It is also known as the Black Bonito, Black Salmon and Black Kingfish amongst many other names. Its meat is so delicious it was even featured on an episode of Iron Chef America where Chefs Jamie Oliver and Mario Batali battled it out whipping a variety of dishes with this fish we know as Cobia. (Wikipedia)
Captain Charles, also a connoisseur of food shared so much about the taste of Cobia from his experience that landing one became another Sport Fishing goal for us. Naweshad lost his first ever Cobia to a Shark in Kuala Rompin and Captain Sammy made it his mission that Naweshad will land one on the next trip.
Armed with squid as bait, one we caught at lunch, Captain Sammy carefully pokes a hole on the ink sac and drops the bait into the depths of the sea… its journey is followed by a stunning trail of ink, diffusing into a mesmerising cloud.
Seconds into the wait, the rod was sent bending and reel screaming, the fish takes the line underneath the boat, emerging on the other side, I scrambled to get my camera as Captain Sammy sets the hook and I click the record button in utter disbelief. The rest of this battle… is best experienced through a video. Welcome to the exciting battle, enjoy!
If you thought the gaffs in the video were not sharp enough, they were. The Cobia has tough and thick skin with small scales which makes gaffing it a battle in itself! Naweshad’s first ever Cobia went to feeding many families that enjoyed it grilled and even in a curry! We had a taste of it too and quickly understood that releasing future Cobia caught will in itself be a tough battle for us!
