How to Fillet a Surf Perch

Here is a short video about how to fillet a surf perch. I'm not expert in preparing these fish and I don't claim to be the best at filleting these guys, but this is just my method. Having a sharp fillet knife helps a lot, and be careful not to rush it. Also, it's best to bleed out your fish so it'll taste better and stays fresh.

[@BigJohn651]

I've been filleting fish for many, many years, and I always "struggled" doing the second side. Leaving the filet on when you flip the fish is so brilliantly obvious that I flushed with embarrassment when I saw you do it. It proves you CAN teach an old dog new tricks! Thanks!

[@davidoberlin4186]

Those flushing with embarrassment moments are truly bittersweet.

[@PabloGonzalez-oq8xf]

the only guy ive seen do that....it is pretty epic

[@Bo_in_Seattle]

Right? I did the same thing. Total AHA! moment

[@JR-bw3tr]

Thank you for this quick tutorial I am a surf angler here in Monterey California predominantly hunt for striped bass and surf perch this is great I know I have a lot of angers here and the Bay Area in Monterey area in California who do tutorials but this was quick easy to understand thank you so much appreciate it support and respect from Monterey California🌊🤙

[@alexlopez2995]

Finally someone who shows how to cut out the pin bones. I've never filleted a fish and seen a ton of videos on how to do so I feel confident I can fillet a fish now but nobody shows where to cut the pin bones out. Thank you!

[@randysmith8604]

Its easier than you think. I filet all my fish even trout. Just make sure the knife is super sharp. Also it is a lot I mean a lot easier if you do not gut them.

[@jerrymather4218]

A trick my grandfather taught me also was to leave the cut attached to the end of the tail as a spot to hold when cutting the skin off.

[@dave9351]

Remove the sharp fins with a pair of side-cutters... I do that with all my rock fish prior to scaling or cleaning ! Side-cutters easily snips off those nasty sharp fins that occasionally have some mild poisons that will cause your hand to hurt like hades (and swell-up) face-fuchsia-tongue-out "Side-cutters" a very inexpensive tool that often can be found in thrift stores even cheaper. Great video ! Liked

[@MarvUSA]

Thanks for the video. Your the first I've seen that actually explained how to get around the bones. I hope you have a great time at the tournament.

[@Wasamatau]

Good vid. I'm going to try leaving one cut side intact while I flip it and do the other side. Makes sense and it's the 2nd time I've seen it in the last two days. Unfortunately, I've cleaned a few thousand bluegills in my lifetime without flipping them intact! When you're doing 50 - 80 at a time I think it might slow you down, though. I'd only add one thing. If you keep the fillet connected and not cut through the skin at the end of the tail it is easier to detach the skin from the meat and you won't lose that nice little bite of tail meat that you have to bypass with the knife in order to get a grip on the end of the tail with your finger tip.

[@oregonlife]

Cool, thanks for the tip.

[@razor_clem]

Another excellent and very informative video PK. Thanks very much.

[@wilsonflanders878]

best video I've seen on filleting perch.Thank you PK

[@THEWILDLIFEOV]

Thanks, PK, for all of your awesome surf perch videos! I have been watching them all week because I am heading over to the coast to do some surf fishing for the first time in nearly twenty years! I have fished the coast from Rialto Beach to Brookings over the years but it's been a long, long time. And my, how some things have changed! But I've got my new braided line loaded onto my surf reel and a couple of bags of GULP in my tackle box and I am stoked! Thanks again, I will let you know if I caught anything!

[@oregonlife]

Nice, good luck & be safe!

[@THEWILDLIFEOV]

Oh, yeah, I will definitely be wearing my Mustang float vest. Learned about those sneaker waves a long time ago!

[@markreynolds3850]

Nice job filleting the fish, thanks for sharing this video.

[@csufjeff]

Never thought of this fillet method...Thank you....Cheers Jeff

[@richignacio81]

I always sucked at filleting fish, would make a mushy mess and leave meat on the carcass. This time they came out nice, not perfect but good enough for fish tacos! Still need more practice! Thank you for sharing!

[@jjson775]

Beautiful job! I always wear a kevlar glove when I fillet fish.

[@trippingonfaith7094]

Great job love the paper bag idea!

[@robbysmusic8507]

Great teaching video. Thank you.

[@wiscgaloot]

So pretty much how I filet a bluegill, except for the pin bones. An extra trick--leave it attached to the tail, flip it down, and fillet it back from that flap attached to the tail---it keeps the skin in place so you don't have to try to hold it down with a finger.

[@joaquinlopez997]

Those are some big ol perch

[@barry1903]

Thank you for sharing, you made it look easy!

[@hansemcito]

wow those little babies look like they would make great bait!

[@TheLarsonator]

Nice tutorial. Thanks!

[@lalorge]

The best I've seen Thanx so much. Question: Whats the best way to bleed the perch?

[@oregonlife]

Cut their gills.

[@lalorge]

thanx again

[@beckydavis2232]

Newbie question after having caught my second surf perch and the first one I kept..... cut the gills before or after bonking them on the head?

[@aliciabrillante]

This is very clear and easy to follow. Great job!

[@AndresGutierrez74]

Great video. Thanks PK

[@guywhosleepallday8194]

enjoy watching your videos. keep them coming pkyi

[@computer25100]

Wow!Thanks for sharing.

[@vincentferguson7483]

Hey PK, love your videos! I have used your techniques to catch some very nice red tails on the north coast. Question though, is there an easy way to tell males from females so I can avoid killing the spawners? Thanks!

[@oregonlife]

Yes, right here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pGGQZ32Ir7OcbsU

[@mufasagoesviraltv5266]

Thanks

[@ARCSTREAMS]

are these the same as "white sea perch" "black sea perch" or "barred sea perch"? the one you are doing looks like a barred perch but the dorsal fin is a bit different looking

[@kayakeros3470]

Really useful video

[@HuskyKMA]

After you catch and bleed your fish, do you have a cooler with ice up on the beach that you put each one in before continuing to fish?

[@oregonlife]

I just put them in a bucket, no ice.

[@limirl]

Will those pin bones come out easy using a tweezers instead of cutting away that meat?

[@oregonlife]

After you cook it, it would be pretty easy because the tissue is no longer connected to the bone. Raw, it's a little harder.

[@2wind2000]

Great video! Why do you not just pluck the pin bones out with needle nose pliers? I do that with Salmon!

[@mace438]

Where do you get those heavy duty scissors that you use to cut off the fins? Great videos BTW , very informative.

[@giantsrules25]

hey pk serious question haha.. do you gut the fish before filleting it???? great vids btw!

[@oregonlife]

For this method, I don't.

[@georgezgreek]

Pk ! They do sell pin bone tweezers, you can buy them at any culinary equipment store, save you from wasting that meat ur slicing off.

[@bigolizzy]

Hey PK that is a nice fillet job. Who makes that knife & what model is it ? Thanks

[@oregonlife]

That's a Wusthof Classic fillet/boning knife. Got it off cutleryandmore.com.

[@19Photographer76]

We haven't had surf perch but why not cook with the skin and then remove afterward?

[@Lumpy007]

Some people don't like to scale the fish and a lot of people around here have a thing about skin. Remember when people threw out salmon skin? Insane! :-)

[@19Photographer76]

I think on the east coast (USA) many still do that. Of course, those aren't real salmon...thanks for the reply.

[@randysmith8604]

A lot of people dont eating the skin . I dont eat it. Yes I have tried it. Im not afraid of trying new thing. Just don't like the texture. You dont loose hardly any meat this way if your good at it.

[@ShanePingStyle]

Is Redtail surfperch fishing still easy to you recently? Subbed +1!

[@jerrymather4218]

And a good sharp knife is important. Nothing more frustrating than using a dull knife.

[@fishbustin7926]

What blade length would you recommend for surf perch?

[@pitdawg6418]

Seems like such a giod sized fish to end up with such tiny skiny strip of meat

[@procaliadventures]

One of the worst eating fillets in my experience, whole and on the disc in hot pig lard, whole different ball game.

[@patrickbaca6719]

great information. thank you. how do you bleed them? lol. I'm from AZ.

[@oregonlife]

Patrick Baca cut their gills

[@boosted2jz217]

Do you filet the fish before smoking or just gut it?

[@budrollin7557]

Bong hits the whole time for me!

[@nomrename8544]

@@budrollin7557 lmao

[@joshjameskiwibushman]

bang on PK

[@jerrymather4218]

No better way than the gutless method. This is how I do my cat fish also.

[@frankiefernandez5252]

Thanks. I like to eat the fish skin and would leave it on.

[@mtimber1]

I like that knife. What brand/model is it?

[@oregonlife]

It's a Wusthof Hollow Edge boning knife.

[@devonwright1088]

Can you make another trout fishing video

[@oregonlife]

I will see what I can do. It's a little warm for trout around here, but maybe one of these times, I'll hit the rivers up in the mountains.

[@alexalex9147]

Hey Pk, first of all great video! I was wondering what kind of knife is that, and where did you buy it?

[@alexalex9147]

Sorry, never-mind. I scrolled down and found the answer. Did you pay like $100 for the knife?

[@oregonlife]

I got it for $75

[@damageincorporatedmetal43v73]

Everybody talk's about Filleting Fish, but know-body ever talks about a stock pot... 🤔

[@kevinwest4488]

does the skins taste ok when panfried?

[@oregonlife]

Yes, it's very good.

[@ericcruzstealth]

I just fry it whole after removing guts, gills, scales and sharp fins. You get way more meat

[@Wasamatau]

... and bones. You can't make fish tacos with bones!

[@ericcruzstealth]

IOK Wasamatau well if you want to just eat fish you pick the meat off the bone. If you want fish tacos i wouldn’t recommend something this small

[@whateman12408]

what knife are you using? looks like a boning knife

[@andrewbastien5763]

How do you bleed these perch?

[@oregonlife]

Cut their gills.

[@clarrus12]

did you scale it?

[@oregonlife]

I don't scale it when I fillet it.

[@jaredl2315]

Hate to be the bad guy here , but folks this is not the easiest or most efficient way to clean surf perch by any means. Everything about this is wrong or the hard way. Good luck and watch other videos for better ways. And use a RITE knife while filleting not butcher/ kitchen knife.

[@defmud80]

Bleed it, gut it, head it, and fin it. Cook it whole and pull the bones

[@Wasamatau]

Pull the bones????

[@nutsack-1904]

5:46 did you cook the babies too?

[@Popcornbeetle]

NutSack-1 this pregnant female should have been let go.

[@mikedehoog6603]

I know this is an old video but I'm guessing that the fish and game laws must be different in Oregon !!! In California if you keep a pregnant fish, every baby is counted towards your days limit.. Looks like you just filleted TWO pregnant Females. Did you count the number of babies you killed along with the two you filleted ? How many were you over the limit ???

[@smoketears6874]

That 2nd was nice size perch have some fireeeeee ass meat

[@petarjelinic123]

Good process however, you wasted half the fish.

[@PabloGonzalez-oq8xf]

I agree, should peel meat off with spoon and make into little fish balls with breading etc

[@dwaynelowery5808]

you lose much meat u r used 2 many or large fish not like so cal

[@Wasamatau]

You only lose the meat between the bones and the rib cage, which is next to nothing. Plus, when done right, you get zero bones.