Filleting the Fish all By Yourself
Ever came up with a seafood recipe resembling mouth-watering fish fillet with the sweet chili sauce that melts in the mouth? Or maybe just like me you are also a sushi-addict but got no idea on how to fillet the fish so perfectly for the sashimi?
No wonder your senses must have drifted away in the appetizing steamy fish recipes.
And just like me if you have the late-night food craving for such fish fillet recipes one another thing must have happened with you within the next few minutes.
Just when the thought of all the mess and the daunting task of cutting and filleting fish came into your mind suddenly all of the inspirations simply must have vanished!!
Shit happens but this time my friend we will be making it sure that you stick to your sushi addiction and perfectly make your sashimi by filleting your fish just like a pro.
After all, your investment in the razor-sharp piece of Fillet Knife (be it from Victorinox or Wüstho) with the slender blade is actually worth it and we here will make it a point. An Electric Fillet Knife is fit for the task of preparing your fish starting from skinning to filleting summing up to totally cutting the whole fish in minutes.
But before anything else what you need to know is – Why the heck will you, yourself be filleting a fish at home and then delve in the art of filleting yourself when such fillets are readily available at the market!?!
Here’s why –
Why Fillet A Fish Yourself Instead Of Buying A Fish Fillet
In my experience, the boneless white piece of a strip or as they term fillet fish strip available in the market is simply discouraging.
As it turns out, buying the whole piece and filleting the quantity as needed just before cooking not only makes your fish dish taste better but also a cost-efficient way. The market-bought fillet fish not only costs much but also is not fresh enough due to it being exposed to the air causing it to get oxidized. As such filleting, a fish at your home is both a healthy and cost-efficient choice.
It’s not a daunting task, really. You can easily fillet a fish all by yourself at home and to do the job perfectly there is the specific- Fillet Knife.
Fillet Knife will make the task of skinning and portioning a fish much easier and things will be a lot less messy. This type of knives come with slender six to eleven inches blade and is flexible enough to move along the skin of fish and backbone.
Step-By-Step Procedure For Filleting Fish
SCALING: Scale off the fish from tail end towards the head. The easiest way to remove fish scales will be to use a fish scaler or using the edge of a spoon.
TRIMMING: Trim of the fins from the head and away from the sides of the scaled fish. Sharp scissors can come in handy in this case. With scaling and trimming done you are left with the task of skinning and portioning the fish.
SKINNING: While skin-on-fish are our favorites, some baked recipes call for skinless ones. Before mutilating your piece of expensive fish the best way to skin a fish is it is to use a fillet knife which is just fit for the purpose.
For skinning the fish, get a good grab of your fish and make a smooth sawing motion with the fillet knife in between the flesh and the meat. We never encourage to throw away the left-over skin, rather save it for your future purpose when making fish stock.
How to Fillet a Fish – Portioning and Filleting
- Lay the fish on a cutting board. Take out your Fillet Knife and effortlessly slide its sharp blade through just behind the gills.
- Run you fillet knife smoothly from the tail to the head. Be aware that the blade is over the center bone and over the rib cage of your fish.
- If needed, feel the bone by your bare hands and if there are pin bones use tweezers to gently pull them away.
- Then make the lengthwise cut by diagonally sliding the knife’s blade from head to the tail. While working the blade keeps your knife flat and aim for making long and smooth cuts to prevent the fish from tearing.
- Repeat the same cut by flipping the fish over. If you need thicker fillet then get the blades closer to the belly.
Word of Caution:
There is nothing to fret about the head of your fish.
Just snap it off! Simple as that! Twist and snap the head off by grabbing the body of the fish with one hand and the head by your other hand.
Similarly, there is nothing to fret about the guts inside.
Simply spread open the fish and pull the guts out. Use a spoon to scrape out anything you don’t want inside. And remember to use a brush to clean out the mess surrounding the bloodline and go an extra mile by rinsing the fish through to get rid of any guts or blood. Why so? It is because leaving the guts or the bloodline inside will make your fish recipe taste bitter.
Filleting Fish Made Less Messy
- Consider laying the fish over a newspaper when scaling to keep thing less messy.
- Similarly, consider wearing a protective glove yourself to keep yourself safe from the sharp scales and fins.
There you are! With the fillet knife in your hand and a little patience, you can have the award-winning perfectly filleted pieces of fish at your home. Season it up for your delicious fish recipe or if you are in the mood of sushi and sashimi then treat yourself by jumping to our next read – “Crafting the art of rolling and cutting the sushi” to precisely incorporate your fish fillets inside the sushi rolls.