler of water (during winter and early spring) that's what I use. During hotter weather I use ice also. I pull fresh living fish from the cooler straight onto the fillet board. I dont dispatch 'em to fillet 'em.;):)
I keep 'em in a bucket of water till I get home, then dispatch them one at a time on the way from the bucket to the fillet board with a "bonk" from my trusty old billy-club.
Billy club for a crappie? NY crappie must be alot bigger than the ones in Texas...just pull'em out, grab fillet knife and get to work regardless if they're alive or dead. But to each their own...
I fillet mine live or in the summer I use ice to keep them from spoiling. I never wondered about a fishes feelings only how good they taste. My mom when she used to fish years ago would only fillet a fish after she hit it above the eyes with pliers.:eek: I suspect she thought she killed them but they always flopped after the smack.;)
you'll wind up ahead in the end if you ice them down first. If your using a livewell, drop a bag of ice in after your done fishing for the ride home.
If you dont wanna bother with the ice, wrap them in a bag and drop them in the freezer(assuming you have a large freezer) for about 10-20 minutes.
Chilling the fish makes them far easier to fillet, and you'll scrape up a bit more meat off of them that way as well. It also keeps them from flopping around so much. Alot of the places i fish are very close to the fish cleaning station, so i just ice down the fish as i go.
Do be mindful however, the solid frozen fish are not easy to clean. Really only happens when ice fishing.
HB:cool:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Breambuster
Oh yeah!!! We get 'em 25"-30" around here. We use bass for bait instead of minners! LOL!!!!
Seriously though, I bonk them so they stay still for me while they're on the fillet board. I just find it easier if they ain't flopping around. I do the same for any species of fish when they get to the fillet board. It has reduced the number of times I need the first-aid kit :)
As soon as i get home I put mine in 5 gal bucket with City water ,It gets most of them and helps with the slim!
Rowdy
another vote for iced down. if they die cold you get alot less blood in the meat.
Mine go staright from the live well to the cleaning table. I like them alive.
I'm another one that filets them alive. Although, the way you described your crappie after that long without water.... I'm thinking yours are WAY heartier than ours! Our crappie die pretty fast outside of water. You sure your crappie didn't have whiskers?? :)
I prefer them iced down if I'm fileting them. On the other hand, it is much easier to scale them if they are fresh and alive.
Someone just showed this to me and I like this. Take a knife and stick it inside the gill plate and right behind the gills. Go all the way through. This will bleed the fish out. I do this in the live well and the water will be red, but the blood drains right out. When you fillet them the meat will be very white and will be free from blood spots.
i put a bag of ice in a cooler, put some lake water in the cooler to make a slush and toss my fish in em as i catch em.
If you want the whitest filets, fully cover the fish in crushed ice and allow them to die a slow death. The blood will move from the muscle back into the vital organs as the fish fades, leaving the filets firm and white. Less mess when you filet them out as well. Just be sure that the fish are completely covered in ice. I've left them iced up to 12 hours. The eyes should remain clear and the body color should have changed very little if you iced them properly. Good luck!
I have an ice chest in my truck. When I load the boat I drain the wells. Then I just grab them and throw them in the ice chest and clean them when I get home.
Yep, that's what I do to, but not until I get to the cleaning table. Bleeding them makes the final cleaning of the fillets much easier.Quote:
Originally Posted by ricky
dave