by L.A. DiNardi

After spending the day at sea and hooking some fabulously fresh bluefish, what’s better than to come home and cook a delectable meal with your fresh catch? It gives all new meaning to catch of the day! Blues are very common along the east coast of the United States, and are not frequently seen in restaurants because the soft, fleshy meat does not hold well frozen or for extended periods of time. The only way to really have an awesome bluefish meal is to catch it yourself and cook it up!

Bluefish has a strong flavor and occasionally a fishy smell which you can neutralize by soaking it in milk or using citrus flavors in your recipe. You can cook bluefish just about anyway, grilled, baked, broiled, or smoked. For this recipe, we will be baking the blues, after we clean and prep them.

If you have never caught and gutted a fish before, this is the easiest method, with the least amount of guts and goo. Take the fish and run a knife along the top of the back, dorsal, just under the skin then do the same along the bottom of each side. Doing this will leave a narrow band of skin and fin along the top which you can grip at the tail end and pull the skin forward. Now that is removed, there will be a groove left for which you can feel the rib cage with your knife and remove the fillet. Then put your knife edge under the scales and skin the fillet. Easy, right?
Video: How to Filet a Bluefish

When cooking fish, the simpler the recipe, the better so you can taste the flavor best. First, soak the fillets in milk for about 30 minutes. This will not only take away some of the fishy odor, but will also help keep it moist through the baking process. Blues have a high oil content, which also makes them a great source of Omega-3 fatty acids. This recipe plays up on the high oil content, using mayonnaise and Dijon mustard.

Ingredients:

• 4 Bluefish fillets
• 2 tablespoons of Olive oil
• 6 tables spoons of mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and put the olive oil on the bottom of a baking dish. Take a small bowl and mix the mayonnaise and Dijon mustard together. Place the fillets in the baking pan and top with your mayonnaise and mustard. Bake for 20 minutes until you can flake it easily with a fork. Bon apetit!
Video: Different and Simple Bluefish Recipe