I’m sure Mr. Hemingway would have written a moving story about this particular fight; the fight between man and nature. Molly (pictured here and certainly not a “man”) had battled the fish for a full 15 minutes before it tired and gave in to the hook and line. The fish, a king mackerel, proved to be a worthy opponent and was a great addition to the grill later that day!

Instead of a recipe, I wanted to take this time to talk about how to break down a whole fish. It’s super easy and lowers the cost when you do the work. I advise making friends with your local seafood monger and having them call when a fresh catch hits their ice beds… eat much and laugh often!

How to Fillet a Fish

1- Place the fish on a cutting-board with the head of the fish toward you. Using a thin, sharp flexible knife, cut down through the back of the head (just below the gills) and let the knife rest on the backbone. Then angle the knife flat so that it’s ready to slide down the backbone towards the tail.

2- With your non cutting hand hold the fish by the head. Run the knife all the way down the backbone using a back and forth sawing motion. As the knife runs down the backbone pull the fillet away from the body of the fish (you want to gently scrape the backbone with your knife being careful not to get stuck on the bone). Set the fillet to the side and repeat the process on the other side of the fish.

3- Cut off the belly and any fins that might be attached to the fillet. On some fish you want to remove the tail and a part of the connective bone because it can be bitter and/or tough.With your fingers and clean tweezers, feel for any pin bones and pull them out of the fillets.

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