How to Clean a Fish

Now that you have caught a fish, say, a trout or a mackerel or a bass, you must be salivating at the thought of preparing, cooking and then eating a delectable fish preparation.

After all, a freshly caught fish has a different kind of a sublime taste and in order to relish your fish, you must learn how to clean a fish, gut it, and debone it.   

Some of the necessary equipment that you will require are fish scalers, cutting boards, boning knives and, of course, the main ingredient – fish.

When you learn how to clean a fish, you will find that the process is moderately easy.  

It is because a raw fish can get contaminated easily, that you have to spring clean the insides and exterior of a fish.

First, you have to hold the fish under running tap water that is fresh and wash the fish thoroughly. Don’t wash your fish in stream or lake water as these waters may contain harmful chemicals. It is best to clean a fish in mineral water. 

Remove the scales from the fish. To remove the scales, you can use the dull edge of a knife or you may use a fish scaler. 

With quick short strokes, rapidly remove the scales. The shorter strokes are more effective than longer strokes. However, if you want to cook the fish after skinning it, then you don’t need to remove the scales. 

From the vent to the gills, you have to cut the fish and rip it open. Then you have to take out the entrails, all the innards, mud, and whatever dirt there is to clean out the interior.

You must make sure that you have removed the entire cavity from the interior of the fish. Then in running water, the fish cavity has to be washed thoroughly. 

If you wish to cook the fish as a whole, then the dorsal fins have to be removed. With the help of pliers, take the sides of the fish and cut along in a straight line and pull the fins out.

The last step involves washing the fish once more, this time in cold water, both on the inside and the outside.

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