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Anglers Trash Sushi Grade Tuna

News > 2012

Closeup of bonito fillet showing red meatThe most missunderstood and incorrectly identified species in Florida waters is the fish locals call the "Bonito." We caught several of these fish which gave a powerful fight. The large Bonito we caught resembled small Tuna and were brightly colored and very plump. We were told they are not good to eat and received conflicting information on it's status as good table fare from many people. We were involved in several debates amongst seasoned anglers on 2 forums that consider the Bonito a trash fish, only suitable for bait! We weren't convinced, so we did some research.

What we found after doing some research is there are 2 very different species of what Floridian anglers call "Bonito", one with superior taste, the other not. So we went with our research, figured out we caught the sushi-grade species in the Tuna family, bled it in ice water, had some raw, grilled the rest and had a fantastic cookout with our friends. We were fishing a mile out of Fort Lauderdale the end of July 2012 and hit several schools of Little Tunny, pictured below on the left.

Bonito - One Name, Two Very Different Species

Both species called "Bonito" travel in large schools and are very powerful swimmers giving anglers an exciting fight. Once caught, most anglers think the following two very different species are the same fish and toss it for bait, discarding the sushi-grade fish because they do not realize what they caught. So let's compare the two common Bonito's of Florida.

False Albacore Little Tunny BonitoAtlantic Bonito

Bonito, False Albacore, Atlantic bonito

   
star icon Little Tunny / False Albacore (Euthynnus alletteratus) Atlantic Bonito (Sarda sarda)
  • Tuna Family
  • Grows to 40 inches and 26 pounds
  • Spots on belly with horizontal blue-green wavy stripes on top
  • Rounded bullet-shaped body
  • Cone shaped teeth both top and bottom
  • Sushi-grade Tuna, no fishy taste or smell, excellent table fare
  • Biological Profile
  • Mackerel Family
  • Grows to 30 inches and 12 pounds
  • Distinct vertical stripes with horizontal waves running thru
  • Compressed body
  • No teeth on the roof of it's mouth
  • No food value, tastes fishy, use for bait

Drawings of Little Tunny and Atlantic Bonito

The top side of the Bonito Little Tunny showing torquoise blue color

 

Now, can you see how these fish are very different?

The Little Tunny (False Albacore) pictured to the left has horizontal markings on the top and is a shinny turquoise color when first caught.

See more pictures of the Little Tunny (False Albacore) on our Facebook Album.

Gourmet Quality Meals from the Little Tunny

Bontio fillet on fillet table held by hand, showing blood line

Several Bonito fillets after soaking 24 hours, one cut open revealing red meat inside The milky colored fillets are after soaking in ice water. When you thinly slice these fillets, the flesh inside is a deep red color just like expensive Tuna sushi. And delicious!

We caught many Little Tunny's off Fort Lauderdale the end of June 2012. There were large schools that gave us a furious fight. Once onboard, the fish were a stunning blue-green color topside with spots on their belly, they averaged around 30 inches and were very proud of our catch.

The picture on the left is freshly taken from the body; the picture on the right is of the fillets after soaking in ice water 24 hours, notice how the fillets turned white on the outside and when cut the inside is still a nice red color.

We started by filleting the red colored flesh and tossing all the meat in a cooler full of ice water. We let the fillets sit for several hours, a process called "bleeding the meat". This step is necessary, this is a very bloody fish and we think it is the key to enjoying your sushi.

After soaking in ice water a few hours we removed the meat then cut out the dark blood line down the middle of the fillets, cutting up and freezing the blood line meat for our next fishing trips bait. The keeper filets were the size of pork tenderloins with a reddish hue. Next we finely sliced some of the meat and enjoyed a little sushi - it was fantastic and tasted identical to high priced Tuna, no fishy taste or smell at all. The rest we threw back in the cooler to bleed some more.

Bonito fillet grilled24 hours later, the water in the cooler was very bloody and the fillets had a whitish hue indicating the bleeding process was complete. Next we marinated the fillets for a few hours in a mixture of soy sauce, honey, brown sugar, fresh chopped garlic, ginger, and pepper then grilled them for about 3 minutes each side. They were fantastic, not a piece left over.

Now try a Little Tunny, you won't regret it!

Broward County memory card with fishing and dive sites

Where are the Little Tunny

As of this writing in August 2012, the Little Tunny are schooling on inshore waters on the Central and Southeast Atlantic coasts of Florida. We took a trip during Mini Lobster Season out of the Port Everglades and caught quite a lot. The Little Tunnys were attracting Shark too, we had a few stolen by a Hammerhead Shark and a Shortfin Mako - it was an exciting trip! See the pictures on our Facebook Albums.

There have also been reports of thick bait masses of Red Minnows off Jensen Beach where the Little Tunny are coming inshore, even to the beaches, to feed on the bait. This powerful fish will surely give you a good fight.

Survey

Survey Results

Survey started 8/8/2012 -- Last Updated 11/15/2023

YES 1,249 - 83%

NO 213 - 17%

We are happy you guys and gals will try the Little Tunny!

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