by Jim Huckabee

Created on: July 31, 2009

You decide fishing would be a great way of getting out of the house and you have purchased your rod and tackle. But when you bring home the days catch how do you clean them for the evening meal? Depending on the species of fish the methods very. Bluegills, sun fish, speckled bass, large and small mouth bass are all processed the same.

You can clean the days catch in the kitchen sink. But it is a messy job. Gentlemen your wife will have kittens when she sees fish scales all over sink. If you have a place outside it is the best choice.

You will need a few basic items.

1. A supply of running water like your garden hose.

2. A piece of plywood about two feet by three feet by an half inch thick would serve you well.

3. A soup spoon to scale the fish.

4. A very sharp knife with a flexible blade. The blade should be at least six inches long. You can purchase a fillet knife where you bought your rod and reel.

5. A pair of heavy pliers.

6. An old kitchen towel to wipe your hands.

1) First turn on the hose so a heavy trickle of water is flowing and wet down the board. The waste will freely run off of a wet board. Slightly elevate one end of the board; an inch or so will do. Then lay the hose on the elevated end so the running water will wash away most of the debris as you work.

2) Now lay one of the pan fish on the board with the head facing the elevated end of the board. Place the cushion of your left hand (if you are right handed) on the eye of the fish. Then slide your thumb under the gill and your fingers on top of the head. Grasping the fish firmly.

Place the spoon on the base of the tail with the recessed side facing the head of the fish. Apply some pressure and pull the spoon to the left. The scales will roll up onto the spoon and off again. Repeat this until all the scales are gone. You may need to use a short jerking action.

3) Place the scaled fish on its stomach and insert the knife at the head end of the dorsal fin until you feel the spin. Then cut along the fin on both sides. With your pliers pull the fin up and back to separate the fin from the spin.

Then again lay the fish on it's side grasping it as you did during the scaling process. Place the knife under the pectoral fin (located just behind the gills) angle the blade downward and cut through the spin; turn the fish and repeat the process. When you pull the head free of the body most of the entrails will pull out with the head. Now with the fish laying on it's side slice the stomach open starting from where the head was removed until you get to the anus. Cut a circular path around the anus and pull the debris free. You can now lay the fish on it's back to clean any remaining membrane and entrails from the body cavity. Wash the fish well and it is ready for the frying pan.

Note: Removal of the tail is optional. Some people enjoy eating the crispy tails once fried.

Fish as the catfish and bullhead don't have scales. They have skin which can be removed by dipping the small ones in a pan of scalding water by grasping the dorsal fin with the pliers. You can then scrape the skin off with your spoon. The process of cleaning is as above. Remember the dorsal and pectoral fins on a catfish can cause injury if you are not careful.

Salmon and Lake Trout have a blood line running parallel to the body just under the skin. The blood line is a brownish red vein about a half inch wide. This is where the contaminants in the lake or river collect in the fish and should be cut out.

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