# cleaning a perch



## larkin (Sep 28, 2003)

does anyone know a real fast and easy way to clean perch


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## woodroe (Mar 18, 2004)

Get yourself an electric filet knife... Doesn't get much easier than that...


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## larkin (Sep 28, 2003)

yeah they are expensive though


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## stevepike (Sep 14, 2002)

You don't have to get an electric that is made for filleting fish (although I probably would if buying a new one). I think it is well worth the investment (around $20) and you can use them on more than just perch.

Otherwise just fillet like a walleye once you get the meat off the skin, take out the ribcage and your done. I would say trout are about the only one easier to clean.


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## goose killer (Mar 26, 2004)

A electric fillet knife is the best way to clean them. I would suggest buying a mister twister one from fleet farm. I have one and It works great.


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## Brad Anderson (Apr 1, 2002)

Couldn't have said it better myself. The ONLY way to clean any fish.


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## atec (Jan 29, 2006)

We sometimes would catch over 80 Perch from Lake Michigan in late June . That's a lot of fish to clean . The 'lectric knife comes in real handy . 7" blade for perch . 
There is one other thing though . Many people still like the Perch with the skin on . You older guys have to admit that fish taste different skin and bone on ( except for Bass ). Now that's a lot of scaling , 80 Perch , so we didn't scale all of them . What you use is a small light hand drill with a 7/16 - 20 tap . That is a tap used for taping threaded holes in metal for those who may not understand what I'm talking about . We tried different sizes and the 7/16-20 came up as the best . It works on most fish without tearing the skin . I imagine there are a number of ways to scale fish fast and easy , but this is just one way that works . I have still fallen into the fillet & skin mode though because of the speed and convenience . Thanks for you time , Art


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## Fossilman (Mar 12, 2006)

I fillet them out,just like the rest of my fish.............


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## Tomkat (Mar 13, 2006)

Fossilman said:


> I fillet them out,just like the rest of my fish.............


then??


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## Fossilman (Mar 12, 2006)

Eat them :lol:


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## nodakoutdoors.com (Feb 27, 2002)

This should help:

http://www.nodakoutdoors.com/fishcleaning.php


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## Hollywood (Jan 22, 2006)

Easiest way?
Mak







e your kid clean 'em!


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## bigbillbass (Mar 14, 2006)

ok buys here's where i accel. im only 17 but ive clean a lot of perch. on average my uncle and i will catch between 115and 145 perch in one day. here's how we clean 'em.

1. get a fillet knife (preferably electric) and cut right behind the gill cover, stop at the spine
2. follow the backbone to just about where the tail starts. take care as not to cut through the spine. do not cut all the way through the skin when you are at the tail, this will act as a hinge.
3. flip the fillet over the tail. so when you look at the fish you see the guts on the left and the inside of the fillet on the right, or vise versa.
4. then begin at the tail and cut the fillet out of the skin.
5.DO THIS STEP W/ A REGULAR FILLET KNIFE. cut th rib cage out, starting at the widest part of the fillet, keep your knife at about a 45 degree angle and follow the radius of the cage.

put your catch in some cold water, rinse and bag. and you have yourself some nice clean perch fillets.


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## Hollywood (Jan 22, 2006)

Bigbill-
If you want to try something a lil easier.... take the fillets with ribs still in & put them in water in the fridge overnight. They firm right up & it only takes a couple minutes to get the ribs out of the whole mess. Matter of fact...I gotta get off this computer and get the ribs out of the 100 from yesterday. (we have a 50/day limit here now)


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## bigbillbass (Mar 14, 2006)

we have a 50/day per person lmit in ny

the technique we use we have perfected so we can go through about oh 100 perch in an hour


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## Fossilman (Mar 12, 2006)

Down to 20 in ND now.........


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## not2muchxperience (Dec 14, 2006)

This sounds (and is) savage, but cut off the head an slit the anus up to the opening u just made, then pull the guts out and chew around the bones once it's cooked


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## boondocks (Jan 27, 2006)

not2muchxperience said:


> This sounds (and is) savage, but cut off the head an slit the anus up to the opening u just made, then pull the guts out and chew around the bones once it's cooked


The skin and scales must be a little chewy.


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## not2muchxperience (Dec 14, 2006)

oh yeah, u have to scale them too....thanx for the point-out...hahahaha


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## fishhook (Aug 29, 2002)

If you want with perch you can rip the skin right off them once you've cut the head, tail and fins off like not2muchexperience wrote. It's a little rough on your hands and i don't like picking through bones, but it does work.


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## Stonegoblet (Jun 24, 2007)

man, don't be a *****, clean it lake a man! with a plain fillet knife! *gnarls teeth* *pff* electric fillet knives...

-Animal Armageddon!!!


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## bulkdriverlp (Apr 21, 2008)

i just cut by the gill and fillet down from top to bottom and flip the fillet over the tail and skin it. i hate messing with scales. some people cut the heads off too, makes it easier.


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## tomsgonefishing (Aug 10, 2008)

I've always used a fillet knife for filleting my fish until this year. I started using my wife's electric filleting knife and I works great. Saturday my wife and I went to garage sales and I picked up 2 Hamilton Beach filleting knifes
for $1.00 each. They were both in great condition and both worked. One of them is brand new! Since I have problems with my right shoulder it makes it a lot less painful filleting my fish now. It's kind of like cutting wood. A person can still use an ax but I prefer a chainsaw! I always try to make less work out of something and faster.


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## fubar (Mar 10, 2008)

This is all you will ever need. it will last you the rest of your life and stays sharp so much longer than the normal knife. i have one i use at the resort and i clean thousands of fish a summer and only sharpen 2 or 3 times. with this bad boy i am down to 30 seconds on walleye and 26 seconds on perch. you can watch my video on the walleye fishing thread, just do the same thing with perch.

http://www.leechlakeknife.com/Site%204/Photos.html


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## dakotahonker (Feb 18, 2009)

Get an electric fillet knife and go to work. Clean them just like you would a walleye. I do the whole thing with the electric. I think it is easier to get the rib cage out with the electric than with a regualar knife. A little practise and it is easy.


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## IssaquahBob (Feb 8, 2009)

FUBAR, which particular knife do you use?


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## IssaquahBob (Feb 8, 2009)

I finally got to retire Feb 2008 and for the each of the last two ice fishing seasons have had an opportunity to pull 1000+ perch out of the ice and into the freezer. I'm a fan of the electric knife for the filleting and skinning followed by a sharp fillet knife for removing the ribs. For the filleting and skinning, I only average about 75 perch per hour but with something like Crown Royal, Wild Turkey, or a good single malt scotch to sip on, time isn't an issue.


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## jason_n (Dec 30, 2006)

youtube "how to clean a perch in ten seconds" wish i could do it in ten sec but id have no fingers left. but if its a lot an electric knife is way easier.


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## torf (Mar 11, 2002)

The vid: 




I've never tried it but it sure looks slick.


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## Doogie (Feb 23, 2007)

tried it the weekend, its the cats meow. now I wont throw so many back


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## silverfish21 (May 17, 2010)

I just cut off the head and fins, gut the fish and use a "Townsend Fish Skinner" to skin the fish. This is a wonderful tool that my uncle told me about years ago. Works great!


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## harryblime (Jan 31, 2011)

Just cleaned about 30 perch caught ice fishing-- many were females with lots of eggs in the cavity, but many had large deposits of a white gooey substance (like yogurt in consistency) in the cavity. I'm assuming that is the sperm sack, is that correct?


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## mifox (Oct 31, 2005)

You are correct. If you open perch up carefully, on the males there are 2 long white organs beside the intestines. Those are the male gonads. The white milky subtance in them is the _milt_ (semen).


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## Choclabmax (Nov 4, 2010)

electric fisherman by mr. twister...$25 last about 2k fish

i can push 3 a min, using a regular knife is slow and pointless if you have electricity


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