I'm working on a series of videos (and honestly just personally enjoying) where we cook our bycatch... bonito, mullet (example below is blue runner). Can I get some advice on recipes (maybe brine/marinade mixes?). Im enjoying this but some of these require a little more expertise than I have to offer.

Great video. SMACKS are great as long as you get that blood line out of there. I tend to smoke mine just like you did, but I try all different types of spices and sauces.

i had a brain fart a few years ago and decided to smoke some gafstop because we were catching so many. i figgered if you can eat smoked mullet, you can eat anything. WRONG! prepped em and smoked em. took about 6 hrs total. they were horrible. i spit out the test filet and gave one to my dog. she ate it, then threw it up about a minuite later. threw em all out and chalked it up to a lesson learned.

I'm no expert, however, the single best thing anyone can do to any saltwater fish, no matter how a person intends to prepare it, is brine it for 24-hours in a refrigerator. Just a simple salt brine - you can Google quantities. And, this is especially true for any mackerel, which is my favorite fish to eat of all.

Back in the day, I would fillet the fish on the boat and use seawater as the brine - nothing better. Put fillets in zip-loc with the seawater brine and cover it with ice in the cooler. If you can't do it on the boat, do it as soon as possible thereafter in a homemade brine - the sooner you do it, the better quality your fish will be.

Again, I am no expert, and have no scientific proof other than observation. I think the brine draws the blood out of the meat - and, there is a reason that some folks like to bleed fish as soon as it is caught. But all I really know is that the difference between brined fish and un-brined fish is well worth the effort if excellent quality fish for cooking is your goal, and the fish stays fresher, longer, and freezes better. Also, when smoking or grilling fish, brining will help keep the fish from drying out.

Just remember to rinse the fish very well in cold water and dry it off before begin cooking / smoking / grilling.

I love me some mackerel - baked/broiled, with nothing on it but a brush of butter. I don't need no stinkin' lemons! Sometimes I grill mackerel steaks over hickory coals...

I love seafood. I only wish there was more of it and it was easier to get.

Some people swear by gafftop. I kept a few that we caught once and it was complete mush. Did not like it at all.

Yall should check out this youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/Landsharkfishingtv

He catches and cooks EVERYTHING -- chub, sailfish, hardheads, puffer fish, gar, lady fish, you name it. I love this channel, his mantra is "There are no trash fish, just trash cooks".

@Stanley Orchard -- the main point he makes in his videos is that you have to treat the fish as an ingredient. You can't just coat everything in cornmeal and fry it, you have to look at the fish and discover the best way to cook it for that fish. Ladyfish, for example, is super mushy. So in his video, he scraped the flesh out, and made fish balls. His taste testers LOVED it.

Neat thread! Plua #1.

Man, guys thank you all so much. This is EXACTLY the info I was looking for! Really, REALLY appreciate you!

Agreed, nice thread. Just know what you are dealing with. An oily, bloody fish like a jack or bonita would probably do ok in the smoker if you bled it first. Most say kings are mushy but if you steak them with the skin on they hold together just fine and are great on the grill. A bony fish like carp does well when you cut out the blood line, pressure cook it and make fish cakes. Lots of folks on the coasts catch and cook shad during the spawn so I'm sure you could find some recipes on youtube. In addition to the advice on brining your fish, you can also soak them overnight in milk. This trick is great on fish that has been in the freezer for awhile and taken on a fishy smell, most taste very close to fresh after a long milk bath.

Just found this: https://youtu.be/wcueSXGueJs

This approach works on lots of species.