Nepas: I have never had to soak my gator meat and it always tasted good. Maybe it was not fresh enough or the source of the meat could be to blame? For me, it has kinda been like fish, if it good and fresh and properly cleaned, it should not smell fishy. Just say-en. On the other hand, I often soak catfish in buttermilk even if it is fresh. I just have to try this Andouille, but I have not done the low temperature smoke, and blooming process, so I may have issues.
