Safety of freshly caught sashimi

[willpethh]

Hey all!

I am considering going out and trying yakka/yellowtail sashimi as I've caught some 30cm+ fish recently (I am aware these may be cowanyoung - also curious about their sashimi quality) As ive heard multiple reports that it is quite delicious!

I am just wondering about the safety of eating them fresh in regards to any chance of food poisoning, if it would be okay to eat them within a few minutes of catching or if it would be wise to chuck them in the fridge for a few hours beforehand?

Curious if people have had any good/bad experiences with this!

[Jiggy]

The chances of food poisoning is very low if the fish is handled properly. Bled, gilled, gutted then straight onto ice or a saltwater ice slurry is what I would do. What is more of a concern is parasites. All fish can have them, some species more than others. These aren't a concern if cooking the fish, that kills them, but it's a potential issue when eating them raw.

I believe in Europe sushi\sashimi grade fish are required to be frozen first for I think 7 days. This kills any potential parasites. Usually parasites will show in the flesh, so you can make your own choice on whether to eat them raw or not.

Are fish parasites an issue? Some people say no, some say yes. I saw a fellow on YouTube cleaning an amberjack that had a lot of worms. He ate one and said they don't harm you. Me personally...nope.

FYI I do love sushi\sashimi, but I'm picky about it due to the above. Yeah I guess I'm a nanny.

Cheers

Rob

[bessell1955]

I agree with Jiggy, in relation to the parasite issue.  They do concern me.

[willpethh]

Thanks guys for the quick replies!

Has anyone here had issues with yakka and parasites in regards to sashimi? I thought it would be fun to bring some soy sauce on the boat as I’ve done it on a charter with kingfish but of course if it’s high risk there’s no harm in bringing them back and doing all that preparation

[Drunkenfisho]

5 hours ago, willpethh said:

Thanks guys for the quick replies!

Has anyone here had issues with yakka and parasites in regards to sashimi? I thought it would be fun to bring some soy sauce on the boat as I’ve done it on a charter with kingfish but of course if it’s high risk there’s no harm in bringing them back and doing all that preparation

I've done yellowtail sashimi before with soy sauce, salt, and lemon.

The fish was caught under an hour before and though I don't each much sashimi, it was pretty good. I didn't notice any parasites but personally if I did I wouldn't eat them as sashimi. Yakkas are great eating in my opinion and I regularly eat the bigger ones. You can cook them in many ways and obviously, as sashimi.

[AlbertW]

7 hours ago, willpethh said:

Thanks guys for the quick replies!

Has anyone here had issues with yakka and parasites in regards to sashimi? I thought it would be fun to bring some soy sauce on the boat as I’ve done it on a charter with kingfish but of course if it’s high risk there’s no harm in bringing them back and doing all that preparation

I haven't eaten them as sashimi before but once I caught loads of them around 15 of them, most of them were good but a few of them had tongue parasites on them and when we were cleaning the fish we also found one with a presumed to be parasite in it.( White stripe showing on the flesh)  They were caught in the swansea channel at the rsl club and I had a nice sized kingie come right up to the wharf as the yakkas were circling underneath the wharf due to berley. Its really your choice at the end of the day and they still taste pretty nice cooked.

[Little_Flatty]

I've eaten yellowtail sashimi and I'm still here to tell the tale. It was enjoyable.

Handled properly, I can't see how you'd be able to buy fish that is any fresher than that.

[Yowie]

I give my mother a feed of fillets when ever I catch something, and she will often cut off a few slices and eat it raw. Any type of fish, no sauces added to it, no fanfare, just eat some of it raw. It may be a day or 2 old.

She is past 90, and has been doing that since a young age. If I find any parasite inside a fillet, I cut it out but don't give her those fillets.

In the Hacking, jewies occasionally contain a wormy looking parasite, just pull them out and cook the meat, also the ocasional bream will have a small weedy looking patch in the meat, so also cut that out.

[Fried Rice]

Haven't tried yakkas but have eaten heaps of raw trevally, kingfish & bonnies over the years & never had an issue. Just treat them like any other fish you are keeping for the table. Incidentally I had grilled slimy mackeral in a Greek restaurant once and it was sensational.

[Squidless]

Tried yakkas as sashimi once, tasted pretty good. Would try it again. Haven't had it within hours of catching though.

This article may also help

https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-prepare-raw-fish-at-home-sushi-sashimi-food-safety