Author Topic: How long is too long?  (Read 9581 times)

Offline iowapackfan

  • Team IceShanty Regular
  • ***
  • Posts: 365
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #30 on: Oct 18, 2016, 10:52 AM »
I'm 52 and I remember my mom when I was a youngster always froze the extra catch in milk cartons filled with water. We didn't ice fish back then. But we did have good fish in the winter. She always scaled her panfish. I must of been into my teens before I learned how to fillet.
65 yrs. young here and we pretty much did the same thing. Remember many a time having a big family fish fry in the dead of winter. Don't ever remember any  bad tasting fish that had been in the freezer 2-3 months tho. Just my 2cts. worth :) ;D :) ;D
God,Country, and the Green Bay Packers

Offline Spider1

  • Team IceShanty Maniac
  • **
  • Posts: 2,359
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #31 on: Oct 18, 2016, 11:56 AM »
I just cooked up some trout that I vac sealed this spring. Tasted like trout to me. ;D

Offline Chris338378

  • Team IceShantyholic
  • ***
  • Posts: 6,688
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #32 on: Oct 18, 2016, 12:27 PM »
I also add a little water in with the fish and vacuum seal it along with putting the date on or number the bag so I know I'm using the oldest stuff first.  I don't get to fish the open water much, too much to do in the warm weather, so I freeze all the fish I catch ice fishing, each bag has enough fish for one meal, and we eat it through the year and never had any problems. 

Offline filetandrelease

  • Team IceshantyInsanity
  • ****
  • Posts: 14,218
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #33 on: Oct 18, 2016, 01:52 PM »

I vac pac my fish , never had a package get bad , I have a few older couples and a couple widows that I supply some fish and they really appreciate it
I hope when I'm no longer able to hobble out that someone drops some off to me 👍
 

Offline VanderLaan

  • Team IceShanty Regular
  • ***
  • Posts: 469
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #34 on: Nov 24, 2016, 08:51 PM »
one of my pet peeves---people who kill fish only to freeze it---and say they will eat it later---or the famous one-i will give it away---i will only freeze fish for 1 or 2 weeks max----PEOPLE IF YOUR NOT PLANNING TO EAT SOME FISH THEN DONT KILL SOME FISH---

To each, his own.  If I eat fish after a week or a year, it doesn't matter. 
The test of man is not how how far he will go to win, but how far he will go when he has already lost.

Offline Agronomist_at_IA

  • Team IceShantyholic
  • ***
  • Posts: 5,704
  • Team Iowa!
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #35 on: Nov 25, 2016, 06:00 PM »
i use to jse the ziplock and water freeze kept good for a long time. however, it was a PITA to do it. My wife bought me a Food saver and bags. That is the ticket. i make small bags outta the roll. enough for two fillets. Put them in bag suck all air seal. Then when I want to eat the fish, I open the bag put them on aluminum foil on a cooking sheet frozen & put seasoning on top. put in oven at 350 for about 3-5min or until they are thawed out.Then I crank it to broil and broils for 4 min, pull out the rack and sprinkle parmasian cheese on fish then put back and broil for 3min or until done. The last 3min I microwave some butter in a small bowl.   enjoy .


 

Offline HardH20Fishin

  • Team IceShanty Regular
  • ***
  • Posts: 392
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #36 on: Dec 03, 2016, 12:42 PM »
We've used our Foodsaver vacuum sealer and we've never seen any freezer burn even after 2+ years in the deep freeze. We do make sure to pat dry the fish well, and then double bag if we know it will be for a long time.
You can't buy happiness, but you can buy fishing gear....and that's kind of the same thing.

Offline Agronomist_at_IA

  • Team IceShantyholic
  • ***
  • Posts: 5,704
  • Team Iowa!
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #37 on: Dec 03, 2016, 05:14 PM »
We've used our Foodsaver vacuum sealer and we've never seen any freezer burn even after 2+ years in the deep freeze. We do make sure to pat dry the fish well, and then double bag if we know it will be for a long time.


Good to know.

Offline esox_xtm

  • Iceshanty Militia
  • Team IceShantyholic
  • *
  • Posts: 6,055
  • It's Showtime!
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #38 on: Dec 03, 2016, 06:00 PM »
Grew up with the water filled milk cartons. PITA if you ask me. Effective but not really friendly unless you wanted to use all the fish in a carton plus take up a lot of freezer space.

Got a vac pack. That's OK too but bags are pricey and it's a process to process.

My current procedure is this:

Plastic wrap, lay a fillet (or a row of fillets), flip over and lay another layer. This works pretty good for about 4 layers. As I roll over I'll ease air out and fold the ends of the plastic wrap in to seal. Sure, this is also a "process" but for me there's a payback. I can place multiple "bundles" into a Ziplock freezer bag and mark with the contents and date. Better, if I want to go in and peel off like two nice walleye or pike fillets, it's easy. Open it up, unroll, pop off what you want, roll it back up and put it back. EZPZ.

I think the OP had something else in mind. Perhaps they just had an experience I used to have as an itinerant freezer filler. Go to defrost/clean out your freezer only to find a bucket full of stuff that has overstayed it's welcome. Freezer burned this or that, mystery stuff unmarked for contents OR date. Stuff that winds up either in a landfill or on the raccoon feeding station.  You know, everyone's been there.

Years ago I changed my philosophy: No more than two meals of fish in the freezer. Period. If I'm fishing it's all C&R if I've got those meals in the freeze UNLESS I intend to eat it fresh that same day or the next. Just one thing that helps me manage my freezer inventory and not be wasteful, which, BTW, was what I do think the OP had in mind. Not saying this has to be the way for everyone, it's just for me and it works for what I do. Hey, if I need fish I'd better GO FISHING!

I store lots of meat like this and it's remarkable how well it lasts. We had a guy come to make venison sausage with us a few years back. He brought a tub of stuff he said he had in "one of his freezers" for 4 years. It was wrapped in plastic wrap and then freezer paper. It was crazy, not a burned spot on it. And yes, it made great sausage.

One more comment on "freezer burn". All that is is freeze dried food. If you re-hydrate it cooks up just fine as long as you incorporate lots of moisture in the cooking process. Think soup, stew or an overnight marinade before cooking. My annual "deer camp chili" is usually all the crap I clean out of the freezer that isn't fit for much else. Venison or beef piece parts that have overstayed their welcome and show it. Funny thing, once transformed into a savory chili, no one would even guess what it looked like before.

So if everyone takes deep breath and gets a little air this might even out before it gets really snarky. I think everyone can agree that wasting the resource doesn't serve anyone in anyway.
To fish or not to fish? That's a stupid question!



“Imagination is the only weapon in the war against reality.”― Lewis Carroll

Offline HardWaterHunter1

  • IceShanty Rookie
  • **
  • Posts: 42
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #39 on: Dec 06, 2016, 01:03 PM »
Put water in the bag and freeze it into a block of ice. No freezer burn and  will keep for at least a year.

I second the Whisperer
Fish all you can.

Offline NNYIceangler

  • Team IceShanty Addict
  • *
  • Posts: 577
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #40 on: Jan 03, 2017, 08:09 AM »
I have found packages in my freezer that are three or four years old.....Frozen in water or vacuum sealed.  They were fine....Tasted good.  As long as there is no freezer burn it should be good.

Offline iceman2719

  • Team IceShanty Regular
  • ***
  • Posts: 232
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #41 on: Jan 08, 2017, 06:22 PM »
I always seemed to get freezer burn with the vacuum seal on fish. Had the best luck with freezing in water making sure none of the filets are outside of the water exposed to the side of the ziplock freezer bag . 2 years MAX. 1
Year is best
Don't horse em!

Offline Doubles Shooter

  • Team IceShanty Maniac
  • **
  • Posts: 1,332
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #42 on: Feb 06, 2017, 05:04 AM »
Last weekend I cooked a package of Bluegill fillets I found buried deep in the freezer that were dated 12/12. They were as good as any I have eaten before. My Wife and Grandkids inhaled them. I just cleaned, rinsed well, and patted them dry. Vac sealed them and into the freezer. I have no problem with fish that's been properly frozen that's a couple years or more old.

Offline filetandrelease

  • Team IceshantyInsanity
  • ****
  • Posts: 14,218
Re: How long is too long?
« Reply #43 on: Feb 06, 2017, 05:16 AM »

I vac seal , I try and eat mine up within a year but have eaten after 2 years and they were fine , I use to freeze in water with the same results but it did take up a little more room ,
 

 



Iceshanty | MyFishFinder | MyHuntingForum
Contact | Disclaimer | Privacypolicy | Sponsor
© 1996- Iceshanty.com
All Rights Reserved.