Just wondering how many guys here cut their walleye after their catch. Seen a guy at the cleaners that did this and those things were white. Just wondering if it was worth the mess? What's your thoughts?
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Just wondering how many guys here cut their walleye after their catch. Seen a guy at the cleaners that did this and those things were white. Just wondering if it was worth the mess? What's your thoughts?
Absolutely cut the fish! Not only does it make for a nice white fillet but when you clean them there is very little mess on the fillet table and the cooler is much easier to clean too because you don't have all that blood getting kicked around.Quote:
Originally Posted by eriecaster
I just carry a couple of 5 gallon buckets put a little water in one, cut the fish, drop it in the water and put the second bucket inside the first one containing the fish so it can't splash around, wait 5 minutes , remove the fish and put it on ice.
You'll be glad you started doing this! Make sure when you cut you get the main artery so it bleeds out, you'll know when you hit it!
I bleed all our fish. I hook them on a stringer tied to the mid ship cleat, cut them with a cheap pair of kitchen shears and let them dangle for 5 minutes or so. Then them come back in and go on ice.
What part of fish do you cut.
Underneath just below where the gills come together where it makes a V.
i have been cutting them for years. running short on time i had the guy that cleans fish at Maumee Tackle this year clean a mess for me. he commented on how nice the fish were and thanked me for bleeding them. he then told me that just popping one gill would do the same. i have yet to try that but if i ever make it back up there that is the way i am going to try it.
That is exactly what I do, slice a gill or two put them head first into a 5 gal. bucket 1/2 full of cool water. Makes a big difference when cleaning. Just make sure you have the head in the water or you could get an eye full of blood. They WILL squirt!Quote:
Originally Posted by ack
Easier than cutting them, just use a pair of pliers and yank a gill, they bleed out in no time. Although it can squirt a bit, saturday the boat looked like a murder scene from one of them!
Works for me too. I tied one (or two) metal stringer clip (from a chain stringer) on a piece of nylon parachute cord tied to a side cleat. No noise, no scratching boat. Clip fish on the stringer inside the boat, hold it over the side, cut the V with scissors, drop it in water. Ready for cooler in a minute or two. No mess or blood in boat. No extra bucket in way. And best, I like the safety of not handling a sharp knife in a bouncing boat..... I have done the gills bit but seems to me the scissors to the throat bleeds more.Quote:
Originally Posted by ReelTime
Now that the water is getting warmer, and the fish go belly up pretty quick with a full live well, I will start cutting and throwing them on ice for my customers.
My live well pumps water in and then I can switch it to pump water out. So, after they bleed, I pump the bloody water out and pump fresh in again.
who's got time to bleed when they are jumping in the boat and you have 10 lines to tend to?
I do it salmon fishing but walleyes?....maybe but never have the time to while resetting lines, baiting hooks, getting fish out of nets,washing down boat for flies, servings beers etc... get my point? lol just too damned busy.;)
I'm in production mode and its up to others to do that stuff.
I bleed all walleyes that come on my boat! I put them in the live well and cut their throat at the base of their gills. I even do it if I have minnows in the tank for perching later in the day. I use a stand pipe that has a screen on top and turn on the pump and let it run all day, once full to the top of the stand pipe the water goes out the stand pipe back to the lake. The fish remain in the live well for about 10 min before removing to the cooler. The minnows are no worse than before as the water changes out very quickly.
You can do it once you have your limit, or you can let one of the guys that are just standing around drinking beer do it while you're too busy. ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by limitlypps
Thanks for all the tips, gonna try it.
Some of the best guys in here cut their walleye, and some don't. I have no problem with admitting that they are much "whiter" when they are cleaned.
My question is if there is a difference in taste? I am not sure that I want to come up with a system while I am running 16 lines, and bags out each side, 7 other guys on the boat...
Secondly, I don't notice much of an issue while cleaning fish? Everyone talks about how much of a mess it prevents... Seems to me that its a potential mess in the boat (although some of you have system that keep it all in the Lake). When we clean fish though, we clean them, and hose down the table. It takes less than a minute to clean the entire table. I am sure that even if I bleed them out I would still have to hose down and wash the table...
So for me, it definitely doesn't change my clean-up time, it adds to something else to do and worry about while fishing. I know the fish is white when bled out... But I don't want to do it just to change the color...
So, my question is, does it change the flavor of the fish? Is the flavor change worth it?
-Matt
absolutely but make sure you do it with fish in live well..they bleed all over.....big time...Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian425
I think it definitely changes the quality of the meat, like you said the meat is much whiter and that means there is much less blood in the fillet. That in turn means no soaking to remove the blood and no chance for the blood to turn rancid even while on ice in the boat. Not only does it remove the blood it also allows the fish to cool quicker once on ice. Now with that said lets take the example to the extreme, would you rather eat a chicken that had been sufficated to death and left to lay for an hour or two on ice or one that had been cleanly killed by chopping of its head and allowed to bleed out and then thrown on ice for an hour or two. I realize that neither one of the two extreme examples is very appetizing but one is definitely better than the other.Quote:
Originally Posted by Madd Matt
I was thinking the same thing about venison, you don't want the meat to lay soaked in blood as it makes for a stronger taste. We feel the fish is milder tasting when we bleed them. We also take the time to thinly shave the outer layer where the dark side is just before we prepare to cook them, and it also make a huge difference to the taste.
It doesn't really take much time to cut them so it's not a time concern for me.
you are correct in bleeding, I don't utilize a live well so its into the messy 5ft cooler it goes. Having a live well does have its merits.Quote:
Originally Posted by Capt Juls
Had a bud out near Hen yesterday almost hit a tree in the water, unfortunately I dodged one and hit another going out there, really sucks ,turned back, have to see if props took a hit today.:(
what also sucks is I caught almost all my eyes on just one color blade and bead combo and it broke on a 29 in hog second last fish, I unfortunately had but just one of those blades in my 1000 blade mix. Just one of those really goofy days.....:rolleyes:
No live well on the Shelly J.WE use a 5 gallon bucket about half full of lake water,hold there head in bucket,snip there throat and leave them after a while or when someone has time throw on ice and change out water.Works good for us and taste better.
2 inches of water in 5 gallon bucket.. Dollar store pruning shears... Been doing it for years. As far as the taste.. Wife didn't like walleye until we met and she tried mine! It's like a while different fish. (better)
Anymore then 2 inches of water is useless. my boat never gets more then a couple of drops of bloody water here and there.
while I clean the fish, I discard the backbone and the mud vein meat , when this is done it deters your meat from tainting and going fishy after you freeze it. All the meat is white when its either cyrovac or frozen in water. No need to bleed.
Some folks want that perfect looking fillet and leave that bone in that makes kids dislike fish at times. I like to cut up my fish into 3x3 in squares and do my batter/dip mix/panko thingy which have people raving about my fish even after its been in the freezer for a year. It goes much further when you have quite a number of guests over that have the knack for over consuming.
Salmon has a much larger mud vein and I do bleed them because the meat is very oily and porous and its advantageous to get that blood out as quickly as possible after the catch.Walleye lacks the omega's and the meat is far more dense and I don't feel the need to bleed. Been doing this all for years and not one has ever turned down a fish fry/bake on my premises. So I guess its whatever works for you.:)
One other thing to consider, all the carcinogens of a fish/if any are store in the belly fat and just behind the head, so make sure you discard that meat as well.
I know their is some charters in fl that do this
www.anglers-secrets.com/how-to-keep-fish-fresh
Since I frequently use long nosed pliers to remove the hooks from the fish, its easy to just reach in from behind the gill plate and rip a gill or two....the fish will bleed profusely....and there's no knife involved to stick something/someone you don't want to. Just started bleeding walleye last year and IT DOES MAKE A DIFFERENCE in the quality of the fillets. I do it on every species of fish now.
I think it would be effective for the big boat owner if they don't want buckets in the boat to put in a couple tuna tubes off the back of the boat like that are used in the ocean for keeping bonita alive for marlin fishing. small chain hanging off the side of the top of the tube with a set of pruning shears attached. can bleed 3 or 4 at a time.
Just a thought.
http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o..._on_boat21.jpg
Just got off the water and cut all my walleye on the lake using the bucket method very impressed with the fillets very white and no mess thanks for all the input. I will continue this practice in the future.
So what kinda lure did you use for that chicken?:DQuote:
Originally Posted by wakina
I am thinking a worm or some corn.... :confused:
I like the humor it fits the post!Quote:
Originally Posted by waterdog
But the example that was made related to the fact that suffocation whether it is a fish or a chicken or any type of creature, and suffocation would be the cause of death for any fish just tossed into the cooler on ice and left to die full of blood. That fishes blood not only carries the needed materials to sustain its life it also transports the waste that is generated from that process of sustaining life just like all living creatures. I for one do not want that waste left in any animal that I intend to consume be it a fish or chicken. But you already knew that didn't you.
This post is for those who failed to see the connection between the 2 examples and not intended to agitate you or anyone else for that matter.
Like I said I am still laughing at your response it was a good come back.
Hey guys, I tried the gill pulling method today and it works great. Thanks for the tip!
When I clean them at home it will help with the blood on the cleaning table as well.Quote:
Originally Posted by wakina
I'd go with the corn.....I've heard the worm will attract a lot of trash!Quote:
Originally Posted by waterdog
[QUOTE=Eyezcrazy;40780]I'd go with the corn.....I've heard the worm will attract a lot of trash![/QUOTE
LOL:
Well it would appear that I have opened a can of worms, be they dew, sour, wiggle or corn borer variety with my original post. In any event I like the humor and it is entertaining so keep it up. Tight lines.