How to preserve fish that you catch

Over the last few weeks, while the sun was burning our skin, and the days were hot and humid fishermen/anglers have asked me to advise them on the best way to keep their fish fresh.

First, let me tell you that friends of mine that are “scientists” (veterinarians, biologists) have always asserted that fish should be killed right after they are caught, so that lactic acid doesn’t form in the catches that thrash/toss at the bottom of your boat.

Quickly put those fish on an ice blocks or ice packs, away from the sun, in a cooler that shuts tightly (whether in Styrofoam or a stronger material).

You must avoid the moss, fern or little branches of deciduous trees that accumulate at the bottom of the boat or in the fish basket: it might give a bad smell and a bad taste to the flesh of the fish and insects that live there may lay eggs in the fish that are warming up. Of course, it is a stopgag for emergencies or when it becomes tedious to carry a heavy cooler all the way to the lake where you are fishing.

Avoid dragging the fish basket in the water for hours, at the end of a chain: the water is warm
at the surface and it could spoil the flesh of your fish.

Quickly gut the fish, but not while you are still in your boat: silt and fish blood could remain at the bottom of the boat, which, if not thoroughly cleaned, could attract hungry black bear that could seriously damage it while looking for supposedly hidden trout.

Furthermore, gutting fish in the lake, while fishing, could be considered “technical poaching”: as a matter of fact, it is forbidden to use fish or “fish parts” to attract other fish!... Wait until you are back at the cottage to gut your catches, so that you can throw the guts in the garbage or in other containers that are sealed, to avoid attracting starving black bear, other wild animals or insects.

Never flush the flesh of gutted fish to clean it: it would lose its taste and part of its nutrients. Rather, clean it with a moist absorbing paper.

If you decide not to eat your catches right away, you can keep it cold, in the cottage refrigerator, and enjoy them the next day. If you decide to freeze them to eat them later, put them in freezer bags, expelling the air to avoid “burning” the flesh. Do not freeze the fish by plunging it in a container filled with water: you risk burning them and alter their taste.