filleting and slime

[high_arc]

My dad taught to scrape the sides of a salmon/steelhead with the blade of my knife, under running cold water, to remove the slime from the fish before filleting it. Do any of you try to remove the slime first? Or, do you just scale them? I know my wife just loves [img]graemlins/icon_argue.gif[/img] it when I have scales flying all over the kitchen. Thanks for your input.

[ 02-06-2004, 02:32 PM: Message edited by: high_arc ]

[ChuckDog]

Scale steelhead / salmon?!#@! Why?! I'm just curious; never heard of anyone doing that. I've heard of scaling bass and panfish (if your going to eat the skin). Is the slime stored or produced by the scales?

[ 02-06-2004, 02:45 PM: Message edited by: ChuckDog ]

[Billy Tillamook]

I don't bother scaling my fish but, I do hate the slime...Before I fillet I coat the skin with salt.Get a container of Mortons salt and coat the skin very generously... let it sit a minute then rub it for a minute and rinse. This does a pretty good job of cutting through the slime,sometimes a second coat helps.It doesn't get it all but it cuts down on the mess alot.For me getting most of that slime off helps the finished product especially if you are brining it or freezing!
I vacuum pack and freeze mine and I do notice a differance in the flavor of the slowly thawed product if it doesn't have the slime on it... but then again I'm probably extra particular

[Ty]

I just fillet the skin off and then cook them and not worry about it.

[Lured In]

What can I say, I am a habitual fish scaler. [img]graemlins/eek13.gif[/img]

I usually make a decent scrape on both sides, the belly and back before filleting. Not because I think it makes that big of a difference in taste, I just prefer to do it. It also makes filleting easier by not having to battle fish slime. I clean all my fish outside and then 'prepare' them for vacpac in the kitchen. (I leave the skin on unless I am planning on smoking the filets.)

Having fewer scales etc let's me not worry about how clean the skin side of the filet is when preparing it for the table.

It probably takes me less than 5 minutes to scrape (scales and slime) and filet an average salmon. 3 minutes of that is the scraping. If I were doing a hudred salmon, I would probably just filet em.

[Kenia]

If you wash your fish in vinegar and water solution mixed 50/50.........You will have a perfectly slimeless fish. This was taught to me by a guide and it really works well. Hope this keeps the wife happy!!

Kenia

[jaydee]

In my opinion, there is no need to scale most river fish. I do scale saltwater fish (salmon) using water pressure. Scales off a those fresh fish get "everywhere," including in my meal, but they come off pretty easily with a hose and nozzle. Tight river-fish-scales do not. Try laying the whole fish out outdoors, and try to pressurewash with a hose before filleting.


J.D

[ 02-06-2004, 03:51 PM: Message edited by: jaydee ]

[Fshklr]

buy a horse grooming brush..Metal kind with a multitude of teeth, and scrape them from tail to head to remove scales and slime just as you leave your fishing hole or launch. Works great for fish you intend to eat pronto..otherwisw leave on for natural freezer burn protection :grin:

[ 02-06-2004, 04:14 PM: Message edited by: Fshklr ]

[snit]

Another vote for the vinegar solution. Just put it in a spray bottle and mist the fish. Then wipe with a towel or rag. The vinegar neutralizes the slime, and you have a "dry" fish to fillet.

[high_arc]

Great ideas, thanks. I may have to try the vinegar thing, I wonder how Balsamic would taste??? :smile:

[peglegg]

Snit, is that a trick that you learned from your Dad?

[Lure Dragger]

Why bother with any of that? Give me an electric knife and I will filet any salmon or steelhead in 5 minutes skin and all. Just lay the filet skin side down and slide the electric knife right along the skin and it takes it off clean.

[fishnxtc]

5 minutes seems like a long time to fillet and skin a salmon?

[ 02-06-2004, 10:12 PM: Message edited by: fishnxtc ]

[Critter Getter]

I'm a scaler always was. Just didn't like the idea of little scales floating around when I fry a salmon steak .After scaling I scrape my knife the opposite direction from scaling ( head to tail) and rinse . That seems to get most of it for me.

[Snapset]

What I hated the worst was the slime on the cutting board. I have a new method this year, I just lay the fish on a newspapaer, take the fillets off, lay the fillets skin side down on another newspaper while I finish filleting the rest of the fish. When I am done, the fillets and eggs go into ziploks, all the newspapers and slime and the cark go into the garbage. I do this with rubber surgical gloves, so there is no washup, no chapped hands, no cussing, and mama still loves me. I don't scale any fish, because the skin is coming off all of them.

[dampainter]

The first thing I do is quickly scrape alot of the slime off, I don`t make a chore out of it. the fish(springers,fall run and steelhead) I catch have tightly adhereing scales so I don`t bother with those, the silvers are different, I can take a garden hose nozzle and spray from the tail to the head and scale those in no time, that works great for trout too. more appetizing piece of meat without scales all over it from processing.

[Smj]

Cheap wire brushes (or spendy brushes). One for the house and one for the boat. Saw some of the old time hogliners using wire brushes, on salmon and steelhead while they hung off ropes bleeding. (Fish were bleeding, not old time hogliners)

At home I just use a jet of water from the nozzle in one hand and scrub back and forth with the other. Takes the slime and scales off well, and leaves a beautiful bejeweled look to the lawn!

Smj

Warning: Some cheap wire brushes will rust, so store them with that in mind.

[ 02-07-2004, 07:39 AM: Message edited by: Smj ]

[high_arc]

Most of the time I like to BBQ my salmon and steelhead, that is why I like to leave the skin on.

[Bank Maggot]

RINSE--------FILLET----------FREEZE---------DONE

3 MINUTES TOPS :grin:

[Silver Hilton]

I just take a couple of layers of newspaper, and lay the fish on the newspaper while filleting. If you are leaving the skin on, the newspaper will soak up the slime, leaving clean, easy to handle pieces. If you are taking the skin off, the newspaper keeps the slime and scales off the counter. Makes for a quick clean up for everyone.

If you clean, rinse and ice your fish ASAP you will not have problems with slime (ocen caught fish) I rinse them off and then filet them when I get home. There are oil glands under the skin that give salmon them flavor and they shouldn't be skinned.

Miss B scales his fish with a water hose by blasting them from tail to head and it works slick.

Never rinse the meat!

[float2ber]

I just lay the fish on a towel and fillet with an electric knife. The towel holds the fish in place pretty well. Quick and easy.

[TonTo]

I do like to get the scales out of the way first.But instead of scraping I take em out back where I have a hose with pretty decent pressure,right by the big pile of scales I've been colecting.Lay em down and give em a good hose job from the tail end working towards the head,this removes most the scales,and the slime.

[snit]

I think fresh salmon are made for BBQ'ing, that's why we don't skin them like a bass. Ocean fish definately have less slime than river fish too. I still use newspaper, but when you're filleting 12-16 fish at a sitting you can go through alot of newspaper, so that's why we hit them each with the 50/50 solution (thanks Pegleg!), then you're not picking little pieces of slime soaked newspaper off of a fillet before baggin'it.