I still have some vacuum packed and frozen (obviously) salmon from last July-September. We are about to transfer to Hawaii and I'd like to give some of it away to friends, but I want to make sure it's still good before I do that. I cooked some tonight and I'm still here.

Are you all still eating salmon from last year?

Thanks for the advice!

Brett

i had some from last october the other night still good

Might not be the full nutritional pack that it was but it definetly wont hurt you.

If it is properly sealed when vacuum packing it will be OK up to a year.

Sometimes the seal doesn't hold well and it can get freezer burned, but otherwise it should be fine.

If it were Black Rockfish, it wouldn't last more than three months because they get very strong flavored if frozen very long, even when vacuum packed.

Should be fine. We're finishing up last years catch, too. If your friends have a smoker, that is another way to take care of the meat.

Thanks for your service. Hope Hawaii is a nice station. No salmon or steelhead fishing, though.

Personally, I think the flavor starts to deteriorate a little after a month or two. After 6 months, it's a lot more noticible. After that, it's not fit for a seafood connoisseur. That said, I'm sure a lot has to do with your freezer temp and how well sealed the package is.

I had a springer still after a year and it was still good. I would recommend a quick thaw, like warm water in a large pot. Not two days.
Too warm for too long will begin to cook the fish in the bag.

I smoked up the last of my last season salmon two weeks ago. Was OK.....not like fresh, but good enough that those at work gobbled it right up......(rookies... )

Same here I clean out the remaining this time of year, smoke it up and make a ton of smoked salmon spread to give away.

I vacum pack mine and even after a couple months I think the fish smells strong and looses it's texture. Why is that? Am I not getting the slime off the skin good, or should I skin them before freezing?

My experience is that antime the flesh is exposed, even if fillets are vacuum packed immediately, freezer longevity is limited.

Last year on my Canada trip I headed and gutted my salmon, then froze whole. After returning, I removed the fish from the freezer, dipped them in ice water, and then refroze, compelting this several times until the entire fish was encased in a solid coating of ice. Commercially flash-frozen fish goes through a similar process.. If defrosted slowly in a water bath, these fish, even after 6-8 months of freezer time, are almost next-day fresh, with no discoloration, flesh softness, or that "old" odor that usually accompanies long-frozen salmon.

Downside is that you end up with a lot of fish each defrost. I usually eat a couple meals, then smoke up the rest.

The fat in salmon breaks down even while frozen, the colder a freezer is the longer the breakdown takes.

Hey Chip,
do you wrap the fish in anything or just use the ice for protection?
Fish tha has been in my freezer for longer than 2 months is smoker fish. Fish in my freezer for longer than 6 months is shrimp/crab bait.
Neal

Fish frozen for several months can be soaked in whole milk overnight. The freezer smell goes away. If Parker could post he would also be telling you that. There are some posts in the archive about it. It really does help.

It all depends on how it was preped and frozen. No water on the flesh side of the fillet and freeze quickly. I freeze all mine in a flash freezer solid in 10 minutes or less.

After several seasons of loading up the freezer with summers and coho, I've slowly realized that freezing the fish in large steaks is the ticket. The skin and "unexposed" meat tend to last much longer than fillets. I simply thaw and then fillet. Some spring chinook from 08 was consumed over christmas and was still excellent while the filleted portions were garbage. This summer I intend on freezing my summers and summer kings whole (head and tail gone).

Along the same lines as Chip suggested, I received a whole frozen fish from an in-law that was frozen in a way I had never seen before....whole....I mean whole....head,guts, feathers, the whole works. Not kidding. The fish when thawed was absolutely fresh tasting. I attributed it to the fact that no flesh was exposed. I never used the technique myself, as it just takes up too much room, but I can tell you that it works. As a kid, my Mom used to freeze the trout we caught in a coffee can filled with water.....same idea....kept for very long times in the freezer with no burn and was fresh tasting when finally drug out and thawed.
I'm convinced that keeping the flesh covered in it's skin really helps preserve the flavor.

freeze then vacuum pack. will last all year

It seems to be best within that 6 mos frame, but I have eaten "good," not great, stuff out to almost 2 years.

If it lasts more than 6 mos, you are way , way, way, past the "Need To Go Fishing!"
"Honey, we need fish!"

I took a few leftover packs of king from last June and smoked them last week, they had that freezer smell but no burn, finished product came out good. Not like fresh obviously, but still what I would consider good and I am highly critical of my product. I have some coho from last fall that needs to go next, thinner and less oil, they are more succeptible to freezer burn even while vacuum sealed. I always make sure to poke a hole in the bag before I thaw it so it retains the moisture and oil.

As far as smoked frozen fish goes, I've found that the fish turns out good if immediately removed from the plastic while frozen and allowed to dry overnight in the fridge, then allowed to reach room temp before devouring. Otherwise it seems to turn out too wet. Just a tip I learned through trial and error.

You need to know what type of freezer you have. Auto defrost freezers are not friendly for frozen fish. Manual defrost freezers allow your frozen items to last much longer. I see a variation in the replies here......perhaps this is the reason.

I've taken some of my last summers catch and cooked the salmon in the microwave or oven, then chilled and flaked it, re-packaged and re-froze it for use in making salmon paddies, salmon & creme cheese dip, flaked salmon with pasta. That and smoking seem to be useful ways to use older vacuum packed salmon.

It isn't the equal to fresh frozen, but it provides some pretty good meals.

If Vedder would share one of his CR upriver brights with me, there would be no danger of it even making it to the freezer.

He did it once, before he had the chance to put the other half on the Barbie, since then I've been out of luck on those CR fish handouts.

That fits with experience that just about anytime the flesh is exposed, it starts to deteriorate.

And, yes, we are talking fish here.

i've noticed something here. nobodys complaining about the bag somehow losing the airtight seal. i've tried every tip preventing this. i'm done with the food saver system for fish.

I've found a year max on a well sealed bag. After 6 months I smoke it. Taking off the skin will help. I wipe down my fish with paper towels now and have stopped rinsing off my fillets before I seal. Canning is also a good option. It's better than store bought tuna any day! One more...I don't use a frostless freezer for ANY of my fish. That slight thaw and re-freeze is brutal on quality.

Brewer is right on. A high quality sealer is more important than my tackle.

Wilsoncj6,

It depends how low your standards are. If you're a fish snob, flash frozen and vacuum packed is good to 6 months and can be as good as fresh if your freezer is cold enough, like sub-zero. Regular vacuum packed and frozen is almost good for 2 months. However, if your standards are about like a dog's, then frozen fish lasts a long time.

I don't have access to a flash freezer, so I'm firing up my BBQ every night until the spring chinook is gone so as to avoid freezing it and compromising the quality.

Sg

Sounds like someone caught a springer or two recently.....?

I ate some "08" butt the other night and it was good and moist.That being said anything the was well taken care of and the seal not broken should last up to a year.Good luck,
STRIKE ZONE

I have the same problem with food saver, the bones poke through the bag and only 2/3rds of the packages seal.

Thanks all! I threw it frozen on some tin foil and put it in the oven at 350 and it turned out great. I should add that I'm not super picky, but I think I did a good job! I'm just glad I didn't mention it was pink salmon!

Brett

Digging up this old thread from 2010....

Been a little disappointed in the quality of vacuum packed salmon fillets after a bit, and thinking of trying the method a couple folks mentioned here (basically freezing whole gutted fish).

For those who use this technique, what do you wrap the fish in?

A few years ago I started wrapping fish in butcher paper first, write the particulars right on the paper, and then vacuum sealing it. Besides keeping the sealer clean and dry, it makes a defrosted product that's easily twice as good as vacuum sealing alone...and no bones poke thru the bag, and zero freezer burn.

Fish on...

Todd

Even frozen the fats in salmon will slowly go rancid.

That's true, Same with pork. Why you seldom see frozen pork. Learned that the hard way when I raised pigs. Several unsmoked hams hadda be tossed. IMHO no matter how you freeze that fat slowly goes rancid.

I have been using Food Savers for 30 years. Been happy with the results but salmon does start to turn after a few months. Beef seems to last much longer. Never a problem with broken seals or punctured bags. Just be carful about what you put in. The place I fish in SE-AK vacuum packs and freezes your fish every day. The bags are much heavier than the food saver ones. We had a chunk of halibut tonight that was caught in 2014. Was still pretty good. I don't normally let it sit around that long. Salmon hits the smoker after just a few months.