Tips from experienced fishermen on how to preserve fish without refrigeration during transportation

Knowledge and experience are needed not only for successful fishing. Fish is a delicate, perishable product that cannot be stored for long without refrigeration.

Preserving the caught prey in nature and delivering it home alive and fresh during the warm season is not easy. But probably.

We will tell you further about how to preserve fish without a refrigerator while fishing or during transportation.

Features of the spoilage process

In living fish, found in natural habitats, metabolic processes occur and the immune system works.

When it dies, life activity stops, and the influence of third-party external and internal factors is activated. Numerous bacteria attack prey from the outside and pathogens.

Participation in the chemical reactions of enzymes in the blood and digestive system of the carcass at a favorable temperature contributes to the rapid development of destructive putrefactive processes.

They begin with the viscera and gill plates and spread to the soft tissues and skeletal system. It is the ambient temperature that acts as a catalyst; as it increases, the rate of chemical reactions increases.

Difficulties in preserving the catch in the summer heat

The fishing process usually lasts for several hours or days.. In the summer, when fishing, it can be quite difficult to preserve your catch without a refrigerator.

High air temperatures contribute to the rapid development of negative processes that make the product unfit for consumption. To preserve fish after catching and deliver it home fresh, experienced fishermen adhere to certain rules.

Fishing storage methods

Fishing is a very old craft, and fishermen have gained extensive experience in storing their catch with minimal availability and devices. They allow you to extend storage periods and prevent spoilage of the product.

The best option for preserving fish so that it remains alive as long as possible. To do this, you need to create suitable conditions close to the natural habitat.

So as not to fall asleep

With the catch, which is used to prepare delicacies right at the fishing spot, there is less hassle. But if cooking is delayed for some time and transportation is required, You should worry about the quality of storage from the moment you remove the fish from the hook:

1. Injury should be minimal. The mouth of a predatory fish is opened using special fishing equipment, and the hook is removed using an extractor.
2. It is not recommended to squeeze the carcass too hard to avoid damaging the internal organs and skin with scales.
3. Immerse the fish in water as soon as possible after catching.
4. Select suitable devices and conditions for keeping them in water.

Zadok

The most common option for storing catch is in a purchased or homemade cage. It is made of metal mesh, wicker, wooden rods, strong threads or thin slats. The material is attached to the arcs and forms cracks or gaps for fresh air access and water circulation.

The cells of the cage should not be too smallso that the fish do not get stuck in them and die. Metal mesh cages are more convenient to use, but the fish in them are more injured due to damage to scales and soft tissues due to friction. Pathogenic microorganisms begin to develop in damaged areas.

The cage is intended for keeping live fish in water, but for those that have fallen asleep, this method is contraindicated, since the spoilage process will, on the contrary, speed up. Such tenacious individuals as crucian carp will calmly survive in a cage lowered into the water without additional problems, directly at the fishing site.

In other cases, the choice of place for immersion of devices is approached more thoughtfully:

1. Away from direct sunlight. In the absence of natural conditions, create shading using improvised means.
2. In places without a pronounced current, but with constant renewal of water.
3. In depressions with cold water, areas where springs flow.
4. They dig an artificial depression the size of the cage in the coastal strip.

The video will show you how to store fish:

Bucket of cold water

This is not a good storage idea., since the water in the bucket is not renewed and heats up quickly. The gills turn white.Fish dies from lack of air and quickly deteriorates under the influence of active bacteria.

Kukan for a large predatory individual

Large specimens of predatory fish, such as pike, carp, and perch, can be conveniently stored and transported using a special device - kukan. It is compact, easily fits in a fishing bag, and helps out at the right time.

The design is quite primitive, so You don’t have to buy it in a store, you can make it from scrap materials. Take a long strong thread or fishing line and wooden or plastic sticks from 6 to 10 cm long. The stick is used to pull the thread under the gills and fix the fish.

At one end the fishing line is attached to a selected support or tree on the shore, and at the other end a stick is tied in the middle. A special holder is used to attach the device to the boat. The caught prey is gradually strung on a thread, secured with a limiting stick and lowered into the water.

A simple and reliable dowel made from a bicycle spoke, video instructions:

Natural refrigerator

To create it, dig a hole in the damp sand of the coastal strip in a shady place. The catch is first generously sprinkled with salt and wrapped tightly in a plastic bag. Then they put it in a hole and cover it with damp sand.

Another way. Dry grass is placed at the bottom of the pit, and each fish is wrapped in it. Another layer of dried plants with antibacterial properties is placed on top. The hole is filled with sand.

What to do with a fallen asleep one?

A minimum of time should pass from the moment the fish falls asleep until it is processed.Long waits lead to poor taste and spoilage.

The taste of dead fish is somewhat inferior to artificially killed fish. That is why, when storing in a cage, it is necessary to constantly monitor the condition of the inhabitants. They remove not only dead fish, but also those that swim on their side.

Dead fish can be stored in a cool shade for some time. First you need to gut it, cut out the gills, clean out the blood as much as possible and blot the carcass dry inside and out. You can use grass, paper towels or canvas for this.

You should not wash fish with water, especially river water. Moisture will accelerate the development of bacteria and microorganisms. This will cause the product to deteriorate even faster.

What to do with the dead?

The cleaned carcass is hung to dry for 5–7 minutes in the wind. Then it is wrapped in withered sedge, wheatgrass or nettle leaves, bird cherry and placed in a basket. The container should be well ventilated and constantly in the shade.

Drying

It uses the property of the mucus that covers the scales to dry quickly and form a kind of dense shell around the fish flesh.

Drying is carried out as follows:

• the fish is freed from the gills;
• the abdomen is incised at the anus and the insides are removed through the mouth, maintaining the integrity of the abdominal cavity;
• gill operculums tightly compressed;
• The carcass is hung in a sunny, ventilated place, protected from flies.

The lack of sun is not a serious obstacle, since the shell is formed during weathering.

Pickling

To extend the shelf life of fish in this way, use coarse salt, which is sprinkled on the head and abdominal cavity. The outer surface is rubbed with salt against the scales.Prepared carcasses are generously covered with grass or leaves.

This video will show you how to preserve your catch in the heat and take it home:

Smoking

Smoking fish on a river or lake is problematic, since its preparation requires appropriate sanitary conditions, clean (not river) water and special equipment. Therefore, it is better to establish smoking at home, in a stationary environment.

How to properly kill caught fish?

If you managed to keep the fish alive until the moment of cooking, a new stage begins, which does not bring aesthetic pleasure and can become a real test.

There are different methods of killing:

1. A sharp, quick blow with an oar, stick, or the wide part of a knife on the top of the head. The force of the blow must be appropriate to the size of the individual.
2. For small specimens, lightning-fast folding of the head by bending it backwards until it crunches is suitable.
3. Cutting through the abdominal aorta, which is located below the gills between the fins and the mouth. This method promotes rapid bleeding and significantly improves the whiteness, taste and appearance of fish fillets.

It is necessary to understand that the painful death of a living creature will not improve the taste of the product, so the method must be used as humanely as possible. It is unacceptable to remove scales and skin from a living specimen or leave it to suffocate without water.

Gutting rules

Killed fish must be immediately freed from the entrails and the gills removed. At the bottom of the head, make a neat shallow cut the width of the tip of the knife. The abdomen is opened with a longitudinal incision from the resulting hole to the hole below.

The movement of the knife is carried out over a thin film that covers the fatty layer of the abdomen. This will maintain the integrity of the intestines and prevent contamination of the fish fillets.

How to transport?

It is recommended to transport caught fish in a wide, ventilated container. This can be a can or a bucket without a sealed lid. The top is covered with gauze or thin cloth.

Dried or salted prey can be wrapped in canvas cloth and transferred to the types of grass and leaves described above.

Errors

Serious mistakes that will lead to damage to the catch:

• storage in damp grass, bushes in the open air;
• use of hermetically sealed containers and plastic film;
• delay in gutting dormant and killed fish.

Signs of a spoiled product

If the rules and storage periods are violated, then characteristic signs appear that the process of fish spoilage has begun:

1. Sunken, clouded, whitish eyes.
2. Pale gills covered with mucus.
3. Bloating of the abdominal cavity and disruption of its integrity.
4. Lack of elasticity. When pressing on the carcass, the flesh does not return to its original shape.
5. Fish fibers soften and peel off from the rib plates.
6. Scales that are crumbling, dull or sticky to the touch.
7. A pungent odor of fish or ammonia, not typical of fresh catch.

Conclusion

By putting into practice methods for storing perishable products without refrigeration, you can deliver the caught catch home without loss even in hot weather. This does not require large financial expenditures. The fish needs to pay extra attention, as well as show ingenuity and efficiency.