Before purchasing such a large and rather specific fish as catfish, you should familiarize yourself with the rules for preparing it for subsequent heat treatment. First of all, you need to learn how to clean the catfish. This process is not very complicated, but rather laborious. There are positive aspects to manipulation. Firstly, the skin of the catfish is not covered with scales, so the kitchen will remain relatively clean after the procedure. Secondly, the catfish carcass does not contain small bones, only ribs and a ridge.

Despite the fact that the skin of the fish is not covered with scales, mucus takes its place. The substance is dense, exudes an unpleasant odor of mud. Before cleaning the fish, you must get rid of this formation, otherwise the final product will be hopelessly spoiled. In general, the preliminary preparation of the carcass for processing involves the following manipulations:

• Roll the product in coarse salt or roll in it, with three gloved hands or an old unnecessary napkin.
• We take a knife, turn it with the blunt side and begin to scrape the surface of the skin. This layer of fabric is quite dense, so there is no need to worry about its integrity. Ideally, the areas to be treated should be light in color.

Tip: Failure to make sure the fish is dead initially can result in serious injury. Before cleaning the catfish, you should chop off the tail of the carcass with a kitchen ax. It will not be needed in the post-processing process anyway.

• Now we thoroughly rinse the fish under cool running water, evaluate the result of the work. If necessary, repeat the manipulation again.

Catfish are often cooked right in nature, right after fishing. In this case, it is not necessary to waste salt, the surface of the fish can be cleaned with wood ash. The main thing is to thoroughly wash off this component.

Features of gutting catfish

After the desired result is achieved, you can proceed to further procedures. It is recommended that the anterior fins located near the gills be removed first. They are equipped with very sharp spikes that can cause injury. For this procedure, you should use a kitchen hatchet, large scissors or a cleaver, the thin blade of the knife is easily damaged.

Now we do the following:

• We spread the catfish with its back on the table, in the head area we make a shallow puncture. From it we make an incision along the drawn peritoneum to the very anus of the fish. We act carefully so as not to damage the insides.
• Now you need to open the incision and clean the belly of the individual by pulling the insides out. You don't need to take them off your head! Damaging something like a gallbladder can ruin quality meat.
• To continue cleaning, the gills must be trimmed. Then they can be removed along with the insides. After that, the surface of the belly must be cleaned of films.
• Next, we make incisions on the outside of the trimmed front fins and pull them out, grabbing them with pliers, working from the tail to the head.
• Sometimes, when you have to clean the catfish, you can find eggs. This is a real delicacy, so we carefully remove the component and transfer it to a clean container. It remains to remove the film from it and the product can be salted or fried.

It happens that even increased caution leads to the ingress of bile on the meat. In this case, you do not need to cut out the affected pieces and discard. It is enough to thoroughly rinse the problem areas, rub them with salt, and after a couple of minutes rinse again.

How to properly separate the pulp, remove the skin and get rid of the smell?

The most difficult thing is over, simple, but very important "cosmetic" procedures are left.
Now the catfish needs to be cleaned as follows:

• Separate the pulp. Cut off the catfish head, put the carcass on its side. An incision should be made along the back, starting from the tail. Keep the blade parallel to the table top. After that, we move the pulp a little and deepen the incision to the backbones. We drag out the meat a little more and we already reach the rib bones. Gently moving the blade along the ribs, first remove the meat from the top of the carcass, gradually moving towards the tail. We turn the catfish over, it is not so convenient to clean the fillet here, so we act more carefully.
• We remove the skin. This is not an obligatory step, since the skin of the catfish is very soft and delicate. But it will have to be removed if you want to use only fillets, for example, for making a kebab. It can also be pulled off the meat, but it is much easier to do this at the stage when the carcass has not yet been disassembled into its components. We put the washed and gutted fish without fins, make a circular incision behind the front fins and a longitudinal incision along the length of the ridge. We grab the edge of the skin with pliers and pull from the head to the tail, if necessary, helping ourselves with a knife. We repeat the same with the other half of the carcass.
• We eliminate the unpleasant smell. It is worth considering that cleaning a catfish at a respectable age is much more difficult than a young individual. And the smell of mud in this case is so pronounced that many housewives refuse to process the component. But there are several things you can do to reduce this strong scent. Be sure to remove the skin, because it is the main source of amber. Additionally, the meat should be either soaked in milk, spending 2-3 hours, or in lemon juice or white wine for 20 minutes. In both cases, the product will not only acquire a pleasant aroma, but also become much softer.

We do not throw away the head and bones left after we managed to completely clean the carcass. They make an excellent broth. The meat itself can be used in a variety of ways. The main thing is not to delay the heat treatment. The component, of course, will withstand several hours of marinating without problems, but a longer stay at room temperature or in the refrigerator will affect the state of the blanks in the most negative way. They will begin to fall apart from the slightest touch, they will begin to exude a smell, albeit not of mud, but of a lying product. And then there will be no way to interrupt or mask it with spices.

Taste freshly caught fish from a cauldron, deliciously fragrant on the river bank, meet your beloved husband from a "quiet hunt", quickly prepare a catch and treat your household - these moments could have been even more pleasant if not for cleaning the fish from slippery scales. This adds a "fly in the ointment" to the enjoyment of river fish dishes.

We will not give up our positions and will try to optimize the objective reality. After all, fish-based dishes are healthy and tasty.

The basic rule of fish processing: brush from tail to head, with small, sharp movements. First we clean the sides, then the belly of the carcass.

Preparing for cleaning

• Cutting board.
• Kitchen, large scissors.
• Paper towels.
• Sharp knife. If you are not a master, take a regular knife.
• Scraper for cleaning small scales. This device is purchased at retail outlets.
• A grater is also useful.

A difficult task is to remove adhering debris from the fish. This is grass, grains of sand, mud and more, so we wash the catch in cold water. If the water is running - great! If you have to wash the fish in a basin, we change the water several times.

ADVICE! Do not cut off your head while cleaning. It comes in handy when removing scales. Cut it off when you gut the carcass.

The method of removing scales and giblets depends on the type of fish. For some varieties, you need savvy when cleaning at home.

Quick and easy cleaning of the most popular river fish

River and sea perch

First, use scissors to cut the fins that could damage your hands. It is painful and unsafe.

Then dip the carcass in cold water and peel against the scales with a fork or knife. The resulting grooves have raised the scales in some areas. This makes them easier to clean.

ADVICE! You can easily, quickly and safely remove the scales from the perch along with the skin.

Video Tips

Catfish

Catfish has smooth skin and there are no small bones in the carcass. Removing mucus covering it is the main task in preparation.

Coarse salt will come to the rescue.

1. Dip the catfish in salt.
2. We leave it for a minute.
3. We wipe the carcass (after putting on a rubber glove) with a sponge or clean rag.
4. With a knife (blunt side) we scrape the skin until a light shade.
5. We wash off everything that has rubbed off. Then we repeat at least once.
6. On "summer fishing" salt can be replaced with ash.

Zander

Pike perch has a slimy surface, so we also use coarse salt.

1. We get rid of mud and mucus, wipe the carcass.
2. Cut out the fins with a knife, grabbing some meat.
3. We use boiling water to remove scales. We brush from tail to head, against the growth of scales. A metal grater cleans fine scales well. We attach the grater to the stick and, holding the handle, process the fish.
4. Now we remove the giblets. We cut the skin of the pike perch between the gills and lead the knife down to the tail, while holding the carcass by the gills.
5. We take out all the insides, not forgetting to remove the films. You do not need to remove the skin from the pike perch.

ADVICE! Always clean the films on the inside of any fish to avoid the bitterness and unpleasant taste of the finished dish.

Video tutorial

Tench

The tench has small, dense scales and mucus. To begin with, it washes off the mucus, then we dip it in boiling water and quickly transfer it to cold water. We proceed to cleaning the scales and entrails.

Carp

Crucian carp is the cleanest fish. We wash it in water, clean the scales with a knife. Gutted.

Silver carp

Silver carp lends itself well to cleaning with a special device (buy in a store or process with a grater). Keep the fish in water if you do not want to collect scales scattered around the house.

Cleaned, washed with cold water. It's time to learn about some feature when cleaning the insides.

CAREFULLY! There is a lot of bile in silver carp, so when cleaning, try to remove the giblets carefully! If you damage the place of accumulation of fluid secreted by the liver, you can say goodbye to plans for a "fish day" - the pulp will taste bitter.

Be sure to cut the gill plates out of the head. From a semi-finished product (silver carp head), you can cook fish soup or fry.

Carp

Carp has large and dense scales, it is better to clean it in a basin of cold water, moving against the growth of the scales. Places that are difficult to process can be doused with boiling water. Then the scales will soften and it will become easier to move away.

Video instruction

• For processing all types of fish, it is advisable to have a special cutting board. To prevent the fishy smell from absorbing into the canvas, wear a plastic bag or underlay paper.
• Processing should be done as soon as possible after harvest (or acquisition). Remove fish offal on the same day.
• If the fish is dry, soak it in cool water for a few minutes. Then start processing.
• Rinse fish thoroughly after handling. This will allow you to notice the flaws of cleaning - small scales that have not come off in places, a film inside the abdomen.
• When the fish is intended for smoking and drying, it is better to leave the scales.
• Does the fish smell like river mud? Soak after cleaning for an hour in salt water, the problem will disappear.
• A freezer can be used. Place the carcass for a day. Take it out, wait until the scales have thawed, and the pulp is still frozen inside. You can clean, the scales will come off perfectly.

So it's time to look in your notes for recipes for fish dishes. Now you can deal with any "river guest" caught in the net or hook, and then straight to the kitchen.

Since ancient times, the sterlet was considered a delicacy fish and was often served at the royal table. They cooked fish soup from it, smoked balyk, baked it whole, fried it, cooked jelly, baked pies with it, and cooked many more dishes. In Peter's times, sterlet was even specially bred in ponds so that the tsar could have this tasty and valuable fish on his table at any time. It takes some effort to clean and butcher the fish, but we are not afraid of difficulties, are we?

What a beast is this fish

Sterlet belongs to the sturgeon family, although it differs slightly from them. In comparison with other sturgeon, it ripens earlier, lives less and is smaller in size. But this cannot be attributed to its shortcomings, sterlet meat is perhaps the most delicious of all its relatives.

This fish is found in fresh water and is finicky in choosing habitats - it will not live in muddy and dirty water with a low oxygen content. Therefore, its meat can be called environmentally friendly. Now the sterlet is successfully bred in artificial conditions.

Sterlet meat is rich in vitamin PP, unsaturated fatty acids Omega3, trace elements that improve blood circulation and brain activity, restore vision, reduce the risk of cardiovascular and even cancer. Moreover, its calorie content is only 90 calories per 100 grams. This makes sterlet not only a very useful product, but also a dietary one.

This fish is easily distinguished by its long, narrow nose and fringed mustache that reaches the mouth. There are no scales, but there are 5 rows of bony scutes: along the edges of the belly, on the sides and closed in the center of the back. Between the rows of scutes, the skin is either naked or covered with bony plaques.

Sterlet has no bones. Instead, a cartilaginous ridge runs along the entire body, in the cavity of which the viziga is located, it is also called the chord.

Viziga is a sinewy fabric in the form of a bubble rope. It is believed that if a fish falls asleep in the air, cadaveric poisons begin to stand out from the vizigi, which can spoil the meat and make it unsuitable for eating. Therefore, experienced fishermen in the summer immediately remove the vizig from freshly caught fish. When frozen quickly, this does not happen. When properly processed, viziga is edible and even delicious.

This structure of the fish determines the features of its cleaning and cutting.

So, in front of you lies a miracle Yudo sterlet fish, covered with mucus and rows of thorns, and you are already looking forward to a delicious dinner. But first, the fish needs to be cleaned, gutted and cut.

What you need for cutting at home

• sharpened knife;
• cotton or rubber gloves;
• cutting board;
• coarse salt;
• water.

It is important that the knife is well sharpened. The fact is that the skin of this fish is very tough, rough. You cannot cut and clean it without a sharp knife.

Quite often, sterlet is sold live in stores directly from the aquarium. If this is your case, the fish should be put to sleep first. Put it in the freezer for a few hours or let it fall asleep in the air. Frozen fish is easier to clean.

Fresh sterlet: how to butcher and gut

For the convenience of cutting, you first need to get rid of mucus. For this, the skin is rubbed with coarse salt, and then washed off with lukewarm water. You can skip this, just use cotton gloves. Cotton will absorb mucus, and you will not get hurt on sharp thorns - bugs.

With a sharp knife, dorsal bugs are cut off along with a strip of skin starting from the tail. Lateral and abdominal bugs can be cleaned off with a knife, like ordinary scales, or cut off in the same way as dorsal ones. Fins are cut along the way.

The cavity is well washed with cold water, freeing from blood clots along the ridge line, films and the remains of an air bubble.

The belly is opened starting from the anus, all the insides are removed. Do not rush to throw away the insides, some of them are quite good for food. If caviar is found in the fish, it can be salted, freed from the film, or cooked with the fish.

The vizig is removed. To do this, cut the tail and make an incision at the junction of the body with the head, trying to cut only the cartilage without damaging the vizig. Pick up the vizig with a stick or crochet hook and pull it out carefully, being careful not to tear. If you cut the chord as well, use a pair of pliers. Or make an incision along the entire ridge and remove the chord with a fork.

The head can be cut off or left, depending on the dish to be cooked. In both cases, the gills are removed. The head can also be used separately, it makes a wonderful ear.

If you need to remove the skin, scald it with boiling water and remove it from head to tail. If this is not done, it will be very difficult to separate the skin from tender meat, it will be removed along with it. In the finished dish, the skin is easily separated by itself.

Detailed instructions on the steps in the video

Advice! Do not rush to throw away "production waste". Skin, fins and even bugs make a good ear or broth for aspic.

If you got a frozen specimen or you yourself brought the sterlet to this state, cleaning is much easier.

Frozen sterlet: how to remove mucus and peel

1. Cut off the head along with the fins.
2. Holding the tail, stand the fish upright and cut off the spines along with the fins.
3. Peel off the skin by prying off one edge. Sterlet is a very oily fish, so the skin does not harden into stone when frozen and it is easy to remove it.
4. Then proceed in the same way as when cleaning fresh fish.

How to properly clean frozen fish: video

The preparation of the cleaned fish depends on the dish you are going to cook.

Preparation for cooking

For fish soup

The skin is removed, the fish is cut into portions. Often, other fish are added to sterlet ear, sim and burbot are best suited.

If you use a sterlet head, you need to cook it within 1-2 hours after cutting, otherwise it will deteriorate.

For frying, kebabs

Separate the meat from the cartilage and cut into portions. Use a very sharp knife, otherwise you won't be able to cut the tender fatty meat neatly.

Sterlet cartilage is edible and very tasty, it can be added to the ear or aspic. Cooking softens the cartilage.

Smoking and baking

In this case, there is no need to remove the skin and cut off the head and tail. The fish is cooked whole, the skin is easily separated from the cooked meat.

Steak

The cartilage is not removed, but the skin must be removed. The meat is cut into slices 1.5-2 cm thick.

Stroganin

For planing, fish is cleaned and cut, but not thawed. If the carcass is large, first cut it into several pieces, and then cut them into thin slices.

How to cut sterlet for planer: video

Advice! If you want to cook minced meat from sterlet, just chop the tender pulp with a knife. There is no need to use a meat grinder, she only remembers meat.

• to get rid of mucus, rub the carcass with coarse salt, and then rinse with lukewarm water;
• be sure to remove the vizigu, otherwise the meat will become inedible and hazardous to health;

About 5 years ago I made an ear. Everything is according to the "classics": anachala roach, crucian carp. Then a couple of small carps, about a kilogram. After that, 2 sterlets about a kilogram each (specially went to the nursery and brought alive, taking crushed ice). Vyaziga did not delete: no matter how much he tried to understand where it was, he could not. The hot taste was good, though with a strange tinge. Knowing that if it stands, it will be much tastier cold, so I left it overnight. And it was fatal: I have probably never tasted such strychnine in my life.

Popovich Alexey

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• so that the skin can be easily removed, pour boiling water over the carcass or freeze;
• bugs can be easily removed without the help of a knife, if you hold the fish in hot water for a few seconds, and then remove them with twisting movements;
• before cooking, pour boiling water over the portioned pieces, this will help to maintain their shape.

Sterlet is a fish that is difficult to spoil when cooking. She is good in any way. The main thing is not to shift salt and pepper, and, of course, properly peel and prepare. Armed with the knowledge gained, you will do it with ease, and a royal dinner is provided for you.

A common picture after cleaning a fish is scales all over the kitchen and a nervous hostess. It's even worse if she doesn't know how to approach the fish at all.

How to remove giblets

- It is advisable to gut the fish and remove scales from it at the same time (at least on the same day).
- Need a cutting board. So that the smell of fish does not get into it and to speed up the process of subsequent cleaning, a bag or newspaper is placed on the board.
- Holding the fish belly down, you need to make an incision on it from head to tail.
- Take out the contents with a spoon or knife.
- There is a dark film on the walls of the belly, which must be removed.
- Thoroughly rinse the fish.

How to get rid of scales

- If the fish is slippery (after defrosting), rinse it. In addition, if you sprinkle your hands with salt, the fish will not slip out. You can hold it with a towel.
- You will need a large vessel (basin, bowl), in which the whole fish is placed. To keep the kitchen clean, you can clean the fish in a thick polyethylene bag under running water.
- We moisten the fish with dried scales with water, wait a few minutes and clean.
- First of all, you need to cut off the sharp fins and head (if it is not in the recipe).
- The scales are removed with a special grater, knife, fork and even a teaspoon.
- You need to clean the scales from the tail to the head, that is, against its growth. We begin cleaning with small, sharp movements. First you need to clean the sides, and then the belly.
- After washing the fish, we get rid of adhered scales and evaluate the quality of work.

If the fish is supposed to be boiled or smoked, you may not need to clean the scales. This will save more nutrients. In addition, you can buy fish that have already been peeled. I recommend you try it the same way.

Cleaning by fish species

It must be taken into account that the way how to quickly and correctly clean the fish depends on its characteristics. In particular, mackerel and flounder have no scales. In burbot and catfish, it is very small, almost invisible. The strongest scales are found in pike perch, crucian carp, carp and perch.

Perch

It is very difficult to clean the scales of the perch, so the scales are removed along with the skin.

Zander

The fin on the back of the walleye is very hard. We cut the fish under and above the fin, after which it can be removed.

Horse mackerel

Before cleaning, you need to dip it in boiling water for thirty seconds, because the scales are very hard.

Catfish

After gutting, removing the head and fins, you need to divide the fish into fillets, from which to remove the skin.

Burbot, eel

Make an incision around the head and remove the skin like a stocking. When gutting, the liver of burbot is separated and cooked separately.

Tench

The tench's scales are dense and small, covered with mucus, which makes cleaning very difficult. First you need to put the fish in boiling water, then in cold water. Now you can peel slime, scales and gut.

Hake

It is necessary to cleanse the small scales and remove the abdominal film. The skin of a large fish is rough, so take it off.

Catfish

It is necessary to clear of mucus, gut and cut off the head with fins. If the fish is very large, it can be cut before removing the skin.

Cod

The liver is used for food. There is an abdominal film that needs to be removed.

Lamprey

This fish is not gutted. After removing mucus, rub it with salt and rinse.

Flounder

Scale off the scales from the light side. The dark skin should be cut at the tail and removed. It is advisable to first dip the flounder in boiling water.

Sole

Cut the head from the back and remove the entrails. Remove the skin like a stocking, making a cut at the tail.

Tricks to speed up cleaning

Method 1 how to quickly clean the fish: We put the fish in boiling water for two to three minutes. After that, the scales are easily removed with your fingers under running water.

Method 2 how to quickly clean the fish: Boil the gutted fish. After that, it is much easier to remove the scales and remove the bones.

Method 3 how to quickly clean the fish: Pre-soaking in cool water with a little vinegar.

Catfish is a fish unlike the usual representatives. It lives at the bottom of rivers and is nocturnal. Due to the fact that the fish is constantly at the bottom, its skin is covered with slime with a persistent scent of silt.

At the same time, there are no scales on the body. Not everyone knows how to clean a catfish. This product needs a special approach, and this is due not only to the absence of scales and the presence of an unpleasant odor, but also to the thorns that can cause significant wounds.

Preparation

When starting to work with catfish, it is important to take into account that the peri-calf fins have sharp spines that can severely injure. Therefore, you should first cut them off with a knife or scissors.

Before you start cleaning fish from internal organs, you need to prepare it. First of all, professionals advise to make sure that the individual is dead, otherwise it can injure the cook. Catfish is a very strong fish. To do this, you should cut off the tail, which in the future will still not be useful anywhere.

After that, you should cleanse the skin of mucus and partially get rid of the unpleasant odor. For this, the catfish is rolled in coarse salt and left for 5 minutes. Then you need to rinse the carcass by scraping off the mucus, for this you can use a hard sponge, or scrape off the mucus with the blunt side of the knife blade. There is no need to be afraid to damage the skin, it is very thick in catfish and difficult to damage, so you can actively clean it.

It should be brushed until the skin is light in color. If this did not work the first time, you can repeat the procedure. Catfish are often prepared on a fishing trip, immediately after the catch, in these conditions, the mucus can be removed with ash, it is important to thoroughly rinse the carcass after that.

Evisceration

Having got rid of mucus, you can begin to gut the catfish. This process has some differences compared to gutting other fish. Since the skin is thick, it will take effort to cut it.

To properly cut the abdominal cavity, you need to turn the catfish on its back and make a small puncture at the base of the head. Then, carefully pulling the skin with a knife from the inside, you need to cut it, trying not to damage the internal organs of the fish. If the gallbladder breaks and its contents get on the meat, it will spoil its taste.

Advice! To save the meat, which got bile, it is necessary to fill the foci of contamination with salt. After a few minutes, you need to rinse the fillet and use it for cooking.

The insides must be carefully removed from the abdominal cavity without tearing them off the head, then the gills must be cut and removed along with the insides. After that, the fish must be washed and all films covering the inside of the fish must be removed. The product should be cleaned thoroughly. Pull the fins out by making a wedge-shaped incision on both sides.

If the insides of the catfish contain caviar, it must be removed, removed from the film and fried or salted. She has excellent taste.

Filletting and skinning

Information on how to properly clean catfish will be incomplete if you do not know how to skin the carcass and separate the fillets. After the fish has been cleaned, you can start this stage.

It is better to skin the catfish when the fish is still intact, not when the fillets have already been cut. It is most convenient to clean the carcass from the skin by hanging it by the gills. For this, an incision is made near the head and along the back along the entire length of the fish. Then the skin is pulled down, for this you can hook it with pliers. It is important to ensure that the meat does not come off, for this you need to cut it in time. It is the skin that has an unpleasant odor, so by removing it you can get rid of it.

Advice! To completely remove the smell, you need to soak the meat in milk or white wine.

After the skin is removed, the fillet can be removed from the spine. Catfish have no small bones, the only ones are the spine and ribs. Therefore, by separating them, you can get the purest fillet. It must be cut off by carefully making an incision along the vertebral bone, then deepening it reaching the ribs, but without damaging them. Pass the knife along the ribs and remove the meat from them. Cut off the fillets from the tail. Do the same with the other half.

The backbone and head are great for broth or fish soup, so don't throw them away. Many different dishes can be prepared from meat. Catfish make excellent kebabs, or cutlets, because there are absolutely no bones in it. Knowing how to clean fish and get rid of the unpleasant odor, you can regularly indulge yourself with fine dinners made from tender meat.