Working with some fish can lead to, albeit not very serious, but unpleasant injuries. For example, if you don’t know how to clean a pike perch, you can prick all your fingers with the sharp spines located on its fins. And it’s not so easy to get rid of the scales of this individual, which is why many lovers of fish dishes refuse to purchase it. The process of preprocessing a component is really not that simple. But the hassle can be minimized if everything is organized correctly. And the delicate taste of the finished product will be the best reward for the work done.
To clean pike perch with minimal time and get a high-quality product as a result, you need to arm yourself with a number of simple techniques:
- The process will go as quickly as possible if you first rub the carcass with coarse salt. This will rid the surface of the scales of mucus and the component will not slip out of your hands.
- It will be more humane and easier to stun live fish. To do this, she should be hit on the head with a heavy object. After this, we make a shallow cut between the head and the fin to get rid of the blood.
Tip: It will be easier to work with the carcass if you insert a stick of suitable diameter or a pencil into its mouth. Trying to hold the product in your hands, you can accidentally injure yourself or spoil the surface of the meat.
- If you run a fork or knife across the skin of the fish slightly diagonally from the tail to the head, it will be easier to get rid of the scales. In general, you should try to remove the scales by working not along the body, but slightly diagonally.
- To make the process of cleaning pike perch as easy as possible, you need to immerse it in boiling water for a couple of minutes.
Of course, cleaning fish is not only about performing manipulations aimed at getting rid of scales, but it is with this stage that housewives most often have problems.
What can you use to remove scales from pike perch?
In some kitchens you can find fish cleaning equipment left over from Soviet times. In addition, specialized tools are sold in modern hardware stores. If at the right time neither one nor the other is at hand, you can get out of the situation in the following ways:
- We take a metal vegetable grater with the smallest cross-section, bend its edges and string it onto a wooden stick, which will act as a handle. Of course, you can use the item in its unfolded form, but you won’t be able to achieve high-quality cleaning this way.
- We take an unnecessary wooden spatula and screw 3-4 beer caps onto its surface, with the embossed side turned outward. The most reliable way to fix them is with screws; such a product will not be demolished.
- We knock out the bottom of a small tin can and use a nail to punch many holes in it. All that remains is to bend the workpiece with pliers and place it on some kind of handle made of wood or metal. The best option would be a holder made of thick metal wire, which can be given any shape. All that remains is to fasten the edges of the sheet metal together, for example, using a screw and nut.
The working surface of these tools should be placed at a slight angle relative to the handle, then cleaning will be as convenient and effective as possible. As a last resort, you can clean the pike perch with a regular metal fork (not aluminum) or a knife with a shaped blade. But these approaches can lead to damage to instruments, and they do not guarantee high-quality removal of scales.
How to properly clean and cut up pike perch?
To quickly prepare the fish for heat treatment without dirtying the entire kitchen or causing injury to yourself, you should proceed according to the following scheme:
- First, we remove all the fins of the pike perch, which are a source of danger. To do this, you can use sharp kitchen scissors or a knife. In the second case, the elements are cut with a small amount of meat. In both cases, you need to work exclusively from yourself, from tail to head.
- Next, you can begin removing the scales using one of the tools above. It is quite possible that you will have to work for a long time, even if you use techniques that can make the process easier. The scales of pike perch are very dense, so you need to clean them all, otherwise there is a risk of ruining the final result.
- The procedure for removing scales is best done in water. This is the only way to reduce the likelihood of clogging the surrounding space and strong odor spreading throughout the room. Some fishermen try to carry out all the stages already described in nature. This will certainly make it easier to work with the component already in the apartment, but will reduce its shelf life. Therefore, this technique should be used only if there are no more than 4-6 hours left before cooking.
- It's time to clean the pike perch from its entrails. To do this, take the product in your non-working hand, turning it belly up and grabbing the gills with your thumb. With the other hand we take the knife with the blade facing up. We hold the knife at a slight angle in relation to the carcass, pierce the skin between the gills and cut the belly, moving towards the tail. We make careful movements so as not to pierce the fish’s internal organs.
- We move the resulting flaps apart and remove the insides, films, and everything unnecessary. If necessary, cut off the head and cut out the gills (this depends on the specifics of the recipe). We rinse the carcass under running water not only inside and outside. We evaluate the result obtained and, if necessary, repeat some manipulations. There is no need to remove the skin from the pike perch; during heat treatment it will become tender and edible.
The pike perch remains divided into its component parts and can be used for its intended purpose. Some housewives try to remove bones from the carcass even at the cleaning stage, but this is best done after the component is cooked.
Pike perch, like other river and sea inhabitants, has a strong and persistent aroma that can hardly be called pleasant. To prevent it from getting into the skin of your hands, all manipulations should be carried out with thick rubber gloves. After cleaning is completed, hands should be washed with soap and sprinkled with cool water and lemon juice.
I am fulfilling my promise last year to post a selection of videos on how to cut fish into clean fillets, i.e. no bones AT ALL. There are quite a lot of videos, so I will put most of them under the cut.
I'm not a big fan of fish, and largely because 1 - it's a chore to clean and cut it, 2 - because you spit bones all the time. However, for some time now I have adapted to filleting fish, then a significant part of the problems is solved - there is no need to clean it at all, and there are no bones.
Most often in our family we cook pike (because my husband likes to fish for pike) and pike perch (because I dislike them least of all :)). That’s why I’ll start my selection with them.
So, how to cut a pike quickly and easily, and so that there are no Y-shaped bones left in it, i.e. perfect boneless fillet.
Even though the video is in English, everything is clear.
When the uncle begins to cut out the Y-shaped bones, he says that you don’t need to cut all the way through, that after trying a couple of times, you yourself will learn to feel where the ends of the bones reach. In another video, which was unsuccessful in terms of shooting style, which is why I’m not showing it, it was said that you need to make a cut under the bones about 2/3 of the thickness of the fillet.
Now the pike perch. In principle, it can be cut in exactly the same way as pike, only its Y-shaped bones are located differently. But pike perch is wider and thicker in the abdomen than pike, plus it has another very tasty “detail”.
There are two cutting options here, choose for yourself which one is closer to you.
The first one is without removing the Y-shaped bones, but I really like the way the guy removes the fillet.
Second, the carcass itself is cut a little differently, and the Y-shaped bones are also removed.
Perch is cut into clean fillets in the same way as pike perch. But if the fish are very small, then there is no point in cutting them up - there will simply be nothing left of them. How to quickly clean a small perch, at least from the skin and scales? Let's look:
Cutting flat fish - flounder, halibut, etc.
Som. Catfish shish kebab, catfish manti, even catfish pilaf - incredibly tasty! And cutting up catfish is a pleasure - there are few bones, a lot of meat. The main thing is to remove the skin quickly and correctly. How? Let's look:
And finally, cutting one of the most delicious and most valuable fish in terms of nutritional properties - salmon. Very, VERY good video, just a little boring at the beginning, so it's better to start watching at 3:22. Be sure to watch until the end! The cook simply does a great job of explaining which part of the fillet is used to make what and HOW to make it.
Salmon, trout, and other types of red fish are cut in the same way.
I hope someone finds this material interesting and useful.
How to clean pike perch so that the kitchen does not turn into a fishing shack, and after cleaning you still have the strength and desire to create a culinary masterpiece
Common pike perch is a fish that is the largest representative of the perch family. The habitat of pike perch is fresh water bodies: slow-flowing rivers, artificial and natural reservoirs, lakes. Catching pike perch is good luck, because dishes made from it are valuable in nutritional and culinary terms: a minimum of fat, a lot of complete protein, as well as a full range of amino acids and minerals.
Cleaning pike perch from scales
It is easy to distinguish pike perch by external characteristics:- pointed head with fang-like teeth
- fin divided into a front part with long spiny rays and a back part with soft
- small scales on greenish-gray body
To make the cleaning process easier and less labor-intensive, you first need to prepare the necessary tools and equipment:
- rectangular cutting board, preferably made of plastic
- volumetric water containers
- knife: regular or special
- kitchen scissors
- knife sharpening stone
- plastic bag
- rubber gloves
- apron
Then we carry out the following procedure:
- Wash the fish thoroughly in warm salted water to remove dirt and mucus.
- Remove the fish from the water and pat dry with a paper towel.
- Place the fish on the board with its head in the direction of the left hand
- Moving the gill slits aside with your left hand, remove the gills from one side and the other with kitchen scissors
- With your left hand, holding the scissors in your right hand, carefully holding and slightly pulling the fins, cut them at the base
- Grasping the body of the fish with your left hand, with your right hand we begin to clean the fish with a knife, moving from the tail to the head
- Particular attention should be paid to cleaning the belly, where the scales are denser
- Wash the fish in clean cold water
- We put the garbage in a bag
Fillet the pike perch
You can get boneless pieces from pike perch even without first removing the scales.
So, we answer a common question from beginners in the business of cutting fish: “How to fillet a pike perch?”:
- stock up on a sharp knife and put on protective gloves
- wash and gut the pike perch
- getting rid of fins
- fixing the head with your hand, make an incision along the gills
- using a knife, separate the pulp along with the skin, moving towards the tail
- first on one side, then on the other side of the ridge
For this snippet:
- Place skin side down on cutting board
- holding it carefully with a fork, carefully cut off the rib bones
- make a cut in the tail
- insert a knife into the cut and, pressing it against the board, cut off the flesh
Express method: how to clean pike perch quickly in a minute
You can clean a small pike perch almost instantly.
Five steps and we get cleaned fish:
- We wash the pike perch
- Pour boiling water over
- Sprinkle with salt
- Place in a transparent plastic bag with the head inward.
- Holding the tail, with your right hand, with rhythmic movements, we get rid of the scales
Important! If you have to deal with preparing fish often, it is worth purchasing a special knife with notches or a fish scaler.
Delicious dish options: what to cook from peeled pike perch
If you have pike perch, and even cleaned it, there should be no questions about what tasty things to cook from it. Let's use literary recipes. We won’t feed Demyanova’s fish soup so that the guests don’t run away, but we’ll prepare “yushka and parsley.”
Products needed:
- pike perch - 0.5 kg
- water - 2 l
- tomatoes - 300 gr
- parsley (root) - 100 gr
- carrots - 50 gr
- garlic - 1 head
- greens - 1 bunch
- onion - 200 gr
- pepper (black and allspice) - 10 peas each
- bay leaf - 3 pcs
- Place the bones, skin, fins, and head in a saucepan and fill with cold water.
- Wash and peel vegetables
- Cut tomatoes into large cubes
- Wash and dry the greens: finely chop ½ part, tie ½ part into a bouquet
- As soon as the water begins to boil, use a spoon to remove the foam that forms on the surface.
- Place tomatoes, garlic, carrots, root parsley, and onions into boiling water
- Reduce the heat to low and simmer the contents of the pan for an hour
- Add spices and a bouquet of herbs, add salt and keep on fire for 15 minutes
- Strain the broth through a fine sieve into another pan.
- Place the pike perch fillet into the broth and turn off the heat 10 minutes after boiling.
- Pour clear aromatic pike perch soup into plates, sprinkle with parsley and enjoy
How to clean pike perch at home: video
The video clearly shows how to clean pike perch at home using a cool fishing knife and simple fish cleaning equipment.
Using the tips for cleaning pike perch, an avid fisherman and a beginner will be able to cope without problems not only with catching, but also with cutting up fishing trophies. You will need: fish and a strong desire to please yourself and your loved ones with a dish of tasty and soft meat that is perfectly digestible.
How to clean and cut pike perch at home
Fish is a unique product used to prepare dishes from various cuisines around the world. Among the representatives of the aquatic environment, the owner of healthy, delicately flavored meat - pike perch - is deservedly noted. Dishes prepared from it can become the highlight of any table and pleasantly surprise family members and guests. There are different ways to clean and cut a carcass.
- 1 Features and value of pike perch
- 2 How to clean this fish
- 3 How to gut a carcass
- 4 How to cut into pieces or fillets at home
- 5 How to properly prepare for stuffing
Features and value of pike perch
Tasty and healthy fish
Pike perch is a predatory freshwater representative of the perch family with an elongated, sharp head and two dorsal fins with spiny processes on an elongated body. The fish has sharp fang-like teeth on its jaws.
Pike perch is valued for its white, tender and non-bony meat. Fish is a source of vitamins and microelements and easily digestible protein. Pike perch meat contains a unique chemical composition that normalizes blood sugar levels, improves the condition of mucous membranes and skin, and also prevents endocrine disorders, helping to prevent and treat nervous and cardiovascular diseases. Pike perch meat is a dietary product, useful for people who are obese, sick or have had a disease.
In cooking, pike perch has found wide application for preparing a variety of dishes.
The process of cleaning pike perch for those who do not have experience and dexterity in this matter can be a difficult test. To clean pike perch, you can use a knife, special commercially available scrapers, a vegetable peeler with a longitudinal blade, or a hand-made device using glass bottle caps or an old kitchen grater.
DIY
How to clean this fish
Before starting the process of cleaning the pike perch, use culinary scissors to remove the spiny fins in order to avoid injury to your hands. If you don’t have scissors, use a sharp knife - in this case, remove the upper fins with a small grip of the meat.
Pike perch can be cleaned on a cutting board, but small scales will fly apart during the cleaning process, and additional cleaning of the room will be required. To avoid this, we recommend cleaning the fish in a container with water - this can be a dishwasher or a suitable bowl or basin. You can clean pike perch by placing it in a tight bag, inside of which the scales will remain.
Removing scales
The cleaning process can be significantly accelerated by using one of the following methods:
- rub the fish with salt - the scaly cover will be freed from mucus, the carcass will not slip in your hands;
- You can pour boiling water over the fish or dip it in boiling water, holding it by the tail - the scales will become softer and easier to clean. It is important not to overcook the fish in boiling water, as there is a chance that the scales will be removed at the same time as the skin.
How to gut a carcass
Opening the belly
Gutting
Gutted and washed carcass
How to cut into pieces or fillets at home
Please remember that the fins are removed before cleaning.
Video: cleaning pike perch
Many people prefer to fillet fish - a faster cutting method that does not require cleaning the scales.
Preparing fresh fish fillets
Cutting the head
Separate the pulp
Cutting off the rib bones
Separate the fillet from the skin
The spinal bone remaining after cutting can be used to prepare fish soup or fish broth.
Video: filleting pike perch
Cleaning and cutting of frozen carcasses
Some people prefer to cut frozen walleye, a process similar to cutting frozen perch.
- We hold the fish under its belly and make longitudinal cuts from head to tail on both sides of the ridge.
Making cuts along the ridge
- Remove the top fins.
Removing the upper fins
- We insert our fingers into the cuts between the skin and the meat and separate it; the skin of the pike perch is dense and comes off quite easily.
Separating the skin
- From the side of the ridge we do not completely cut the head.
Cutting the head
- We pull the head down and remove the insides along with it.
Removing the entrails
- We wash the carcass and, if necessary, cut it into portions.
Video: cleaning frozen pike perch
A common dish made from pike perch is stuffed fish. For this dish, the skin must be removed with a “stocking”; it is important to maintain its integrity.
How to properly prepare for stuffing
We remove the skin with a “stocking”
Using the tips outlined above and acquiring skills in cleaning and cutting up pike perch, you can quickly cope with this procedure without spending a lot of effort. Let dishes made from this tasty and healthy fish become a frequent guest on your table.
2017-10-19Pike perch is a predatory fish from the perch family. Its distinctive feature is its sharp fins and prickly shoots. The body of the fish is slightly elongated. Pike perch is famous for its tasty white meat, as well as the absence of small bones. It brings many benefits to the body, as it contains many different vitamins, protein, and microelements. Due to its unique chemical composition, this fish is recommended for dietary nutrition. Its constant use helps treat cardiovascular diseases, endocrine disorders, and also improves vision.
A variety of dishes can be prepared from pike perch, but not everyone knows how to remove scales from pike perch quickly. Without experience, dexterity and knowledge of some of the features of the process, you can injure your hands. If you want to enjoy delicious meat and not suffer from the prickly appendages of fish, the advice of experts in this matter will come in very handy.
How to clean fish from scales in nature?
Often fishermen immediately after catching fish want to prepare fish soup from it. This will require field conditions. This will be more difficult to do than at home, especially if you have nothing at hand except a camp knife. But with the right approach there will be no problems. To help you cope quickly, the following tips will help:
The pike perch is covered with protective mucus, which is why the tool slips in the hand and can inadvertently damage the hand. To get rid of it, you need to thoroughly rub the fish with salt, preferably coarse rock salt.
How to clean pike perch at home?
Every housewife who wants to please her family and friends with delicious dishes should know: how to clean pike perch at home. Pike perch is very difficult to clean from scales, so for work you will need to prepare all the necessary tools, rub the carcass with salt, and make sure that the cutting board will not slide on the surface while working. It is also very important to follow the procedure during operation.
What do you need to clean pike perch?
Begins cleaning pike perch with the selection of a suitable tool. In extreme cases, an ordinary one is also suitable. knife, although in almost any kitchen since Soviet times there will probably be a special device for this. If not, you can purchase it at any hardware store. The following devices can be used for work:
To treatment passed easily, the housewife should also have the following devices at hand during work:
All these tools will help separate fish from scales, entrails and bones during cleaning and cutting. It is important that the housewife has everything she needs at hand before starting work.
Sequencing
After cleaning the pike perch, the housewife may find scales all over the kitchen for a long time. To avoid this, you should do everything near the sink or directly under running water. You can prepare fish for cooking quickly and without injury if you follow the following procedure:
You can verify the high quality of the result after washing the cleaned carcass under water. If there are individual uncleaned islands left on the surface, you should go over them with the tool to skin was completely smooth.
How to gut a carcass?
After leather has been completely cleared of all scales, you can begin the process of gutting the carcass. Almost all housewives know how to properly gut fish before cooking, so there are no difficulties at this point. However, if you have no experience in this matter, the following tips will help.
The skin is usually not removed from pike perch, since after heat treatment it will be soft enough to eat. After these manipulations, all that remains is to cut the fish into pieces of the required size and cook. During the cleaning process, you can remove all the bones if you plan to bake it completely. This is already done at the discretion of each housewife.
Features of cutting fish before stuffing
Cutting pike perch can not only leave a number of scratches on your hands, but also “reward” with an unpleasant odor. To prevent this from happening, it is better to do all work wearing thick rubber gloves. After completing the process, hands are treated with soap, as well as water with the addition of a small amount of lemon juice.
If needed butcher Before stuffing fish, it is necessary to carry out the following steps:
After the manipulations have been completed, the fish is ready for stuffing. It is usually filled with processed meat, as well as other fillers. It all depends on the recipe.
Preparing pike perch fillet
Pike perch can be cooked not only in pieces or stuffing. For frying he fits too. It is best to use it in this case fillet. You can prepare it yourself. This will require the same tool described above and a little patience. The following recommendations will help in this matter:
The result is two pieces of fillet, from which housewives prepare a lot of tasty, and most importantly, healthy dishes for themselves and their loved ones. Pike perch can become a signature dish on the table if you learn how to clean it correctly and quickly.
