Mackerel Sushi
17 July 2006 | Great Barrier Reef, Australia
Chris
The efforts we invested in our fishing skills are starting to pay off, although we are still beginners. Yesterday was the best day of fishing we have had on the boat yet. By noon we had landed four mackerel (3 different kinds) and had 35 lbs of fillets in our refrigerator. We caught one large spanish mackerel (35 lbs), one large slimy mackerel (20 lbs) and two spotted mackerels (15 and 18 lbs).
We decided that we had plenty of fish to eat so we pulled in the reels. It was difficult to stop because the bite was good and we were hoping for a tuna to make sushi. Both Julie and I were craving sushi. We did catch two skipjack tunas but we released them unharmed as they are not good as good eating as the mackerel.
For lunch we barbecued part of a spotted mackerel and made fish tacos with fresh cabbage and salsa. Julie marinated the spotted in fresh cilantro and lime. I barbecued it quickly on high temp to seal in the moisture, which is the way we like it best. The tacos were excellent.
We also smoked some of the fish to preserve it. We are still working on our technique here. It is difficult to control the heat on the barbecue as it is influenced by the amount of wind. Also our fish has been dripping so much moisture that it quenches the smoldering hickory chips. We have a couple of different ideas which we are trying today.
As dinner approached we still craving sushi so Julie decide to try with some of the spanish mackerel. It turned out really good. She made nigiri sushi and also rolls with avocado and carrots. We need to get larger pieces of dried seaweed for the rolls but they tasted perfect.
With so much fish we will need to continue to try different way of preparing it to keep it interesting. If you have any ideas please feel free to share.
Currently we are sailing towards Cape York. We sailed all night last night and plan to anchor somewhere on the east coast before rounding Cape York tomorrow.