How To Fillet Walleye

Ahh-ha you followed some advice, went fishing and you caught some walleye, now you are wondering on how do I clean this fish? If you follow the steps below you will not only learn how to fillet a walleye, but you will also learn how to take all the bones out of walleye. So if you are ready, get your fish, a filleting knife and let’s go.

Step 1 Place walleye on cleaning surface with back towards you. Using fillet knife, lift fin and place knife on skin behind gill plate at same angle as gill opening. Cut straight down to back bone, be careful not to cut through the back bone.

Step 2 At backbone turn your knife so blade is facing towards tail and using sawing motion fallow back bone to about ¾ inch from tail. Be careful not to cut through back bone and all the way through the skin by tail.

Step 3 Turn fish carcass so that skin on fillet is skin side down on cleaning surface. Place filleting knife blade down on fillet about ½ inch from end and cut down through meat to skin. Be careful not to cut through skin. Turn knife and hold at 45 degree angle, now while keeping downward pressure on knife, slowly pull fillet toward you and wiggle back and forth at same time. Meat will separate from fillet. Place skinless fillet to side for time being .  

 Step 4

Place fish back on cleaning surface with belly towards you. Now follow steps 1 – 3 for this side of the fish. Congratulations you have just filleted a walleye. You can simply wash it thoroughly to get rid of blood and debris, but wouldn’t you like to have no bones in the fillet.

REMOVING THE BONES, when you look at the fillet you can see the row of bones just above the belly cavity. You could take a sharp knife and slowly follow the bones down and around the belly but for the little extra bit of meat the time to do so is not justified. Below is the way I remove all the bones. This works for Perch as well.

Step 5a

Get both fillets, now take one of them and place it in front of you, with the inside fish side up. Now, look at the belly you will see where the belly cavity ends and the bones begin. Take your knife and place on meat behind and on the meat side of the row of bones at the tail end of fish. Now, move knife to where the vent is and belly cavity begins, cut all the way through meat and cut and follow along the bones to where the head was.

Step 5b

Get other fillet and repeat above step5a when you get done both pieces you will have 4 pieces of fish 2 fillets and 2 scrap pieces with the bones in it. Throw the two scrap pieces out with the carcass and place the 2 boneless fillets in the sink to wash. Repeat all steps for all remaining walleye. When finished wash the boneless fillets, I roll them in my hands to get rid of all the blood, your fillets will be pure white when all blood is out.

Enjoy the bounty for all your work. You went out fishing for walleye and caught some, you brought them home cleaned and de boned them. Now, use the Practical Sportman fried walleye recipe "Putting On The Ritz" and enjoy the best tasting freshwater fish of all. Be practical and keep only what you can eat fresh. However, you probably may not get back out fishing for a while and it is great to store some for a future feast. You will have to freeze some, after washing the walleye fillets, pat them dry with paper towel, and place dry fillets in double freezer bag or vacuum pack. Fish will freezer burn quickly so use up quickly.

Greg Parkin, PracticalSportman: 

 

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