Don't throw back those yellowtail jacks!

[GaryDroze]

Caught a coupla small ones in Stoney Bayou last week & got them on ice within 30 minutes before driving home.

Set the oven on broil, then filleted them, removing the obvious blood line in the middle of the fillets. Olive oil in the pan.

6 minutes under broil yielded nice white flaky meat. Squirt of lemon, dusting of garlic & onion powder, shavings of cilantro...

Yum. Don't let anybody tell you these jacks aren't good eating!

[Salty Gator]

St marks pompano! Glad you were the first one " in the pool" on that one

[Jumptrout51]

I told ya'll before they are good eating.
Similar to spanish mackeral.
Who remembers when amberjack was considered a trash fish and no one ate them?
Well,not no one,but most.

[SS-342]

Gary, we'll have to give them a try. Thanks!

[GaryDroze]

JT nailed it. Yellowtail jacks compare favorably to spanish macks. Key for both is to ice them quickly and cut out the bloodline. Very tasty when fresh.

My next challenge is to pickle giant bull minnows. Stay tuned.

[reelhandy]

I have a book on Gulf Fishes and Food Value is a part of the description of all of the fishes. Yellow Jacks are described as having GOOD food value. Jack Crevalle are described as having NONE. Amberjack are rated VERY GOOD. I was surprised by the food value description of Atlantic Spadefish which I had heard before as being good eating. The book says they are " Acceptable at best, in spite of many references listing it as "excellent". The flesh has a fairly dark, grey color, and a unique musty taste."

[bpac]

Is there a difference between yellow tailed jacks and the ol crevalle?

[leonreno]

Cobia, redfish and snook were all once considered trash fish (or at least below average table fair), and now all are prized for their food value.

As asked above, what is a yellow tail jack? Same as crevalle jack?

[reelhandy]

In the book I have, the Yellow Jack and the Jack Crevalle seem to have very similar body shapes and fin shapes. The Yellow Jack's eye is farther from the snout and the lower jaw isn't as flat as the lower jaw on the Crevalle. I'd say the main difference in the descriptions is going to be seen when you cut into them. The book describes the Jack Crevalle meat as being "bloody red flesh that puts most people off from even trying them", and the Yellow Jack as good eating.

[GaryDroze]

The yellowtail jacks I catch in St Marks look like pompano, but with a bold yellow tail. The flesh has a red tint raw, but cooks up white. The blood line is really easy to cut out before cooking.

They fight like demons. If the 2 pounders I catch got as big as upper slot reds, they'd probably spool my 12lb test reel!

[reelhandy]

http://www.theoutdoorlodge.com/fishing/ ... cks.html#4

This page has good descriptions. The Yellow Jack sounds like your fish to me Gary.

[Rhettley]

I'll try any fish once or twice. I can say that spade fish and lesser amberjack will never make the boat ride to the ramp with me again. I love fishy tasting fish but those two were rank. Grunts, Spanish, Amberjack, Kings, all get to participate in the GA relocation program.

[DixieReb]

Bake that jack on a board, and when it's done, throw out the jack and eat the board! Spadefish taste a lot like bream, I like the bigger ones.

[TallyFish]

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/fres ... ecipe.html

http://caseysfoods.com/recipes/oven-roa ... tail-jack/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5o-UE9CBhTU

The YouTube video gives some nice tips on how to filet and cook the fish. Seems worth a try!