NSW DPI PRESENTS
Fishing World and Berkley are giving one lucky winner each month the chance to
win a handful of new Berkley Shimma Fork Tail lures. To be in the draw, simply head
over to our Facebook page and enter our Berkley Shimma Photo of The MonthWIN!Competition. Winners will be announced on Facebook each month. Good luck!
SNIPPETS
20 fishingworld.com.au | September 2019LOOKING AFTER YOUR CATCH
NOTHING beats coming home after a good
day on the water with fresh fish on ice in the
esky. Given all the time and effort you put
into catching your fish, it makes a lot of sense
to ensure you get the most out of it. Here are a
few tips to help you enjoy maximum benefits
from the fish you take to feed the family.
First up, ensure you humanely dispatch fishimmediately on capture. A sharp blow to the
head with a “donger” or “priest” is an effective
technique for most species. Brain spiking, or
iki jimi, is also very effective. Once the fish is
dead, bleed it by cutting the throat and then
get it on ice as soon as possible.
Ensuring you have a good supply of ice in a
quality icebox or cooler bag is essential if you
want to maximise the eating quality of the fish
you take. An ice slurry (ice mixed with a very
small amount of saltwater to create a thick
“bath” in your esky) is probably the most
effective way to store saltwater species prior to
preparation and consumption. Use fresh water in
your slurry if targeting native species or trout.
When you prepare your fish for the table, keep
the fish f lesh as dry as possible. Reducing the
moisture the fish is exposed to will ensure it
retains maximum f lavour and texture. A handy
tip is to leave fish uncovered in the coldest
section of your fridge for at least a few hours
before you cook it. This firms the fish up,
making it easier to cook and much tastier to eat!
It’s vitally important that we as anglers
respect the fish we take to eat. Taking the time
to carefully look after fish not only means that
we’ll enjoy tasty, fresh seafood, it also shows tothe wider community that we value and
appreciate our fisheries resources.
A key aspect of this is making sure we fully
utilise the seafood we harvest. For example, if
you take the fillets off a fish, keep the frame to
make fish stock for a chowder or seafood paella.
Where possible, cook the whole fish. Do this
maximises the “yield”. You’ll be amazed at how
much f lesh even a smallish whole fish can
provide compared to fillets or cutlets.
Last but not least, think about how much
fish you actually need. Many of us in the past
will be guilty of enjoying a good session and
ending up with a pile of fish to clean. More
often than not, this results in waste at the
cleaning table and bags of fish left forgotten in
the freezer. When it comes to fresh fish, quality,
not quantity, is well worth considering ...
As anglers, we’re incredibly lucky to be able
to catch fresh fish for our families to enjoy.
Respecting and looking after the fish we catch
ensures we provide our loved ones with the best
quality and freshest seafood available.
Achieving that is surely worth a little bit of
extra effort and time? Tight lines!● By NSW DPI
ABOVE: Use the head and frame of a filleted fish to
make a tast y fish stock, ideal for paella or chowder.FISHING’S FUTURE IN FOCUS AT NATIONAL CONFERENCE
THE Australian Recreational Fishing Foundation (ARFF) recently
announced the 2019 National Recreational Fishing Conference will be held in
Hobart, Tasmania, and focus on how every fisher can help steer Australia’s
recreational fishing future through taking part in citizen science projects.
Our Fishing, Our Research, Our Recreational Future is the theme of this
year’s Conference, promising to celebrate, inform and expand Australia’s vibrant
recreational fishing citizen science programs. The conference will be held across
two days, December 10 and 11, 2019, and will incorporate the National
Recreational Fishing Gala Dinner and Recognitions Awards. The conference
will be live-streamed, allowing all interested fishers to engage and discover ways
that they can contribute positively to the future of our sport.
Every Aussie fisher has the ability to
take part in citizen science projects and inf luence the future of their
favourite pastime, but many don’t understand how easy and fun it is or how
important their contributions could be.
The National Recreational Fishing Conference aims to dissect the role of
citizen science in recreational fishing,
put it under the proverbial microscope
and share the hows, wheres and whys
so all Australians who love fishing can
play their part in steering the sport
into a strong and valued position in
the future.
The National Recreational Fishing Conference is being supported with
funding from the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC)
on behalf of the Australian Government, with good reason.
The dates and location of the conference have been chosen to tie in with the
World Fly Fishing Championships, being held in Tasmania from November
30 to December 8. Tasmania is bound to be abuzz with fishing energy off the
back of this momentous event and that fervor is sure to continue as the
conference sheds light on the inf luence fishers can have through participating
in citizen science projects. ●