On Sunday I went fishing on the Helena Valley Regulating Reservoir near Helena, Montana, and caught ten kokanee between 13.5 and 16 inches long. On any other lake in Montana, the smallest kokanee I caught would be an amazing lunker, but by the end of the summer I should be catching even bigger kokanee on the Regulating Reservoir. (I keep the fish on ice in a cooler while fishing, but put them on a stringer and gutted them before leaving the lake and heading home).
(http://i1094.photobucket.com/albums/i444/pmmpete/P6212772a_zps5sjukest.jpg) (http://s1094.photobucket.com/user/pmmpete/media/P6212772a_zps5sjukest.jpg.html)
I smoked some of them, using a modified version of the Sweet Teriyaki recipe from the Haugens' book on Smoking Salmon and Steelhead. They came out very tasty.
(http://i1094.photobucket.com/albums/i444/pmmpete/P6232793a_zps0h8h4ick.jpg) (http://s1094.photobucket.com/user/pmmpete/media/P6232793a_zps0h8h4ick.jpg.html)
(http://i1094.photobucket.com/albums/i444/pmmpete/P6232804a_zpsskl4xzeh.jpg) (http://s1094.photobucket.com/user/pmmpete/media/P6232804a_zpsskl4xzeh.jpg.html)
I froze the rest for cooking, which may seem like a waste of perfectly good fish to die-hard smokers, but kokanee is also great cooked.
(http://i1094.photobucket.com/albums/i444/pmmpete/P6232794a_zpsqt8t9dkx.jpg) (http://s1094.photobucket.com/user/pmmpete/media/P6232794a_zpsqt8t9dkx.jpg.html)
Have you tried freezing fish in water vice vac seal? I have had less issues with freezer burn and better fresh taste by freezing in water. Especially for long term storage.
Quote from: Wildcat on June 24, 2015, 07:32:15 AM
Have you tried freezing fish in water vice vac seal? I have had less issues with freezer burn and better fresh taste by freezing in water. Especially for long term storage.
I used to freeze fish for cooking in water in the manner which I described in a posting at http://www.northwestkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=15240.0 . This turned into a long and pretty interesting thread, which persuaded me to try vacuum packing fish before I freeze them for cooking. After I try vacuum packing for a year or so, I'll decide whether to stick with it or go back to freezing fish in water.
However, I never froze smoked fish in water, because that would re-hydrate it and dissolve out the salt. I've always vacuum packed my smoked fish.
When I do fish, bacon, sausage just before vacuum sealing the bag I will add two or three Oxygen Absorbers packs this helps with shelf life cuts down on freezer burn just me.
Great looking fish