Fish dishes are a must on every family table, especially fresh fish. The last words can scare an inexperienced hostess who does not know how to clean a fish. A little imagination - and you can imagine how naughty scales, gleaming, scatter in all directions, stick to kitchen cabinets, tiles, knife, hands, and fly right into your face!
Sometimes in the country or outdoors, you want to pamper yourself with fish cooked over coals or in a smokehouse. Only now this does not happen as often as we would like, because cleaning fish is not a pleasant occupation. If you know some tricks, cooking will be much easier.
Perhaps this is one of the most unpleasant moments, because the fish will strive to slip out of the hands, and the scales can scatter throughout the kitchen. To prevent the fish from slipping out, you need to thoroughly rinse it under cold water. It is cleaned from head to tail, then the scales are better separated.
Scales from fresh fish are much easier to peel off, therefore, if possible, fish should be cleaned right after the catch. But most housewives still deal with frozen or chilled fish, therefore, the most important thing is to figure out how to clean fish from scales at home. There are a few tricks that can help you do this easily:
Anyone who knows well how to clean a fish inserts a stick into its mouth as far as it will go - this is much more convenient.
Many people use various devices instead of a knife. You can make a fish scaler by nailing 2-3 beer lids to the board. The same effect will be obtained if you nail a sheet of tin with holes punched with a nail to a wooden block (so that there are sharp jagged edges). Even a simple tin can with holes in the bottom can be a handy fish scaler. The hardware store also has many special knives for cleaning fish, but experienced housewives they will say that the most reliable is an ordinary large knife.
By the way! So that your hands do not slip when cleaning, you need to rub the fish with coarse salt. True, then there should be no wounds on the hands (it will hurt if you do not use gloves).
Most often, amateur fishermen fish in rivers. So, first of all, you need to know how to clean river fish. In some cases, cleaning is not required, for example, without removing the scales, you can prepare snacks from:
Really, delicious ear obtained from perches or small bream directly in the skin. In this case, the broth can be strained from the scales and cooked further in it, and the fish can be skinned and served separately with herbs.
Salmon, gobies for frying or omelet are also not peeled, and scales can be removed from crucians even with your fingers. But the scales are not removed from catfish and burbot at all (only the mucus is carefully cleaned off), or they are removed together with the skin, as they say, with a stocking. For this, an incision is made near the head and removed down to the tail.
Perch deserves special attention, because most often it is he who is caught. This fish is loved for taste qualities and the ability to cook different ways... In summer, near the river, the catch can be immediately smoked, just by washing it in clean cold water. The smoked skin is easily separated along with the scales, and underneath it retains a wonderful taste and aroma. If you need to clean the perches for frying or baking at home, then there is great way, which can be called folk
The quality of cleaning in this way will be much higher than when working with a knife, and the scales will hardly scatter around the kitchen. And so that the fish does not crawl on the board, you need to hold it tightly with a fork by the tail. This method is most conveniently performed in pairs.
The tench, a fish that lives in lakes or other bodies of water where there is no strong current, has become more and more widespread in recent years. Distributed in the European part of Russia, but occasionally occurs even in Lake Baikal.
The taste qualities of this fish, as well as the fats and proteins contained in large quantities in tench meat, attract more and more housewives who want to pamper their loved ones with something new instead of the bored greenling or pink salmon, which are sold in abundance in the fish departments. If you have difficulties with how to clean, know that tench fish requires the following steps:
By the way! If you feel a strong odor of mud, you can get rid of it by thoroughly rinsing the line in a strong saline solution, and watering before cooking lemon juice.
Over time, any hostess will get used to this or that fish. And if the husband often fishes, then the wife will have to master the recipes for cooking pike perch, crucian carp, and pike, and so perch and bream so for sure. Sooner or later, you will understand how to clean fish properly, and fish dishes are much healthier for men than chicken, stuffed with antibiotics and containing hormones. Therefore, for men after forty, fish is preferable. And they begin to fish more actively at this time: the children have already grown up, it is not solid to go to parties and parties, and that remains the main male hobby - fishing.
Women are also encouraged to eat fish in order to maintain their slimness or at least constant weight. In addition, there are many recipes for fish dishes that will decorate any festive table... After all, a dish with baked sturgeon served as a real decoration of the royal table before! Many peoples even have customs associated with fish. For example, on Catholic Christmas, it is customary to bake carp with lemon in the belly. Since carp have very large scales, such fish are cleaned from the tail, and it is customary to carry carp scales in your wallet all next year so that money is always found.
Thursday, as you know, is considered a fish day. A few decades ago, fish dishes were served in canteens and buffets on this day. This is due to the norms of a healthy diet - fish should be in the diet at least once a week. Modern housewives monitor the health of their families and also try to adhere to the rules of a healthy diet. But often the thought of long-term cleaning of fish, dirty kitchen and flying scales can discourage all culinary zeal. And again everything is served for dinner, but not a fish dish.
Is the devil as scary as he is painted? Is it really so difficult to clean a fish? Is there really no way that will help us clean fish quickly and without problems? Is it necessary to wash out the whole kitchen after cleaning the fish from the scales scattered in all directions? This is not true! Let's try to figure everything out in order.
After that, the fish can be sent to a skillet, oven or pan.
Cleaning the fish depends a lot on the type of fish. Some types of fish do not need to be peeled at all, such as salmon or goby. They are fried along with the scales, because they are quite soft and small.
Other types of fish are cleaned by completely removing the skin from them, for example, catfish, burbot, eel. To do this, you need to make a small incision at the head of the fish and pull off the skin in one motion.
Some fish (for example, crucian carp) can be cleaned very easily using your fingers. To do this, you just need to rinse the carp thoroughly with a stream of water. And if you sprinkle small fish of any kind with salt, the scales will go away without any problems.
Pike, perch and pike perch can be boiled with boiling water. For this, clean fish must be immersed in boiling water for a while. The blanching time depends on the size and freshness of the fish and can vary from 30 seconds to three minutes. It is very important here not to overcook the carcass, otherwise the scales will go away along with the boiled meat.
If you decide to cook tench, then you must first thoroughly rinse it from mud and mucus. If that doesn't work, put the washed fish in the sink and pour boiling water over it. You will immediately see the mucus begin to curl up like egg white... After that, the fish just needs to be rinsed. Some people think that it is not necessary to remove the scales from the tench, they say, it is so thin that it simply dissolves in the ear. If the smallest particles bother you, you can dip the line in boiling water for a minute and remove the scales along with the skin.
If river fish smells like mud, and you are afraid that after cooking the smell will remain, you need to leave the washed fish carcass in salt water for a couple of hours. And just before cooking, pour the lemon juice over the fish. And then you will get only a pleasant mouth-watering aroma of cooked fish.
We've put together a few more tips for you to make cleaning your fish really quick and comfortable.
Our simple tips help you make complex things easy.
Cleaning fish is a rather unpleasant task, perhaps one of the most unpleasant processes in all of cooking. However, you should not give up delicious food because of this. fish dishes... Clean fish easily, quickly and comfortably!
According to experts, a person should eat fish at least 4 times a month. These are the norms of a healthy diet, and this is due to the presence of phosphorus in fish, which is good for the body. But housewives do not have a special desire to cook such dishes, because they know that cleaning a carcass takes a long time, and scattering scales will completely discourage all zeal for cooking. Therefore, to simplify the task, you need to know what methods exist for cleaning fish from scales.
Everyone is faced with the common problem of cleaning fish using the wrong methods. You need to know that such a procedure has been carried out since ancient times to this day. Many methods have been invented, and all the chefs agree that the classic method of cleansing is relevant and effective.
It is generally best to clean the fish in fresh when it was recently fished or purchased from the store. Only after processing, the carcass is placed in the freezer for further storage. And it is better to do the work directly on the pond or in the yard. In this case, you can avoid contamination of the kitchen with scales. How to clean fish according to the classical method:
After the work done, the fish is washed again under running water.
If you plan to fry the fish in chunks, cut it in even slices. The carcass is placed on a cutting board and the tail and head are removed. Then use a knife to make cuts on the side so that they are the same size, and then cut the product in parts. First, in the cutting process, you will go through the pulp and run into a sturdy spine. To overcome an obstacle, place one hand on the edge of the knife and keep the other on the handle. Then sharply and with force press on the handle of the tool and break the ridge of the fish, after which the remaining pulp is cut off.
To extract the fillets, do not gut the fish, as some housewives do. The product is placed on the workstation - a cutting board. Take the carcass by the tail and cut it in half lengthwise so that the blade of the knife passes close to the spine. You will end up with two parts, one with ribs, and the other with ribs and a ridge. Now remove the bones by prying them out with a knife. The deed is done, cut the finished sirloin parts into equal shares.
To prepare fish cutlets with bones, you will have to remove all skin and scales. Only after that, place the product in a meat grinder and twist until fine minced meat is formed, so that the bones are crushed as much as possible. But it is advisable to remove all bones and leave only the pulp for future cutlets.
The difficulty of cleaning depends on the type of fish. For example, species such as goby and salmon are not scaled at all. This is due to the small size of the scales, which are also soft. Other specimens are subject to mandatory skin removal, for example: eel, catfish and burbot. You need to shallowly cut the base at the head and use a knife to remove the skin. How to quickly remove scales from fish:
Sometimes after processing river fish the unpleasant odor cannot be completely eliminated. To do this, the carcasses are placed in a container with salted water for two hours. Then they are taken out of the water and treated with lemon juice. This is the most common method for removing unpleasant odors.
There are many ways and devices for removing scales from fish. All methods differ in their mode of action. It remains to choose the most suitable option, which will not only speed up the process, but also create comfortable conditions. How to quickly remove scales from fish:
These are the main quick cleaning methods that are considered the best. There are many other options that have come up with craftsmen from all over the world, but they are less popular.
Housewives often use a plastic bag to keep the scales from flying. They take a fish carcass and place it inside, then scrape off the scales. The waste remains directly in the bag. This means you don't have to collect fish particles throughout the entire room. How to remove scales from fish using proven tips:
Anyone can scrape off fish scales different ways using the material at hand.
Quite often, housewives neglect safety measures and face various injuries. In such a case, it is important to be extremely careful. On the surface, it seems that the process of removing scales is a harmless business, but it is not:
Removing fish scales is an unpleasant task and is considered one of the dirtiest procedures in cooking. But with experience and the right tool, the cleaning process will be shortened. To avoid hurting yourself, stick to safety precautions and take your time. Then the risk of injury will be significantly reduced.
Cooking fish starts with cleaning it. For culinary beginners, this procedure is one of the most difficult and unpleasant. Knowing how to clean fish from scales quickly, you can cope with the task easily, neatly and without contaminating the surrounding interior.
Often such "armor" has a dense, rigid structure, which spoils not only the taste of the prepared dish, but also the impression of its use. Moreover, with heat treatment the plates may come off the skin and remain on dishes or other foods.
Large plates, tightly adhering to the carcass, prevent the penetration of spices and spices to the meat - for this reason, thorough cleaning of the scales from the fish is recommended before marinating.
In order to quickly clean the fish without consequences in the form of scales scattered around, all the necessary devices should be prepared in advance:
The most common way to clean your catch is with a kitchen knife. The fish is placed on a non-slip surface, the carcass is fixed by the tail and processed with a sharp blade towards the head, removing hard plates from the skin.
After processing, the carcass must be rinsed with clean water, blotted with a dry cloth and examined. The scales must be completely scraped off; experienced fishermen and housewives know how to clean fish without a knife - they use improvised means (scissors, spoons, forks) for this procedure. There are other tricks that can help you prepare your catch for cooking. Modern devices allow you to remove fish plates faster and easier than a classic knife.
Mechanical tools help to quickly clean fish from scales, keeping order around and avoiding cuts with a knife. Hardware stores sell a variety of tools - from special graters to cleaners with teeth of various sizes - that can handle any size and density of sandpaper.
One of the most convenient devices for cleaning fish from scales is an electric fish scaler. Such cars operate on different power sources: car cigarette lighters, built-in batteries or a household network, which allows them to be used not only at home.
Some devices are supplemented with special containers or screens for scales, which allows you to peel off fish plates not only quickly, but also cleanly. The only drawback of such devices is their high cost.
Before properly cleaning the fish, you should prepare the work surface and the product itself for processing. The carcass must be thoroughly washed in cold water, removing mucus. The cleaning process is best done on a cutting board wrapped in plastic or cling film. This will help prevent the fish from slipping, making it easier to handle.
To quickly remove the plates, you can use the advice of experienced chefs. These tricks will help you complete the task in a matter of minutes:
In order not to stain the surrounding space, you can carry out the cleaning process in a bowl, basin or deep plate with cold water: then the scales will not scatter and remain inside the container. A plastic bag is suitable for the same purpose.
You can avoid the troublesome cleaning of the scales using the "stocking" technique, which involves removing the plates along with the skin. This procedure is used to prepare multi-ingredient meals and snacks. Before stuffing or fillet, the carcass must be washed, cleaned of mucus and entrails. Then cuts should be made in the area of the ridge, head and tail, and then carefully remove the skin, separating it from the meat with a knife.
You can make your own catch cleaner. This requires a block to which a jagged surface is attached, such as a can or glass bottle lid.
You can also use improvised kitchen items, for example, a small grater for shredding vegetables. Standard peelers are also suitable for this purpose.
To make life easier for all housewives, we will talk about how to clean fish correctly. In fact, there is nothing incredibly complicated in this process, but you only realize this when you see a plate of cleaned, gutted fish. And when for the first time a large, live carp appears in your hands, you look at it in confusion.
If you have a live fish in your hands, you must first "neutralize" it and only then clean it. To do this, you can turn to the one who caught her and hit something on the head (not a fisherman, but a carp). For some housewives, this is the most difficult process, therefore, in order not to complicate your life, you can put the catch under the freezer - you will get a freshly chilled fish, which, moreover, is quietly waiting to be cleaned.
If you buy fish from the market, it is important to choose fresh - it is not slippery, without an unpleasant color and odor, and the meat holds tightly without separating from the bones.
The very first stage of cleaning is rinsing the carcass under running cool water. Now you can start cleaning the fish and it's good if there is a special knife for this (it is inexpensive and is sold in the bazaar or in fishing shops). Special fish scalers that look like scrapers are very popular.
But if there is no such tool, an ordinary one will do, but you need to be careful with it, and clean it with the blunt side so as not to cut yourself. Some housewives, in order to avoid injury, clean with any convenient object - a spoon, fork, etc. Cleaning is best done in the same sink where you washed the fish. Be prepared for the scales to fly in all directions. Therefore, many housewives put the fish in a bag and clean it as if "in a bag", and put a plastic or metal mesh on the drain in the sink. Here each housewife has her own recipe. Someone puts a large bowl in the sink and does everything in it so that all the scales remain there.
The fish must be held correctly: the head must look at you, and you hold it by the tail and clean it from the tail, slowly heading towards the head, while the scales fly off to the sides. After you have completed the task, once again rinse the fish under running water.
Tip: If you have chosen a fish that has scales very tightly, soak it in boiling water for two seconds.
For evisceration, you need a kitchen knife and cutting board. If the board is made of wood, the smell will not wash off at once, so we recommend covering the board with newspaper or a regular bag. This technique will allow you to get rid of the fishy smell immediately after the completion of evisceration of the carcass and quickly clean the work area. By the way, this advice is also relevant for plastic boards.
We put the carcass on the board with the ridge down and belly up. With a kitchen knife or scissors we cut the belly practically from the head to the anus (located near the tail), so that it is convenient to get "all the contents" and clean it with a knife, while trying not to touch the gallbladder. Do not forget, in addition to the intestines, to remove the red-brown film located on the walls of the belly.
Let's move on to the head. If you decide to leave it, you need to remove the gills so that the future dish does not taste bitter. If the head is too small or simply not needed, cut it off and do not suffer. After that, rinse the fish thoroughly again and you can start creating delicious food.
As you can see, the process is not difficult, but after it you will be filled with a sense of pride that you were able to cope on your own. By doing this at least once from start to finish, you can tell your friends how to properly clean fish from scales.
If you do not yet know how to cook this, look at the recipes on our website. You can, for example, cook fish in batter or if you peeled crucian carp, grease it with sour cream, salt, pepper and send it to the oven preheated to 180 degrees for half an hour - it will be delicious.
You can cook many dishes from fish, and not only fish soup and fry. Fish pies, jellied meat, snacks require the housewives to prepare the fish more thoroughly than removing scales and gutting. The above method is suitable for home use when you are preparing fish for yourself. But if you have to set the festive table, the fish requires a completely different preparation. You need to courageously go through such stages as removing scales, removing fins, gutting, skinning, filleting.
Butchering frozen fish begins with thawing. So that it does not dry out, it is recommended to thaw it by wrapping the carcass in paper, or leave it in a bag. But the best option is to put the fish in lightly salted water.
If you bought a fillet, you can fry it not thawed, which will preserve its juiciness, or defrost it in the air and, if necessary, peel it off.
Often, when cleaning fish, it becomes necessary to remove the fins. If the fish is large, they can be put on the ear together with the gutted head.
The first step is to cut off the sharp fins, this is done so that the cooked fish looks appetizing, is beautifully presented, and can be easily cut into portions.
Large sharp fins can be removed with special kitchen scissors before the scale is removed, then the work will be safer. If there is no particular need to remove the fins, you can omit this point. For example, if a recipe requires boiling whole fish, the fins are easier to remove after boiling.
To make a fillet, you need to remove the fins along with the bones that attach them to the body. To do this, the tip of a knife is inserted into the connective bone tissue under the fin. By moving the knife like a lever, it is easy to remove the fin along with the bone.
If you separate the gills, make an incision behind them and pull, you can take out all the insides in one fell swoop without destroying the carcass.
The skin of the fish does not need to be removed if you intend to boil it whole, fry it or stew it. Large flat fish can be boiled first, and only then it is easy to remove the skin. But some types of fish, according to the recipe or individual characteristics, require you to remove the skin immediately, before cooking. For example, work with maritime language easier than ever: cut and remove.
Often it is necessary to remove the skin also because it emits an unpleasant odor in some representatives of the sea kingdom. Sometimes it is easier to first cut the fish into fillets and only then remove the skin - it all depends on the individual chosen.
If you want to peel perch or other species with hard-to-peel scales, buy a fish scaler or make a ram with it. If you can't buy a fish scaler, do it yourself: nail tin lids from beer bottles to the board next to each other in two rows - the device is ready to work.
In some stores, sellers offer to clean the fish for a small fee. This method has taken root among the Russians, but if your husband returned with a good catch from fishing, of course you will not carry him to the store for cleaning. Therefore, we roll up our sleeves and clean the fish with our own hands - it's easy, especially after the first kilogram.