08-06-2007, 07:57 PM
Coot,
I was over in Finland a few years ago and stayed with a friend who took me around with him to several major whitefish processing plants where commercial fishermen brought their catch. All fishermen over there (100%) cut the fish at the base of the gill immediately after being lifted from the water. The fish's heart is pumping the blood right out of them and it does make a difference in what whitefish meat looks like when its time to clean them. In fact some of the commercial outfits prided theirselves on the bleeding method. I tried it when I got back and I was impressed to say the least. The fillets are definitely cleaner (i.e. without blood). Whitefish are a fish with flesh that bruises (bleeds internally) easily and when you put them in a cooler without cutting them, they flop around and beat the snot out of each other which causes blood spots in the meat, not to mention lactic acid build up in the muscle which also causes an off-flavor. The blood does give off a very fishy taste. The only negative thing is your cooler/ice gets full of blood, but that can be rinsed out when you get back to the dock. Not sure how the bleeding-out thing works with other fish who are not as prone to bleeding as whitefish. If you keep them in a fish basket like Tubedude and others, then you probably do not want to bleed them. Better to have them alive instead of "one-eye-to-the-sky" dragging around in 70+ degree water. They then kill the fish right at the cleaning station when they clean so its about the same thing as bleeding them. I don't care for fish baskets though due to the lactic acid build up theory. I like to ice my fish immediately after I catch them. So I guess it all depends on what you do with your fish that you want to keep. Try bleeding them while just prior to putting them in your cooler and I bet you'll be surprised at how well it works.
[signature]
I was over in Finland a few years ago and stayed with a friend who took me around with him to several major whitefish processing plants where commercial fishermen brought their catch. All fishermen over there (100%) cut the fish at the base of the gill immediately after being lifted from the water. The fish's heart is pumping the blood right out of them and it does make a difference in what whitefish meat looks like when its time to clean them. In fact some of the commercial outfits prided theirselves on the bleeding method. I tried it when I got back and I was impressed to say the least. The fillets are definitely cleaner (i.e. without blood). Whitefish are a fish with flesh that bruises (bleeds internally) easily and when you put them in a cooler without cutting them, they flop around and beat the snot out of each other which causes blood spots in the meat, not to mention lactic acid build up in the muscle which also causes an off-flavor. The blood does give off a very fishy taste. The only negative thing is your cooler/ice gets full of blood, but that can be rinsed out when you get back to the dock. Not sure how the bleeding-out thing works with other fish who are not as prone to bleeding as whitefish. If you keep them in a fish basket like Tubedude and others, then you probably do not want to bleed them. Better to have them alive instead of "one-eye-to-the-sky" dragging around in 70+ degree water. They then kill the fish right at the cleaning station when they clean so its about the same thing as bleeding them. I don't care for fish baskets though due to the lactic acid build up theory. I like to ice my fish immediately after I catch them. So I guess it all depends on what you do with your fish that you want to keep. Try bleeding them while just prior to putting them in your cooler and I bet you'll be surprised at how well it works.
[signature]