How To Fillet Fish

[maidstonemike]

Just shows that a little 4lb Cod is best put back to grow up a bit. What a waste. At that size they are babies. Cod are a big species, and shouldn't be killed under 10lb.

[steve good]

Is it me or is there a lot of waste doing it like that? It might take me a bit longer, but I'm sure I could get more meat off of that cod.

 

hi steve

no it is not you

nice way to get 2 fish fingers lol

 

steve

[ColinW]

I've had more meat off a cod's head than he gets off that fish. (Best bit too IMHO!)

[hairy beast]

I've had more meat off a cod's head than he gets off that fish. (Best bit too IMHO!)

 

Thanks for your appreciative comments, only trying to help those who can not fillett fish. As for some of my critics i will challenge any of them to get more flesh off than i do, if you look at the vid properly Colinw you will see that i remove all the meat off the head and CJS2 if you read the notes you will see that the belly parts are used for fish cakes etc they are not wasted. And i also mention the size factor. If you look at them as well I have gone through all the stages, i bone and skin the fish for the grandchildren 4 and 5 years old, who may miss a rather large bone and end up dead. Maybe some of the critics should make some vidoes yourselves and let us see how you do it.

[mr motorola]

Thanks for your appreciative comments, only trying to help those who can not fillett fish. As for some of my critics i will challenge any of them to get more flesh off than i do, if you look at the vid properly Colinw you will see that i remove all the meat off the head and CJS2 if you read the notes you will see that the belly parts are used for fish cakes etc they are not wasted. And i also mention the size factor. If you look at them as well I have gone through all the stages, i bone and skin the fish for the grandchildren 4 and 5 years old, who may miss a rather large bone and end up dead. Maybe some of the critics should make some vidoes yourselves and let us see how you do it.

This guy is probably the best ive ever seen , also Big Cod can throw a knife through a cod aswell

 

Oh yes it's the one , the only Challenge!!!

 

It's not the best angle but look how quick it takes the man!

 

[Elton]

This guy is probably the best ive ever seen , also Big Cod can throw a knife through a cod aswell

 

Oh yes it's the one , the only Challenge!!!

 

It's not the best angle but look how quick it takes the man!

 

 

Sod doing that on a boat at sea! I take my hat off to the man

 

I'd love to see any more fishing related videos anyone has, either on YouTube or for inclusion on this site or NESA.

[Newt]

Looked to me that he got the bulk of the easily cooked meat using that technique and I have to say it is very similar to what I do on a decent size fish.

 

Tiddlers need different treatment but should probably have been thrown back rather than kept for eating.

 

I'd have saved the head and very upper shoulders for soup most likely but that could have been easily done with the carcass remaining after that fillet removal.

[big_cod]

You often see lads taking the heads off cod to take home to fillet ,believe me its 10 times easyer to fillet with ther head on something to hold when you have a very sharp knife running at speed.

When i was in my teens just before leaving school i used to help out at one of the fish factories in whitby and my job was to fillet big cod some as much 3 or 4 stone some times all the smaller fish upto 10 lb was put through the heading machine and then through a filling machine but all the fish over 10 lb we would fillet.

Havelock who was the owner allways said on a friday if you want a fry lads by allmeans take one friday was allways the busyest day in them days most boats finished on a friday for the week so we were guns blazing trying to get through everything but i always offerered to do the big lemon soles which in them days were big lemon soles and oh did they taste nice.

Edited October 27, 2006 by big_cod

[Guest challenge]

I do fillet 99.9% of the fish that is caught on chieftain. but I find that disappointing because I have always thought that one of the nice things about being able to clean and fillet your fish is that it is all part of the sport,. (If you are keeping fish that is) to be able to catch your fish and prepare it for the table yourself.

I suppose with us, we have to do it at sea, and therefore it is not everybody’s cup of tea trying to gut and fillet while they are being rolled about (on the not so clement days) at sea.

You have got to be rigged for it to. Try and bleed your fish as soon as possible, a nick to the throat will suffice. This allows time for the fish to drain blood from the spine and therefore keep the flesh as white as possible.

Make sure you have a tub or washer for your fish. We have one next to where I fillet, and a cutting table so I can gut the fish and then drop them into the washer all in one area. The guts then go over the side through a hatch.

Fillet the clean fish and then put the trimmed fillets again into another tub with clean water in it.

Allow to soak to make sure the fillets are as clean as possible before transferring into a basket to drain off as much water as possible before putting into the chiller.

This may sound a bit complexes but it isn’t.

It doesn’t matter how fast you fillet as long as you get clean edible fillets at the end of the day.

I have to fillet quickly because they tend to catch fish quicker than I can fillet. Although I must say they do catch more than they could fillet so perhaps in them letting me do it gives them more time to concentrate on fishing.

We have never had to return to harbour because we had caught enough. But then again we have carrying capacity (in the chiller) for 500 stone of fish.

I think I would be sick of filleting long before then.

Regards.

Edited October 27, 2006 by challenge

[hairy beast]

I do fillet 99.9% of the fish that is caught on chieftain. but I find that disappointing because I have always thought that one of the nice things about being able to clean and fillet your fish is that it is all part of the sport,. (If you are keeping fish that is) to be able to catch your fish and prepare it for the table yourself.

I suppose with us, we have to do it at sea, and therefore it is not everybody’s cup of tea trying to gut and fillet while they are being rolled about (on the not so clement days) at sea.

You have got to be rigged for it to. Try and bleed your fish as soon as possible, a nick to the throat will suffice. This allows time for the fish to drain blood from the spine and therefore keep the flesh as white as possible.

Make sure you have a tub or washer for your fish. We have one next to where I fillet, and a cutting table so I can gut the fish and then drop them into the washer all in one area. The guts then go over the side through a hatch.

Fillet the clean fish and then put the trimmed fillets again into another tub with clean water in it.

Allow to soak to make sure the fillets are as clean as possible before transferring into a basket to drain off as much water as possible before putting into the chiller.

This may sound a bit complexes but it isn’t.

It doesn’t matter how fast you fillet as long as you get clean edible fillets at the end of the day.

I have to fillet quickly because they tend to catch fish quicker than I can fillet. Although I must say they do catch more than they could fillet so perhaps in them letting me do it gives them more time to concentrate on fishing.

We have never had to return to harbour because we had caught enough. But then again we have carrying capacity (in the chiller) for 500 stone of fish.

I think I would be sick of filleting long before then.

Regards.

 

Have just looked at the vid of challenge filletting a fish, he has done no more than i did on my video except keep the belly parts attached to the meat, i just simply take them off later if making fish cakes or as someone suggested boling for soup or fish stock. What the knowledgeable anglers on this site have not realised is that the video i produced was so that others can see what is being done. I too can fillett fish very quickly i found it harder actually doing it slowly, i can fillett a fish with no more than four or five cuts with the knife but i have been filletting for a long time, including filletting at sea. And some of you must not be used to catching fish as in the video neither of the fish used where anywhere near 4lb, or when you repot your catches do you add a few pounds on. And as for using an old fish if you had listened to what the commentary said "fresh caught" was the optimum word. But obviously the knowledgeable anglers have done neither listen to what hads been said, watched properly or even read the hints and tips before watching the video. Obvioulsy because they are so knowledgeable that there way of doing things and there views are correct that they can ridicule anybody elses, even though I do not see anywhere on the sitte where they have shared their vast knowledge with others, obviously these knowledgeable anglers think it is beneath them. It must be great to have anglers ona site like that, it means that others do not have the need to shrae their meagre limited knowledge with others, so this will be my last visit to Anglers Net.

 

Those who know nowt think they know it all

Those who know a lot realise they actually know very little