'Cuda

**BigBrother** · 07-09-2011, 09:41 AM

How many of ya'll have eaten any?

Has anyone known someone to contract ciguatera poisoning?

I have eaten small 'cudas. Filleted skin/scales down on the grill is pretty damned tasty. Wont eat the big ones though.

Just conducting a survey...

**tylerthefisha** · 07-09-2011, 10:43 AM

I have tried it, was not that bad.

**millero** · 07-09-2011, 03:44 PM

i came in here looking for Plymouths...

**Lowcountry Boy** · 07-09-2011, 03:58 PM

Too many GOOD varieties out there to waste time on crap. And no, I don't eat Shovelers either.

**sprigdog** · 07-09-2011, 04:19 PM

eaten them out of the Pacific, not bad at all. They had a minimum size of 24" and we never caught many bigger than 30".

I like eating king mackerel and AJ's also, I was fortunate and never had anyone tell me they tasted like shit and worms or heavy metals will kill me. Its amazing how many people will tell you something tastes like crap but have never tried it.

I really like AJ, and I havent had an awful tasting spoony, but I have had an awful tasting scoter...haha

**TJR** · 07-09-2011, 04:26 PM

How many of ya'll have eaten any?

Has anyone known someone to contract ciguatera poisoning?

I have eaten small 'cudas. Filleted skin/scales down on the grill is pretty damned tasty. Wont eat the big ones though.

Just conducting a survey...

Yes, best fried fish I have ever had. You gotta eat the small ones and soak them in lime juice over night.

That said a few of the guys I worked with in the bahamas got ciguatera from other fish and it is unbelievably painful.

**LowcountryBuck** · 07-09-2011, 04:27 PM

http://periodictable.com/Samples/080.14/s9s.JPG

**Mergie Master** · 07-09-2011, 04:30 PM

I've read that in Hawaii the cudas are edible from one side of the big island and non-edible or poisonous if caught from the other side. Any truth to this?

Rubberhead* · 07-09-2011, 05:07 PM

I've always wanted to but been afraid because of ciguatera. I've always heard it was a great tasting fish but the risk seemed too great. Besides, I don't think I've ever caught a small one. I always catch the 36"+ that hang around the boat when I'm bottom fishing.

One of the few times Dad has gone offshore with me, he caught a barracuda with a big bass rod that we were using to catch trigger fish. Needless to say, he got run round the boat a couple of times. We didn't have a leader, but he hooked him in the corner of the mouth and we were able to land him on nothing but mono.

**Palmetto Bug** · 07-09-2011, 05:11 PM

We stayed at a lodge off the coast of Venezuela several years ago on a bone fishing trip. The guides are third world poor and work for tips only. When they'd see a cuda near the boat, they'd ask our permission to catch it so they could carry it home for their family. It would get thrown into the bilge well of the boat with no ice and stay there all day. Later that night, when we asked what kind of fish the chef had prepared, they told us it was the cuda. It was delicious. They eat them all the time and say they have never had issues with ciguatera. This was on Los Roques which is out in the middle of the ocean. The water isn't quite as hot as more coastal areas.

**aquaman** · 07-09-2011, 05:50 PM

Eaten it smoked and it was great.

**TennDan** · 07-09-2011, 06:01 PM

They are good boats, solid.

Note, Sprig is salty and old. A lot of the shit he eats and does could kill someone younger and less experienced.

**BigBrother** · 07-09-2011, 07:25 PM

The ciguatera is a toxin starts as algae in some plants. Invertebrates consume the plants and algae. The smaller fish eat the invertebrates, and so on and so forth, finally getting to the 'cuda's...and the dolphin...and the king...and the wahoo...(you get the picture).

I have heard every wives tale there is about what it is, and how it is contracted. From dying instantly, to something similar to food poisoning. Best story is that it comes from fish that spent some time around cuba what eats a certain blowfish.

Anyway...

The first time I had it, we had dolphin, king and a couple of small cuda's we had caught the day before. They all went to the grill, and I sampled all three. I went for seconds on the 'cuda, leaving the king and dolphin behind. It is good shit.

Agreed sprig, nothing wrong with AJ. In fact, those of you who order grouper in the restaurants, are more than likely eating AJ. Spend some time with some commercial guys and you will be amazed at what you are eating in reality vs. what you ordered. It is why I only eat fish I caught...Never order it in the restaurant unless I fish with the owner.

**duckcrazed** · 07-09-2011, 07:56 PM

I'd hate to put the percentages out on fish being served under the wrong name...There are many fish that eat quite nicely that are lambasted...Cuda and shark have been served as grouper for years....Most people will never know the difference.