Even a bad day of fishing is pretty good

Had a nice group today on the Lady Catherine which we really wanted to take to the reef and rock piles but the seas were confused enough we punted and went to the Bay.  Near full moon current against a pretty stiff winds are just a tad less than optimal conditions.

The crossed up wind and current made things a lot more challenging and limited options but the Spanish Mackerel did their job, though we only managed to get a couple of Mangrove Snapper.  The Spanish were respectable sized and with tide and current together it should not be hard to fill the freezer.  On lighter tackle the Spanish are always fun, it is just an question of matching the right recipe with the Spanish once you get into them.

Smoked and smoked fish dip are the most common treatments with a few promoting Spanish the ceviche and sushi, but just plain old fried, fresh Spanish is pretty hard to beat in spite of what some might say.  You can get a bit snobby and compare it to higher dollar fish species, but you probably shouldn't be frying the high dollar stuff all the time should you?  Butter milk soaking is often recommended, but I think that is more of a last ditch salvation of frozen mackerel.  A little salt, pepper and a health dash of Old Bay will transform Spanish fillets into tasty fish fingers.

For long term storage though I still recommend freezing after some sort of cooking.  I was solidly in the smoked camp for years, but about any method will add to the freezer life and poached actually gives you a few more options, like pretty tasty fish cakes.

 I didn't take any photos today but there were a few taken that I might be able to add later.  

Marathon in the Florida Keys should be your next fishing vacation destination. Join us for charter fishing, fishing guide trips or our fishing 101 so you can fish on your own with better success.


 Tight lines,

 Capt. Dallas