How To Fillet A Fish In 6 Steps - Short And Easy Guide

How to Fillet a Fish — In 6 Easy Steps (No fluff, just results)

Why Filleting Like a Pro Matters

Clean meat, no bones. Better presentation. Leftover parts for stock. Everyone wins when you do it right

1. Prep and clean: Scale, Gut & Rinse

• Use a Fish Scaler, any scaler that is comfortable for you (I personally like the double teeth wide mouth scalers since they work really fast) to blast off scales fast, without tearing the skin.

• Gut it carefully. cut from the vent to the gills using a small utility/boning knife, scoop out the guts, rinse cold. A clean start makes clean cuts. 
  

2. Trim Fins & Head

• Snip off sharp fins with shears or a fillet knife. Makes everything safer.

• Want to cook the head? Great. Otherwise, trim it off with two diagonal cuts behind the gills.
  

3. First Fillet — Follow the Backbone

• Lay fish on its side. Make a cut behind the head, then angle your blade along the top rib toward the tail.

• Let the knife guide the meat off the backbone - smooth, clean strokes.
  
  

• Tip: When cutting through the fish, I like starting from the head side and working down toward the tail. As I glide from the head to the anus, I cut only halfway through the fish. From the anus to the tail, I cut all the way through. Then I go back to the head and gently cut through the pin bones (the rib cage) before slicing all the way through.

4. Flip & Repeat

• Turn the fish over. Use the same technique on the other side—cut close to the ribs and stay tight to the backbone. Grabbing technique from both sides ensures minimal waste.
  

5. Trim Fat, Remove Skin (Optionally), Extract Pin Bones

• Check for excess dark or fatty tissue and trim it off.

• Want to remove skin? Lay the fillet skin-down, hold the tail, and saw gently between skin and meat.

• Finally, run your fingers across the flesh. Remove pin bones with a pair of tweezers or The Picker if you've got one handy. Easy stealth removal, no mess.
  

6. Bonus: Use Every Part

• Bones, head, scraps - don’t toss them. Simmer with onion and wine for a killer fish stock. Flavor’s still there, don’t waste it.
  
  

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