Does anyone ice down their Swordfish before returning home?

[RiskTaker]

Love them Broad-bill photos of your recent catches... Keep the new photos coming... but I was curious to know if any anglers start cooling their prize catch before they get to dock? Looks like most of the fish come back where they are positioned on deck. I particularly like the eating part of fresh fish, so I like to ensure my fish is on the rocks as soon as it has settled down, or in the case of dolphin, straight, on the rocks. What a great name for a cocktail: El Dorado, straight, on the rocks, oh I like that! But what about these big feisty swordfish? They don't generally fit into the fish box. Isn't it a good idea to start chillin' right away?

P.S. - Any good names for a nominated swordfish cocktail?

I remember one experience, where the fish was not as good tasting as I expected, we caught a 35 lb. Wahoo south of Hillsboro, almost as soon as the wire line was set in position. It made the reel scream, but we had it in the boat in 10- 20 minutes, I think the 2 lb. cigar helped things along. I mention this because I always ice my fish; however, in this case the wahoo did not fit into the jumbo Gott cooler with flat Ice sheets. I freeze flat blocks for 1 day trips. (Did not have a fish bag) . We stuffed it in the cooler will tail-end bulging, so cooler was open and fish was not icing well. We fished a few more hours... photos later. So it was finally several hours passed before we gutted and steaked this Wahoo, then to the freezer for a quick chill. But these steaks did not taste as yummy as other Wahoo I have caught and put on ice right away.

Any comments on swordfish freshness? (Or green vs. tired)

Risktaker

[LETSRIDE]

i have not had a bad experience with any of my swordfish and i have never iced them. i have the beleif that you were wahoo fishing in the day and the sun was beating on the fish and it wasnt being iced very well thats probaly the case for the meat not turning out well. but as far as swordfish its at night so there is no sun just practically cooking them on the deck. also these swordfish go relatively deep and its not warm down there. i have had some fish that when you touch them it is like a peice of ice b/c they go so low in the thermocline there body temps dropped. thats just my 2 sense but i have yet to have bad meat on sword and i always leave them on the deck.

[imported_Anonymous]

I try to ice down my fish because it's easier to fillet when cold as the meat is more firm.

[Captain Joe McGivern]

i agree with special its easier to fillet them when they are cold. i usually throw ice on them if we are gonna stay out there after we have alrerady boated one. if not them i just throw a few bags on the while i run in. the meat will be fine because there is no sun to beat down and "cook"the meat so to speak.

[kwol]

if u want to keep your swordies super fresh or feel the need to ice them, then all you really need to do is gut them. i prefer to circle the anus and cut a line to about 2 inches from the pec fins. then after u remove the innards and slimed the fish stuff them full of ice. also, if u are planning on staying out for a while and catching multiple fish, cut the head off, the tail off and the fins off. then it should be much easier to fit into your cooler..good fishing guys.

[greg1]

If you want to ensure top quality of your meat you want to eviscerate and ice immediately.

Swords contain urea similar to sharks. If not bled and iced the urea can spoil.

Some people say they've never had a problem. That's great. I wonder though, if they just don't realize how good their meat coud be if handled properly.

On rec. boats I gut the fish and pack it with ice. Then i cut under the gill plates up through the spine, but leave about an inch of flesh and skin together. This way you can fold the head back on itself and fit in a fish box. The reason I do this is so when we get back to the dock you still have the head attached for photos. Some of my friends want photos.

I hope that makes sense.

[robalo]

If as you say,Swordfish have urea in them as do sharks,then they should be considered hot fish. That means bleeding and gutting quickly. One should also take care to scrape out the kidney also. Remember that if your boat is inboard powered the deck can become warm under that fish.

[greg1]

You know Robalo...after your post I've searched the internet a little and have found no evidence that Swords contain urea. I guess the old timer that told me that was wrong. He was a longliner for many many years and I just took his word for it.

Still, gutting and icing any fish will help ensire top quality meat. Not gonna hurt anything by doing it I guess.

[robalo]

There is proof that Swordfish are warm blooded fish. The old timer you spoke to may have been wrong about the Urea in them but, whenever you are dealing with large pelagic fish it only makes sense to take steps to get them cooled down and remove the possibility of tainting their flesh with digestive enzymes etc. As a matter of fact, the best source for information on handling your catch would be a fish buyer/processer. I have learned the best way to get info. is to ask several people the same question. When you get the same answer from three unrelated sources you can be assured it is more than likely true. When it comes to handling fish , I would only ask those who make a living in the fishing industry. I also think that it is very possible that many are shortchanging themselves by not properly handling their fish. Some of the photos I have seen offer evidence to support my opinion. The Wahoo that did`nt fit in the cooler? The largest Swordfish ever weighed was caught by longline gear. It was too big to fit in the cold storage, so it was cut into three pieces. Even after heading and gutting, what was left weighed 1895 pounds. All one has to remember is that even food from the fridge starts to rot above 40 F.