Just out of curiosity, how many of you bring fish home? I don't bring back striped bass, but deep sea fishing, especially haddock and pollock, those are quite sustainable. I enjoy a good day out on the water, and bringing home dinner. And I have to say, the haddock was out of this world.
it all depends on what it is.
Almost everybody on here will bring back bottom fish if they catch them (snappers/triggerfish/seabass/porgies/grouper) and the 'good' stuff on the troll (wahoo/dolphin/tuna).
After that it gets to be more of a preference.
I keep grunts that are big enough to eat, spot tail pinfish that are big enough to eat, almaco jack and amberjack.
Some people throw back the AJs because they get worms in them (easily removable, not a threat to humans) or they just don't like the taste (you can dry it out easily if you overcook it).
I also keep bluefish and Spanish mackerel. They both go to crap in a hurry and can't really be frozen as they get fishy and turn to mush. Cook them fresh and they're really good though, especially fried.
I keep king mackerel, and eat it like ahi tuna. What I can't eat fresh I give away and have people that line up for it. Also doesn't freeze well.
I throw back flounder (hate to clean them, don't think there's enough meat on them to worry about - I'm in the minority here).
I throw back false albacore/little tunny/bonitA because while you can get two strips of meat that's on a par with a tuna, it's such a small amount - it ain't worth killing the fish. If I have one get sharked on the way in though - it's sashimi time back at the dock, since it's gonna die and it's already been bled for me.
Fishing in the surf with my dad - whiting, pompano, spots, trout, redfish - if they're legal - they're lunch. Pinfish and jacks go back.
Sharks - unless they're legal size makos, go back as well.
Any fish I freeze is frozen in "shrink wrap." I bought a cheap machine from Wally-World, mainly for putting up venison, and found that it works great at keeping fish fresh-tasting in the freezer. Even Spanish mackerel and kings taste good, as long as you don't overdo the time you leave them in the freezer. Spanish are good fried. We usually marinade and grill steaks from the kings, but if you go to the trouble to cut out the little circles of meat from the around the backbone in a king steak, batter it up, and fry it, it is very good.
i have a vaccuum sealer i use too. I also cut out all the dark stuff off the steaks/fillets before putting them up. But I've not had good experience with mackerels and blues doing that. Honestly - I think vermillion snappers go to crap in a hurry as well.
When I get Spanish - it's a little exhausting, but for me, it's fillet, skin, rib cage, cut out backbone at an angle (so as to get rid of bones and that dark stripe of meat/bloodline). They taste better fresh like that and are delicious fried - I'll agree. But once they go in the freezer all bets are off.
I've been told Spanish mackerel is really good. I even watched someone make what appeared to be a very nice sushimi out of it. Do you worry about worms with them or no? Atlantic mackerel in New England has a no size / no take limit. I assume SM does not have that kind of liberal size/take limit, may I ask what it is?
I've not worries about worms in the spanish. I think the limit on spanish down here is like 12" TL and 10 per person per day? It's actually pretty generous. You wouldn't want to keep one under 12" and since IMHO they don't freeze well, I'd never get near the creel limit.