How to Harvest Bluefin Tuna
Written By: Coty Perry
Bluefin is the pinnacle gamefish in sportfishing, testing anglers’ limits as one of the ocean’s top predators. The thrill of the fight makes bluefin highly sought after, and its flavor is unmatched. From tuna steaks to sashimi, there are countless bluefin recipes.
However, the quality of the bluefin depends on the harvesting process. To maximize freshness and flavor, follow these bluefin harvesting tips to get the most out of your catch.
How to Harvest Bluefin Tuna: Tackle
The first and most essential part of harvesting bluefin tuna is having the right gear. Whether it’s protecting your hands or protecting the fish, these components help preserve the quality of the meat while keeping you as safe and clean as possible.
Fishing Gloves
Fishing gloves are a must-have for anyone tuna fishing. They protect your hands from cuts, abrasions, and blisters during battles. Here are three gloves we recommend:
Wire Max Glove: These heavy-duty puncture-proof gloves are a favorite among yacht crews targeting big gamefish like bluefin tuna. They offer superior protection with Armortex when handling wire leaders and gaffs, which are common when dealing with large pelagic species.
Utility All-Purpose Glove: These all-purpose workhorse gloves are ideal for every task from leading and gaffing, to fish cleaning. Their balance of protection and dexterity makes them a go-to choice for many anglers.
JigPro Jigging Gloves: If you're into slow pitch jigging for bluefin tuna, these gloves are a game-changer. They provide the perfect blend of sensitivity and protection, allowing you to feel subtle bites while safeguarding your hands during the fight.
Release Gloves: This saltwater fishing glove is perfect for offshore fishing and made tough for leadering line or grabbing the bill of a marlin. These fishing gloves have Armortex® along the outer hand and a reinforced index finger to maximize protection. The Release has a touchscreen-compatible index finger and thumb, and it's made with vented foam-backed mesh that keeps hands cool and comfortable.
Fillet Knives
The clock starts ticking once you get your Bluefin on the deck. The faster you can get it cleaned and on ice, the better off you’ll be.
The best fish fillet knives for Bluefin are around 9-12 inches to handle the large fillets. Having a variety of fillet knives is useful for more intricate work while longer blades are best reserved for long sweeping fillet cuts.
The AFTCO fillet knife is the perfect knife for Bluefin. Designed in collaboration with Böker, it’s made with 4116 German stainless steel and full tang construction for durability.
Having the best cuts of fish starts by choosing the right knife. Learn more about how to select a fillet knife here.
Absorbent Pads
These FDA-approved pads are designed for direct contact with fish and serve several important functions:
- Moisture Control: By absorbing excess blood and fluids, these pads help keep your fillets dry. This is crucial in slowing down bacterial growth and preserving freshness.
- Temperature Regulation: A drier environment helps maintain a more consistent temperature, which is essential for preserving the quality of the tuna meat.
- Presentation: Clean, blood-free fillets not only look more appealing but taste better and increase the Bluefin tuna price.
When using absorbent pads, place them under and between layers of fillets in your cooler or storage container. Replace them as needed to ensure continued effectiveness.
Ike Jime Tools
If there was one “secret” to superior quality fish preparation, it would be the Ike Jime process. This method of harvesting fish involves humane dispatching, immediate bleeding, and proper preservation to reduce stress on the fish and maintain the highest quality in terms of taste and texture.
These are some tools you need to perform this properly:
Ike Jime Spike: The AFTCO Ike Jime Spike is the perfect tool to euthanize your catch before it experiences full suffocation. This prevents the brain from sending signals to the rest of the body, excreting cortisol and adrenaline.
Circuit Breaker Shinkei Jime Wire: The Circuit Breaker is specially designed to disable the full length of a fish’s spinal cord and paralyze the fish completely. The memory-resistant wire will not bend or kink even after repeated use. It is lightweight, portable, and single-stranded for easy sterilization.
Understanding the Ike Jime Process
The Ike Jime method is a Japanese fish preparation technique used by anglers targeting high-quality and premium cuts like Bluefin Tuna. This method of fish harvesting involves four essential steps.
1. Brain Spike
This involves quickly and precisely inserting a sharp spike into the fish's brain, instantly killing it and preventing stress hormones from being released into the meat.
2. Bleeding
After the brain spike, the fish starts bleeding out. It’s important to remove the blood from the meat because it can change the flavor and cause it to spoil faster. Step two involves cutting behind the pectoral fins and serving the main artery to remove the blood as fast as possible.
3. Skinkei Jime
Reflexive movement and signals to the muscle tissue can continue to reduce the quality of the meat. Specialized tools like the Circuit Breaker are inserted into the spinal canal and run down the length of the spine to stop nerve signals. This process slows down rigor mortis which results in a more tender meat.
4. Cooldown
Immerse the tuna in an ice slurry, ensuring it's completely covered. This quick temperature drop is crucial for maintaining the meat's texture and preventing bacterial growth. For larger bluefin tuna, you might need to use multiple coolers or a larger, specialized fish hold.
Harvesting Bluefin Tuna: Step-by-Step
We interviewed Captain Dave Elm, AFTCO’s Tackle Production Director to learn more about his process of harvesting bluefin tuna.
It starts with gaffing and securing the catch with a tail rope. After that he makes a strategic incision behind the pectoral fin, cuts the gills, and then tosses the fish overboard for it to bleed out.
Elm’s technique involves removing the head and guts in one motion. He emphasizes the importance of using saltwater brine and ice to preserve flavor, avoiding freshwater which can compromise the meat's texture. He then stuffs the fish full of ice to bring the temperature down.
When filleting the bluefin, Elm recommends using AFTCO absorbent pads to soak up any moisture which is important for the texture of your bluefin. Too much water can lead to soggy fillets.
Throughout the process from start to finish, Elm stresses the importance of speed and efficiency to ensure the highest quality product.
Preparing Bluefin Tuna
You’ve got your beautiful tuna steaks, cleaned, filleted, and frozen. It’s time to start thinking about cooking them up.
Before we get to that, you have to defrost your fillets the right way. The process should start 2-3 days ahead of time, using a vacuum-sealed bag. Pat the fillets nice and dry, wrap them in paper towels, and defrost them slowly in the refrigerator. Switch out the paper towels frequently because they’ll quickly soak up the moisture from the fillets as it’s brought to the surface.
Three Common Bluefin Tuna Recipes
Sashimi
Once the tuna is thawed, you can look into some delicious fresh tuna recipes, like bluefin sashimi. Sashimi is a Japanese delicacy that’s thinly sliced raw fish. There are endless options for sashimi, and Ali Hussainy covers numerous ways to prepare Bluefin Tuna cuts. With ten basic, easy-to-use ingredients, you’ll enjoy your tuna in no time.
Poke
Poke is one of the best ways to enjoy high-quality bluefin tuna, and it takes fifteen minutes or less to prepare. Ryan Griffin, an avid outdoorsman, angler, and culinary enthusiast, has an excellent poke recipe that’s made to impress. Check out his eleven-ingredient poke recipe, perfect for a quick appetizer next time you get together with friends.
Sear
However, it’s hard to beat a nice grilled tuna steak, seared and seasoned with sesame seeds, soy sauce, and a wasabi dressing. This method has always been a go-to for me, and it tastes so much better knowing its fresh, high-quality Bluefin tuna going into the recipe.
Another way anglers can sear their tuna is by grating up some ginger. Then add wasabi to the grated ginger until it makes a paste. Once that’s complete, add soy sauce until it reaches your desired thickness. From there, pad that around the edges of your tuna fillets. After oiling the pan, sear the edges slightly without cooking the fillets all the way through. From sashimi to poke or a simple sear, anglers can’t go wrong with how they enjoy their harvested tuna.
Fishing Superstitions
Every Captain has boat superstitions or fishing myths that they won’t let go of. For example, no bananas are allowed on the boat with Captain Dave Elm. It’s believed that if you have bananas in the boat, you’ll get bitten by tarantulas, so as long as you don’t have any on board, you’ll be fine. Elm doesn’t even want you to eat bananas the day before because you still might have them in your system.
On the opposite side, pineapples are believed to be good luck on a boat. Pineapples are supposed to provide calm seas and good fishing. This is why you’ll often find pineapple decor on boats and around marinas.
One unique superstition my dad always had on the boat pertained to crossing lines. He always said if you cross lines on a cast, you must reel them both in and swap sides with the rods so you're casting from the side you crossed the line on. I'm unsure why or if it made a difference, but he thought it meant the fish were calling you to that spot, so why not listen to them?
Bluefin fishing retains its allure from the thrill of the chase to the satisfaction of the harvest. Here’s to tight lines and good times on the open water!
Author’s profile: Coty Perry
As a third-generation angler and the Managing Editor of Anglers, he possesses a wealth of knowledge and experience in outdoor activities. He frequently enjoys fishing and camping outings with his wife and children.
