Transporting Tuna home?

[julezilla]

I'm going out for Tuna tomorrow, and plan on having about 6 fish to take home. How big of a cooler do I need to bring to fit that many fish and appropriate ice? I'm not planning on carking them until I get home.

Also, I've read that rock salt is a must have for tuna trips, is that just to help get them chilled down really fast initially? Then they get transferred to regular ice once they've cooled down?

Thanks!

[Chromaflage]

You should be able to fit 6 decent fish in a 150 qt. cooler with ice. I typically don't put them on rock salt and they stay cold for about 24 hours if they were adequately chilled on board.

[julezilla]

Super! Thanks so much for the quick reply.

[retaliate]

The problem with Carking Tuna at home is the big pile of waste you end up with, did that once...never again, That was my first Tuna trip, & I wanted to bring them home whole to show the Wife, Kids, & friends, the garbage can was sooo stinky you needed a respirator to clean it up.

[julezilla]

I was thinking I could freeze the waste until garbage day on Monday? Bad idea?

Originally Posted by retaliate

The problem with Carking Tuna at home is the big pile of waste you end up with, did that once...never again, That was my first Tuna trip, & I wanted to bring them home whole to show the Wife, Kids, & friends, the garbage can was sooo stinky you needed a respirator to clean it up.

[Chromaflage]

Do you have a BIG freezer? We carked 19 fish in my driveway a few weeks ago. That was fun, but yes, there was much to dispose of. Not to mention all the little parts that get left on the ground and you smell for a few days following.

I'll still cark at home - just because it's more convenient and the fish seem to cut nicer when they've been on ice for a while. I'll make some adjustments to my setup to minimize residual waste.

[Hogmaster]

You'll need a lot of freezer space, then a lot of room in your garbage can.

[Nalu]

Originally Posted by julezilla

I was thinking I could freeze the waste until garbage day on Monday? Bad idea?

Not a bad idea at all.

You might consider cutting the head and tail off once you hit the dock, but before you head home to eliminate the big waste.

Someone might check the regs and see for sure if you are "allowed" to transport tuna with head and tail off.

I can tell you that there's a lot less to throw away without the head and tail on the fish.....

[Chromaflage]

Mike, that's a great idea. I've always wondered why the fish can't be beheaded while at sea. It's not like that would mutilate the fish beyone recognition. That would allow a little more room to fit a few more fish in the box.

[julezilla]

Ok, thanks guys! I'll check the regs and see about leaving heads and tails at the cleaning station. I should have enough room in the freezer for the rest of the mess.

[Tinman]

Nalu, getting rid of the head and tail before transport is a great idea. The main reason I don't keep more tuna is the carcass disposal problem. Showing up at home with a quarter-ton of fish to process is just not a family-friendly thing to do.

[Chesapeake]

I think beheading the fish could be a problem. If the fish are on ice and end up in ice water the meat will get rinsed out real quick.

[julezilla]

Ok, so what if I take off the heads and tails, bag them, then put them on ice? Would that work? Might keep the cooler from getting stanky, too.

Originally Posted by Chesapeake

I think beheading the fish could be a problem. If the fish are on ice and end up in ice water the meat will get rinsed out real quick.

[Chrome Bumper]

Maybe some one on the dock can fillet them for you. 3 or 4 bucks a fish is worth it, and you can get some rest or start canning when you get home. Or spark up the BBQ.

[Hogmaster]

Originally Posted by julezilla

Ok, so what if I take off the heads and tails, bag them, then put them on ice? Would that work? Might keep the cooler from getting stanky, too.

The cooler is going to be stanky, any way about it. But that sounds like a great idea. If you find something in the regs, let us know!

[fyshndad]

Originally Posted by Chesapeake

I think beheading the fish could be a problem. If the fish are on ice and end up in ice water the meat will get rinsed out real quick.

My last trip out I beheaded my TUNA before bringing them home and I the meat near the head was not in very good condition and as a result I ended up cutting 2 to 3 inches off the loins that were water logged

I won't do that again

[julezilla]

Ok, near as I can tell, once you're done fishing and have reached your primary mode of transportation, you can do whatever you want to your fish as long as you're not putting them back in the boat to take them somewhere else. The regs state it's illegal to transport mutilated fish on state waters, or mutilate them prior to landing.

So, I think it's safe to leave heads and tails at the cleaning station.

[Nalu]

Originally Posted by Chesapeake

I think beheading the fish could be a problem. If the fish are on ice and end up in ice water the meat will get rinsed out real quick.

I agree completely. I wouldn't let the meat touch water/ice directly, but as long as it is isolated I wouldn't think it would be a problem.

Either bag the fish and then put ice on top, or bag the ice in garbage bags and then put on top of the tuna... ?????

Just a thought anyhow.

[fish Addict80]

At sea you cant mutilate the fish so that SIZE or speices cannot be determined. I think once you have "landed" you could remove head and tail at the dock. I wouldnt do it at sea though.

Luke

[ron m]

It might be more difficult to skin them without the tails(aka handle) on, not sure though, haven't tried it without the tail on.

[Nalu]

Originally Posted by ron m

It might be more difficult to skin them without the tails(aka handle) on, not sure though, haven't tried it without the tail on.

You skin back to front? I always grab the head and pull from the head towards the tail. Maybe I should try it the other way?

[ron m]

Originally Posted by Nalu

You skin back to front? I always grab the head and pull from the head towards the tail. Maybe I should try it the other way?

I skin from the head to the tail, but often use the tail to hold the fish as I get closer to the tail. I try not to get my hands on the meat too much as I'm skinning, keeps the number of scales on the meat down.

also, just for general handling, I and most folks I see hold albies by the tail to move them around, including in and out of coolers.

ron m

[wdlfbio]

Off with the heads, leave the tails. It's nice to tie a loop around the tail, then the other end of the rope to something immovable. Cut a slit around the tail (just skin deep), then peel the skin off from the tail towards the head (or where the head used to be). The rope around the tail will hold your fish in place and give you both hands to pull on the skin. It'll also help hold the fish in place while you are fileting the fish. Works great on sturgeon too.

I'm either going to filet at the dock or take off the heads and bag fish in small garbage sacks. This will keep the water out until I can finish the filet process.

The fish will be going into the brine on the boat and they will be VERY!!! cold by the time you reach the dock. They will still be very cold in you cooler/ice until you get home.

BTW, see you in the am

[retaliate]

Originally Posted by julezilla

I was thinking I could freeze the waste until garbage day on Monday? Bad idea?

Freezing sholud help if you have the Freezer space, or You can always put them in your neighbors Garbage can.

[julezilla]

Originally Posted by retaliate

Freezing sholud help if you have the Freezer space, or You can always put them in your neighbors Garbage can.

What a fantastic idea! Or I could put the tuna carks on their engine block. Muahahahaha!

[Phil Layer]

Originally Posted by wdlfbio

I'm either going to filet at the dock or take off the heads and bag fish in small garbage sacks.

I work for a food processing company and recommend you do not use garbage sacks for holding fish. The material is not proper for food storage. Better to buy the clear, food quality bags.

[OceanBlue]

Originally Posted by retaliate

or You can always put them in your neighbors Garbage can.

Or your mother-in-law's garbage can... especially if she's on vacation

[Chromaflage]

Heads or tails? Hmmm....I wonder if this would work for TUNA!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxKtIIq_rsE

[Herring Problem]

For transporting fish along distance in an ice chest, here is an idea to keep you fish out of the water inside the chest.
Make a shelf two inch high off of the ice chest bottom out of starboard.

Place sealed package fish on top of shelf and cover with ice. The melting water accumalates under the shelf and does not splash up on the fish and ice above it. When need arives,open drain and nothing blocks the drian for the water to flow out

Works great to keep food out of the water inside theice chest.

[Taylor's viewpoint]

Chrom, do you tie the tuna to the tree by the head or tail?
TV

[skein]

Just a quick note on the rock salt. I only use rock salt on the ice in my slush tank, where it helps drop the temp even colder.

Skein

[Chesapeake]

Originally Posted by Herring Problem

For transporting fish along distance in an ice chest, here is an idea to keep you fish out of the water inside the chest.
Make a shelf two inch high off of the ice chest bottom out of starboard.

Place sealed package fish on top of shelf and cover with ice. The melting water accumalates under the shelf and does not splash up on the fish and ice above it. When need arives,open drain and nothing blocks the drian for the water to flow out

Works great to keep food out of the water inside theice chest.

The Igloo 150 and 160 quart coolers have a lip inside about 5 inches from the bottom. For camping, deer, and elk I have a 1/4 inch piece of plywood that fits in on the lip. I place 5 blocks of ice under the shelf and the meat on top. It works good to keep things cool but for keeping fish cold like I like it requires contact with the ice or ice water.

Your idea of packing ice above the shelf looks like a good one.

[Chromaflage]

Jim, we just use sea water added to the ice in the slush cooler - just use the raw water wash down to add water to the ice. I s'pose rock salt would do the same thing as well.

[garyk]

Originally Posted by julezilla

... I should have enough room in the freezer for the rest of the mess.

If you go crabbing or have pets, you shouldn't have too much waste...

All the trimmings, like the dark meat and whatever's left on the carcass after the loins come off, gets microwaved = high quality food for the cat and dogs.

After removing the tail, the head and cark get folded up and bagged for great crab bait.

The bloody water in the cooler goes onto the garden plants.

Everything gets used except the tail (tuna soup, anyone ).

[skein]

One more tip: if you're worried about stinky coolers, here's the solution.

Go down to the hardware/auto parts store and get some GOJO handcleaner. It's in an orange container. It has pumice in it, and it will cut the fish slime left behind - even the dried up stuff - and leave your cooler smelling like oranges. There's nothing toxic about it so you don't have to worry about contaminents in your fish coolers. It's the bomb!

Skein

[julezilla]

Oh, that's good to know. I think we even have some in the garage already!

Originally Posted by skein

One more tip: if you're worried about stinky coolers, here's the solution.

Go down to the hardware/auto parts store and get some GOJO handcleaner. It's in an orange container. It has pumice in it, and it will cut the fish slime left behind - even the dried up stuff - and leave your cooler smelling like oranges. There's nothing toxic about it so you don't have to worry about contaminents in your fish coolers. It's the bomb!

Skein