Freezer Burn

[CrappieMagnet]

Here's a way to avoid freezer burn,if someone choses to freeze their catch instead of eating right away.
Avoid touching any of the cleaned fillets with water after you clean them .Pat dry with a paper towel to get all scales or blood off the meat.Place in either a vacuumed sealed bag,or in a breadbag with the air pushed out.After you pull them out of the freezer to eat,wash the fillets in cold water.Never clean fish that are yellow and stinky.Look into the eyes for they should be clear.Fish are very perishable and care should be taken when transporting fish.Try to keep fish alive as long as possble.Big fish should be killed right away.Fish held longer than 2 days should be super chilled,frozen or smoked.People staying at motels can take advantage of their facilities.Most have icecoolers.Never putfish in a plastic bag when transporting.(their flesh need air,or they spoil!)

My grandfather told me these things while growing up.He was a retired butcher and meat market worker all his life and also a great cook.He was from Superior,Wisconsin.

Good luck fishing and eating your catch,and hope this helps some people.

CrappieMagnet

[This message has been edited by CrappieMagnet (edited 02-03-2004).]

[This message has been edited by CrappieMagnet (edited 02-03-2004).]

[CrappieMagnet]

I meant to write in there not to touch any of the fillets with water,after you clean them.You can touch them all you want!...hehe.

CM

[rmh2o]

Just so you know if you ever want to edit your post click on the pencil above it

[This message has been edited by rmh2o (edited 02-03-2004).]

[Dakota Iceman]

why would you not wash the filets after you clean them? or my real question is why are you supposed to avoid water after the filet is cut off the fish?

[Minnetonka]

I have always heard that by washing the fillets in water you made them softer. I personaly dont buy that. I wash the fillets in cold water and then put them in zip-lock freezer bags and cover the fish with water. Push the air out and zip-shut and they will stay fine for up to a couple of years.

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"I'd rather be fishing"

Mike

[CrappieMagnet]

You wash them after you thaw them out.Water is what causes freezer burn.The skin,scales and slime protects the fish from parasites and other germs,in the aquatic world.That's what works for me.I've never had freezer burn!

Try it...it works...So why fix it?

CM

[Lunker]

There are several ways to avoid freezer burn. The best but most inconvenient is water freezing in milk cartons but i dont do it. I filet the fish, WASH the filets, pat dry, wrap in a cheap unsealable plastic bag, then put that into a freezer bag, make sure there is no air trapped. Never have any problems.

[PerchJerker]

Freezer burn happens because the moisture is pulled from the meat. Frost-free freezers cause freezer burn faster because they pull all the moisture out of the air as well.

[Minnetonka]

Freezer burn is a term that is applied to meat that has been exposed to dry cold air. The meat turns white. This is actually a chemical reaction that is known as oxidation. This occurs to when oxygen in the air is exposed to the material, in this case fish fillets. Oxidation is also the same process that happens in both fire and rust. Sorry for the Chem. lesson 101. The best way to prevent freezer burn is to prevent air (oxygen) from touching the meat.

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"I'd rather be fishing"

Mike

[fivebucks]

Minnetonka is right. It is exposure to air that causes freezer burn. That's why products like vacume sealers work so well is that they remove the air. When I worked in seafood plants in Alaska all our fillets and whole fish were deep frozen overnight and then run through a glazing tank where several coats of water (ice) are applied. This seals the fish from the air and they are ready for market. I tried to replicate the process but our home freezers do not get cold enough for effective glazing so I freeze my fish (and pheasants when I'm lucky enough) in a big ziplock and make sure I have plenty of water in the bag to cover every thing. I'm not saying other methods don't work but this is what works for me and the processing plants in Alaska.

[This message has been edited by fivebucks (edited 02-04-2004).]

[iffwalleyes]

I have been using a Foodsaver the last couple years and they work great. I will fillet the fish wash it and then I pat if dry because with to much water my vaccum seal doesn't want to seal proper. I have been doing it like this the last few years and it works great. I also have froze them it water and I never had a problem with that method either.

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Grip it and Rip it

IFFWalleyes
I Fish For Walleyes
[email protected]

[zelek]

A couple of years ago In-Fisherman had an in-depth article on storing fish. It was very good and used the expertise of people other than their own staff. I can't remember if they were chemists or world renown chefs or what.

But they did go so far as to say to never freeze the fillets in water. Their recommended method was to vacuum pack the fillets like some of you are doing. For those of us who don't have the commercial vacuum machines, it suggested placing the fillets in a freezer bag and then placing the bag in a sink full of water and using the water to displace the air in the bag. Obviously the bag is zipped shut before the water enters in as it's (the bag) moved downward.

For fish that was to be eaten in a day or two, the fillets were supposed to be kept in a bowel of ice and placed in the fridge. Any water that accumulated was to be drained off asap.

[blue_healer_guy]

I would have to agree on both posts by minnetonka. This talk about not touching fillets and patting them dry, never heard of it. Put them in water in a zip lock bag, press the air out and cookem up. In 10 years of cooking fillets , never seen freezer burn and my neighbors keep coming for the fish fry's!!!!

[Guest]

Freeze them in well water where you are at! No matter how bad it stinks if its from the area use it.
hint and nuff said...

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en kala
(I fish)

[Steve Foss]

If air doesn't reach the fillets, you won't get freezer burn. Freeze them in water, freeze them in whatever.

If you freeze them in typical freezer bags you'll get burn unless you submerge the fillets in water in the bags. That's because freezer bags are permeable (they allow air through over time).

The vaccum-pack bags are far less permeable. Subtract the air and use impremeable bags and you've got a great recipe for fresh fish. I've vaccum packed fish in those bags and had fresh fillets over two years later.

No, that's not an ad, just a fact.

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"Worry less, fish more."
Steve Foss
[email protected]

[protiller]

I've submerged my fillets in water and then frozen them. Using this method prevents freezer burn but takes some of the flavor out of the fish. I second the use of vaccuum packing your game.

[Northlander]

I love my vacume sealer too. Just dry the fillets and place a paper towel next to them in the bag. The paper towel obsorbs whatever moisture is left when vacume sealing. Like Stfcatfish said you have Fresh fish for well over a year. Maybe over 2 but I never tried that.