Albacore Tuna A Quality Guide for Off-the-Dock Purchasers K. S. Hilderbrand, Jr. lbacore tuna is one of the good-quality albacore is mild in com- Identifying Albacore Tuna premium fish in waters off parison to that of other tuna species. the Pacific Northwest. This If you buy albacore directly off the How do you know that the tuna you are fish appears as “white dock, you should know how to judge buying is albacore? Whole, unprocessed meat”A canned tuna on grocery shelves its quality. The quality can vary for a (in-the-round) albacore is easily recog- throughout the United States and is number of reasons. Top-quality tuna nized by its extraordinarily long pectoral considered the best of all the types of is a result of extra care on the part of fin. This long, narrow fin (one on each tuna available. Canned skipjack and the fisher and often is worth paying a side of the fish) stretches back over yellowfin tuna are sold as “light meat,” higher price. three-fourths the length of the fish to a but only albacore can be labeled as the This publication offers tips to “off- point behind the dorsal, or top, fin. premium “white meat” tuna. the-dock” buyers: How do you spot Other fish may have the characteris- In recent years, various economic good-quality whole albacore? tic metallic blue-black back with silver factors have forced the closing of alba- How does quality relate to core canneries throughout the Pacific the way you intend to use Northwest. The loss of these markets the fish? has been a severe blow to commercial fishers, who have had to find other ways to sell their catch. One available opportunity is to sell albacore directly to you, the consumer. Seafood connoisseurs consider fresh and fresh frozen albacore one of the best choices for many kitchen recipes as well as for preservation by smok- ing and canning. The flavor of You can easily recognize an albacore tuna by its unusually long, slender pectoral fin on the side of the body behind the gills. (Illustration by Herb Goblirsch) Alabacore Tuna underbelly, or the torpedo shape and Albacore Quality—Fresh Frozen Albacore thin tail fin attachment—but no other Versus Frozen Air blast, spray brine, brine immersion tuna, mackerel, bonito, or tunalike spe- coil, and shelf freezers are common- cies has a pectoral fin this long. The very best-quality albacore will be ly used systems to freeze top-quality well iced or refrigerated and not more albacore. Each has good and bad points than a few days old at the time of sale. from the standpoint of people working Harvesting Tuna Fresh is a term usually applied to fish in the fishing industry, but all produce Tuna are caught by hooks or with nets. that has never been frozen, but it is not good fish. As a dockside buyer, you’ll In the Northwest, albacore usually are always true that fresh is best. find it easier to judge the quality of landed by troll boats, which rapidly Fresh fish that is more than five or frozen albacore if you know the basics pull (or troll) 10 to 20 lines through the six days old at the time of sale may of each type of system. water. begin to show serious quality loss. Prop- Freezing systems using salt brine Albacore trollers preserve the fish erly frozen tuna can be almost as good (spray and immersion) rely on the fact with either ice or mechanical refriger- as the best unfrozen fish. that a strong salt brine will not freeze ation because albacore most often are In fact, you may be better off buying unless its temperature is below 0˚F. found 50 or more miles from shore—a frozen tuna if you don’t plan to use Tuna properly exposed to this cold distance that forces the boats to stay out it the same day you buy it. However, brine will freeze so fast that little salt several days at a time. if the best is what you want, learn to is absorbed into the meat. However, if It would be unusual for albacore recognize it and to appreciate the extra the temperature of the brine is not cold to be caught so close to shore that a care it took to preserve it for you. enough, the tuna will absorb salt from quality fish could be brought back to the brine and have a salty taste. the dock without being chilled. Chilled Fresh Albacore Overloading the system usually is Ice is unsurpassed by any other chilling Trolling for tuna typically provides the cause of this problem, just as it is system because it has almost unlimit- time for proper handling. Top-quality with mechanical chilling. Tuna held for ed chilling capacity as long as it lasts. fish are alive when landed and are bled weeks or months at temperatures above Although ice is expensive and difficult immediately. Bleeding produces a light- 15˚F (but still frozen) can develop to handle, it produces the best fresh er-colored, milder-flavored flesh. After severe quality problems. albacore on the dock. the fish are bled, they are packed in ice Air blast, coil, and shelf freezer Mechanical refrigeration can involve or refrigerated as soon as possible. systems can produce excellent fish, but the use of coils, seawater spray, salt Chilling the fish immediately is these methods have the same limitations brine, and other devices. Any of these sometimes not possible because of as other mechanical systems. Overload- systems can be adequate and can chill fishing conditions, but quality fish are ing still is a problem. These systems do, fish to temperatures colder than ice. iced or refrigerated within an hour of however, produce a fish with a cold, dry They can produce an albacore of excel- capture. At this point, the albacore are surface—undesirable thawing is easy to lent quality if they’re operated properly. either chilled or frozen. spot. Fish frozen by these methods ab- The major drawback to these Chilling means the fish are kept near sorb no salt but may have a water glaze systems is their limited capacity. An 32˚F, but the flesh is not allowed to added to the outside to protect against overloaded mechanical chilling system freeze. Frozen means the fish are kept at freezer burn. not only damages the extra fish placed subfreezing temperatures until they are In poorly designed freezer systems, in it, but it also lowers the quality of sold at the dock. the fish may not freeze properly (below previously chilled fish. Once the chilling or freezing process 10˚F) for several weeks. The outward Mechanical chilling systems are easily begins, the real battle to maintain fish signs of such abuse will be dented or overloaded when fishing is good. Many quality is underway. Quality loss while partly frozen fish. Unfortunately, the systems are designed to handle only an the fish are in the refrigeration system worst quality defects in frozen fish average daily fish production and can depends on the type of refrigeration usually are inside—and may not show up become overloaded rapidly if fishing used—and quality loss often can’t be until you thaw and use the fish. determined by inspecting the outer success is above average. The result of appearance of the fish. overloading is excessive fish tempera- The very best fish may also be the ture, accelerated quality loss, and even most expensive fish, so read on. spoilage. 2 Alabacore Tuna Characteristics of High- Frozen Tuna is not a good idea because of the long Quality Tuna High-quality frozen tuna will be brick freezing time required by home freezers. hard (less than 10˚F) with no exter- If you want to store a whole tuna, you nal dents. If it has been in a dry-type should buy frozen fish at the dock. Chilled “Fresh” Tuna freezing system, it will be bone dry but On the other hand, cleaning and Although there are no rigid guidelines may collect frost on exposure to air. cutting a chilled, dressed, fresh alba- for evaluating high-quality tuna, there Brine-frozen fish may look wet, but core into steaks or loins to be frozen is are some general guidelines you can use they’ll still be brick hard and lower than fine. Be sure to properly wrap them for to select your fish. 10˚F. Upon thawing, frozen albacore freezing. High-quality fresh tuna will have a may appear soft, but their odor will be You can glaze frozen whole fish characteristic odor that’s fishy but not characteristically fresh and not strong. by dipping them momentarily in fresh strongly so. Generally, the eyes will be Unfortunately, many defects in water before placing them in extended clear. The skin will not be overly slimy. frozen albacore show up only when frozen storage. Refreezing loins dressed The gills will have a deep red color you cook it or eat it. Good-quality tuna from whole and thawed frozen fish rather than a brownish pink. The sides will cook with a light color and without will not produce good quality. Only of the fish should be silvery rather than a salty flavor. Fishers who are willing top-quality albacore will keep more than dull gray. There should be plenty of ice to cook samples of their fish for you a few months in the freezer without left on the fish and in the hold of the probably are confident that the tuna is tasting and smelling rancid (like linseed boat.