How to fillet a perch

I like to use a method my father in law taught me when I fillet a perch.  It isn't the fastest way to fillet a perch but maximizes the amount of meat you get from the fish.... try this method on smaller perch and you will be surprised by how much meat you will get.

*** I have included descriptive pictures of the process--Do not click if you don't want to see a cut up fish ***

Position your knife under the fin of the perch and make a cut

cut all they way down until you have made a cut behind the bottom fin

flip the perch over and repeat

make sure the cuts on both sides meet each other

look at the fins that run along the top of the perch and make a cut above them on the side of the fillet facing up

run your knife back towards your original cut trying to stay above the bones (with experience you will be able to feel them)

take your knife back to where you originally cut the fillet in step 5 and run it down the fish towards the tail again going above the bones

Once you get to this point, you will not feel bones with your knife

push your knife into the perch like this and angle it down towards the tail

run the knife all they way down to the tail of the perch and then flip the fish over (leave the fillet attached and repeat the process on the other side)

once you have finished on both sides, peel away one side of the fillet with your fingers and then use your knife to separate the meat from the bones ( one you get good at this you can make a couple of cuts and then pull the meat right off with your fingers)

fillets on both sides ready to be torn or cut off

one fillet separated from the perch (you can see there is not any meat left)

the skin is still on but no rib bones like other processes

To skin--take a cap(beer cap works best) and press down on the bottom of the tail

point your knife down and run it along the fillet until the skin is removed from the meat

finished product

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