06-23-2008, 04:31 PM
[cool][#0000ff]Shad are an oily fleshed fish that don't freeze well. Well, they freeze okay, but tend to soften up a bit when thawed.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I have tried salting, but it does not help all that much and I think the fish prefer as natural as possible. [/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I freeze most of my bait fish in dozen bags...12 to 15 per pag. I use the one quart size baggies. They are tough and you can easily get a good quantity of bait, plus a bit of water, and have plenty of bag left over for a good tie. I arrange the shad or minnows so they all lay as flat as possible in the bottom of the bag. Then, I trickle in a bit of cold water and squeeze out all the excess water and bubbles. Do not freeze a bunch of water in the bag and do not allow air to remain...to prevent freezer burn. Twist the bag closed at the bottom (next to the bait and water) and then fold the twist over and use a twist tie to secure it. Lay it flat in a cardboard container and freeze your packages in a good freezer so they freeze quickly.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]When you are ready to use them, Partially thaw one bag at room temperature and then put it on ice. Put a couple more bags of frozen shad on the ice too. They will begin to thaw. If you hook partially thawed shad on your hook, they will cast well without flying off the hook and they will finish thawing quickly in the warm water. By the time you have used up the first package, the others will be soft enough to use without being too soft.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]If you want to harden them up a bit, cover them with sea salt or pickling salt overnight in the refrigerator. The next morning there will be a lot of liquid that the salt has leached out of the shad. Now you can vacuum seal or freeze them as outlined before. Sometimes the salty flavor helps their appeal and salting does toughen them a bit.[/#0000ff]
[signature]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I have tried salting, but it does not help all that much and I think the fish prefer as natural as possible. [/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I freeze most of my bait fish in dozen bags...12 to 15 per pag. I use the one quart size baggies. They are tough and you can easily get a good quantity of bait, plus a bit of water, and have plenty of bag left over for a good tie. I arrange the shad or minnows so they all lay as flat as possible in the bottom of the bag. Then, I trickle in a bit of cold water and squeeze out all the excess water and bubbles. Do not freeze a bunch of water in the bag and do not allow air to remain...to prevent freezer burn. Twist the bag closed at the bottom (next to the bait and water) and then fold the twist over and use a twist tie to secure it. Lay it flat in a cardboard container and freeze your packages in a good freezer so they freeze quickly.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]When you are ready to use them, Partially thaw one bag at room temperature and then put it on ice. Put a couple more bags of frozen shad on the ice too. They will begin to thaw. If you hook partially thawed shad on your hook, they will cast well without flying off the hook and they will finish thawing quickly in the warm water. By the time you have used up the first package, the others will be soft enough to use without being too soft.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]If you want to harden them up a bit, cover them with sea salt or pickling salt overnight in the refrigerator. The next morning there will be a lot of liquid that the salt has leached out of the shad. Now you can vacuum seal or freeze them as outlined before. Sometimes the salty flavor helps their appeal and salting does toughen them a bit.[/#0000ff]
[signature]