Can you freeze fatty fish?
Yes, you can freeze fatty fish
Best quality within 2 to 3 months.
bluefish, catfish, mackerel, mullet, salmon, tuna, etc.
Up to 2 to 3 months
What the freezer time means
Freezer times from USDA FoodKeeper are about quality, not safety. Food kept frozen at 0 F (-18 C) stays safe indefinitely; what changes over the months is texture, moisture and flavour. Wrap fatty fish tightly, press out air, and label the pack with the date so the window above is easy to track.
Thaw in the fridge, not on the counter. Anything that thawed in the fridge can be refrozen, with some further loss of quality; anything left at room temperature for more than 2 hours should not go back in.
Storage habits that make the difference
Keep fresh seafood in the coldest part of the fridge, ideally packed in ice in a container, and cook it within a day or two of purchase. Freeze anything you cannot use in time, wrapped tightly or vacuum sealed to prevent freezer burn. Thaw in the fridge or under cold running water, never at room temperature.
Can you freeze other seafood: fresh?
Source: USDA FSIS FoodKeeper dataset (public domain). How we decode the data.