Almost everyone loves fish dishes. But how to clean fish at home so that the kitchen does not then resemble a house made of scales? This will be discussed in this article. It turns out there are many ways. And even cleaning devices.
Cleaning tools
First of all, you will need at least a knife for cleaning fish. This is the most common option. There is a knife in every home, but all the appliances are suitable for cleaning fish. The knife should be comfortable, well sharpened and small. This device removes large scales well.
In modern times, special appliances are sold for cleaning fish. Outwardly and in their action, they resemble an ordinary grater. The devices have holes in which the scales fall during friction of the fish. Such devices are well suited for removing fine scales. Special boards with a clip are also for sale. As a result, you will no longer need to hold the carcass by the tail.
How to quickly clean fish from scales? You can use a regular grater with several faces. It is convenient to use. Moreover, simultaneously, the scales are removed in several rows. And do not scatter around, remaining inside the grater.
How to make a device for cleaning fish with your own hands?
You can make a device for cleaning fish yourself. This will require small nails, caps with corrugated edges from glass bottles. And a small tablet. Several lids are nailed to it. Such a home-made device is suitable for cleaning large-scale fish. In camping conditions, instead of such a device, you can use a tin can, making torn holes in the bottom.
Fish cleaning
How to quickly clean fish from scales? This process is divided into several stages:
- The fish is washed thoroughly in running water. At this time, all debris and mucus are removed from under the scales to prevent the carcass from slipping. It is washed each separately.
- The fish should dry out slightly for several minutes so that it does not slip out of the hands. But not for long, as dry flakes fly around the kitchen.
- If the fish has sharp spikes or fins, then they are cut in advance with a knife or kitchen scissors.
- The fish lies on a cutting board or other surface. You need to hold it by the tail and clean off the scales towards the head. The carcass must be held tight. If the fish is small, then it will be easier to completely hold it in your hand.
- After cleaning, the fish is washed, and the remains of the scales are removed with water.
- Gutting. All fins are removed and the head is cut off. If it remains, then a hole is made at the tail and cut along the abdomen to the gills. The knife for cleaning fish should be small and sharp. You only need to cut it with its tip so as not to damage the gallbladder. Then all the insides are removed and thrown away, except for caviar and milk (if needed). The carcass is thoroughly washed under running water.
How to quickly clean fish from scales: useful tips
The process of cleaning fish is simple. But there are some nuances and small tricks to make the process more pleasant and quick:
- Fresh fish is best cleaned, not frozen or chilled. Live has a more delicate and soft skin, from which scales easily come out. It is best to clean the fish immediately after fishing or buying.
- So that the scales do not fly apart, the fish can be cleaned in a transparent plastic bag, or in a container of water (or a sink) into which the carcass is completely immersed. Or, keep the fish cleaned under a tap with a stream of water during cleaning. Wet scales do not fly far.
- Frozen fish should melt completely before cleaning.
- If the mucus remains after washing the carcass, then it is sprinkled with salt and rinsed again after 3 minutes.
- If the fish fries, then a very small one does not need to be cleaned. Flakes will become brittle and crunchy after heat treatment.
- If the fish scales are dense and large, then it can be removed by hand.
- It is easier to clean the carcass if you open its mouth and fix it with a toothpick.
- If the flakes fit tightly to each other, they must first be separated with a knife without damaging the skin.
- Small scales are perfectly removed by sand or salt. The fish is sprinkled and rubbed a little. Then it washes in water.
- If the fish slips out of hands, then it can be fixed on the board with an awl. They pierce the carcass in a place above the tail. Or wrap the tail with a rag.
- If the scales do not separate well, the fish is boiled over with boiling water or placed in it for one minute. Or put the carcass in hot water, and then in cold water and then continue to clean.
- For easy cleaning of frozen fish during melting, the carcass is wrapped in paper or cloth.
- You can clean the fish with the blunt side of a knife or use a fork.
- If the carcass is dry, it should be slightly moistened with water.
Methods for cleaning river fish
How to clean river fish from scales? You can remove it in various ways. But hardest to clean perches and ruffs. Therefore, initially all spiky fins are cut from the carcasses. Then the fish is placed in cold water for several minutes. With a fork or knife, several grooves are made against the scales.
Roaches have weak scales, but it’s difficult to clean, as they fly around the kitchen very much. Therefore, it is better to clean this fish directly in the pond. At home, it is better to clean it directly under water. It will be enough to dial her into the basin. You can sprinkle fish with salt and rub. Then rinse with water.
For cleaning fish with hard scales, a four-sided grater is best. The carcass is cleaned, as usual, from tail to head, against scales. Pike Perch and zander can be boiled with boiling water before cleaning. Then the scales come off easily. Filmed under running water.
Some types of fish, such as perch, for quick and easy removal of scales in the evening, are salted and left in a cool place until morning. Fish from the freezer does not need to be defrosted completely, an hour is enough. During this time, the scales will thaw and it will be easy to remove.
Some types of fish can not be cleaned from scales at all. For example, a goby or salmon. The carcasses are fried along with the scales, since it is soft and small. Before washing, tench is washed in water for a long time. If mucus remains on the fish, the carcass is boiled over with boiling water. Then the tench is washed again under running water. Or the easiest way. Lin dips into boiling water for one minute, and then the scales are removed from the carcass directly with the skin.
Big fish
Cleaning fish from scales will be much easier if you insert a stick into the carcass mouth. A cutting board is taken and covered with a newspaper, which is folded several times. The fish is washed thoroughly. Cleaning starts, as usual, from the tail, but at a slight angle. The caudal and dorsal fins are cut off. A small hole is made near the head and the edge of the knife cuts the belly to the anus.
When gutting, the entire contents of the carcass are cleaned. A white film comes off running along the ridge. A red-brown film is scraped off the walls. The head is cut off. If it is left, then all the insides are removed from the gills, otherwise the fish will be bitter.
Catfish, burbot and eel are cleaned by removing the skin from the carcass along with the scales. To do this, an incision is made at the head, and the skin is pulled together in one motion.
Sea fish
Sea fish are often cleaned differently than river fish. For this, a sharpened knife having a thin blade is prepared. The fish is laid out on a hard surface (e.g. chopping board). A small incision is made at the tail. The edge of the knife gently lifts the skin.
The result is a small pocket. With the tip of a knife, it begins to expand further, moving toward the head. The skin is removed from the fish along with the scales, cut from the inside with a sharp blade.
How to clean salted fish?
Salted fish is sold already cleaned of scales. It remains only to gut it. She gets from the brine, fins are cut. And along the back an incision is made. The same around the head. The skin is gently detached and removed towards the tail with a stocking. Then the abdomen rips open, and the insides are cleaned. On request, only caviar and milk are left. The fish is cleaned of the inner black film and washed in cold water.
How to clean perch?
How to clean perch fish? It is quite slippery, so gloves are worn before the procedure. In order not to cut themselves on sharp fins, they are cut with scissors. To make the cleaning process faster, the fish goes to the freezer for 20-30 minutes.
After this, the scales will not fly around very much. And cleaning the fish will take only a few minutes. But if you plan to bake or fry the perch, then you can’t put carcasses in the freezer. When cleaning the fish, the knife goes from the belly to the back. The tail at this time is firmly pressed against the board.
Zander
How to clean fish zander? There are sharp speeches on his body. They are removed before cleaning with scissors or a sharpened knife. The tank is filled with water, into which the fish is completely immersed. If cleaning is carried out with a knife, then it keeps an obtuse angle to the scales.
How to clean a pike?
How easy is it to clean fish from scales? For quick and high-quality cleaning of pikes, you need to prepare a lot of space. The cutting knife should have a wide, well-sharpened blade. Before cleaning, the fins are cut with kitchen scissors. Then the pike is laid to itself by the head and with one hand grabs the tail.
The scales are hooked at the tail, and the knife is led towards the head of the fish. If the blade goes with difficulty, then its frequency of reference increases. But at the same time, the areas of scraping of the scales are reduced. To the knife collected the scales completely, he leans at an angle of 100 degrees from the carcass.
Crucian
Crucian carp is brushed on a wide cutting board. The fish scales are large, so a special device for cleaning fish is not required . You can use it simply with your hands or with an ordinary knife. One hand grabs the tail. The scales are cleaned towards the head with the nails of the thumbs. When approaching the head, you can clean the fish with a knife. Also - on the abdomen and near the tail.
How is the fish cleaned so that the scales do not fly to the sides?
How to quickly clean fish from scales so that it does not fly apart? It has a fine structure. And sometimes hundreds of scales are removed from the fish. You can put the fish in a plastic bag and clean it. The movements should be neat and not sharp.
Fish is well cleaned with an ordinary teaspoon, on one side having a thinner edge. Since it is not sharp, they don’t tear it off, but scrape off the scales. It is separated from the carcass at a lower speed and therefore does not fly apart.