Freeze Fish without Freezer Burn

How to freeze fish so that it keeps longer. When freezing fish the biggest problem can be freezer-burn. This is caused by air coming in contact with the surface of the fish. You can vacuum pack your fish which works well to keep out the air but requires a pump and bag sealer.

Here is a good quick way of dealing with kahawai steaks, or any other fish including fillets, at the same time, preventing freezer burn. Best off all it requires no special equipment. It involves glazing your fish in protective ice.

I often turn kahawai into steaks. Start off by scaling the whole fish. Then cut straight across the body cutting steaks about 25mm thick.

Then freeze on a wire tray covered with a plastic supermarket bag (stops some of the water dripping into the freezer). A few hours later after they are frozen take out of the freezer and dip each steak in cold water, then freeze again. Do this several times so that a thick layer of ice encases the steaks completely preventing freezer burn. Finally, you can tip all the steaks into a bag so they are free-flow packed. Shutting out the air in this way with a thick layer of ice keeps the fish in better condition.

I wound not keep fish in the freezer intended for human consumption for longer than a couple of months. If you find yourself with a lot of extra fish it is a good idea to make it into cooked fish cakes. These will last longer in the freezer than uncooked fish.

Bottling is a better way of preserving fish like salmon, or mullet. Bottled fish lasts a long time and required no refrigeration. I have heard of people opening and using ten-year-old bottled salmon.