How to Clean Perch: 15 Steps
1. Gather your supplies: To clean perch, you’ll need a fillet knife, a clean cutting board, a large bowl for discarded materials, and a container to hold the fillets.
2. Rinse the perch: Before starting, wash the perch under cold running water to remove any slime or debris.
3. Lay the perch on the cutting board: Place the perch on its side with the head pointing toward your non-dominant hand.
4. Cut behind the gills: Begin by making a diagonal cut behind the gills towards the head.
5. Sever the spinal cord: Gently bend back the head of the perch to expose and break the spinal cord.
6. Slit the belly: Use your knife to slice along the belly from just below the head down towards the anus. Be careful not to puncture the internal organs.
7. Remove internal organs: Gently pull out or scrape away all internal organs using your hand or knife.
8. Cut off fins and tail: To make it easier to fillet later, cut off all fins and tail of your perch.
9. Rinse again: Thoroughly rinse off any remaining blood or particles by running water over both sides of the now-gutted perch.
10. Make an initial fillet cut: Position your knife at a slight angle at the top of where you made the initial diagonal cut behind the gills and press down firmly, following along with precise slicing motion along the backbone towards tail end in one smooth motion.
11. Complete first fillet: Continue cutting until you reach tail area and have released one side of fillet from bones, folding skin side out (away from you).
12. Remove first fillet from other side: Still on same side, lift meat from spine using knife by gently pulling upward while scraping bone with blade toward you until you have completely freed fillet from bones.
13. Repeat for second side: Turn the perch to the other side and repeat steps 10-12 to obtain the second fillet.
14. Remove the skin: Using your fillet knife, start at tail end of each fillet, place blade between skin and meat, and carefully slice all way along in slight upward motion.
15. Rinse fillets and store: Give the perch fillets a final rinse under cold water, pat them dry with a paper towel, and store them in airtight container or plastic bag in refrigerator until ready to cook.
By following these 15 steps, you’ll have perfectly cleaned perch fillets ready for cooking. Enjoy your meal!