Back in the summer of my college days I used to pack fish at the Harwichport Fish Co., and the owner was a real stickler for top quality fish as we used to sell to a lot of the better restaurants and Inns in the area from Dennis to Orleans. The charter guys at Wychmere and Saquatucket Harbors used to bring their fish to us and the ones who carried ice and took care of their fish got paid higher prices because it was a good product the we could sell locally as opposed to other fish which would get shipped to NY or Philly to get auctioned off.
An experienced fish cutter can tell exactly how you took care of your fish by the firmness as soon as he sticks the knife into the flesh. Taking care of fish that have high metabolisms like bluefish, macks and tunas is critical to getting a good product, because the enzymes in their digestive system can deteriorate the flesh quickly once the fish dies. If you want good fish it's simple - kill, gut, wash out the inside, and put on ice in a cooler right after you catch it. (NOT AFTER YOU GET BACK HOME! It's too late then!)
Having said that, I'll say I like baked Bluefish just fine because that's how I take care of the ones I keep and it works. I've never tried mackerel but I would do the same for them, and I'm glad you had some good eats Jim!
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