Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Well, its time to do an intentional kill of some fish and have my first AP dinner..


I have not eaten fresh fish since my granddad took me fishing when I was 12.
The question I have is why do you guys pan fry or grill the entire fish? I as going to just fillet the fish. Do you really get much more meat? What about bones? I dont want my little ones who have never eaten fish to get a bone..

Kids will generally prefer their fish filleted and crumbed or something like that. I figure that I may as well give them what they want.

Different fish suit different preparation as well. I found that the Jade Perch - for instance - are much better if filleted, skinned and cooked like that (with or without crumbing). This allows the excess fat to melt off.

For adults, a whole fish is often a good choice as we find it easy to peel the flesh off, and you do maximise recovery rate. On the other hand, where the fish has too much flesh for 1 person, it becomes a bit awkward to share

Mmm... fair call.
prolly do the fillet thing and with a pair of tweezers
to pull out the pin bones.
Best to keep all happy...
then you can bake whole and see how easily the flesh comes of the bone

+1 for VBs comments

Cool, thanks.

Fillet - I hate picking the flesh off the bones

No time for that crap

If they're big enough filleting shouldn't be too hard and you shouldn't miss out on much of the meat. If they are small maybe think about cooking whole instead. I waited until they are large enough to fillet without too much loss.

I have not weighed them in a month or two, but they were at about 400 grams last check.

Definitely fillet, but save the caucuses and cut the heads and gut. Simmer them for a couple hours on low heat and strain the broth. Freeze in ice trays and keep in Ziploc bags. Its great broth to add to coubillions, gumbo’s and even chowders. I do the same with my shrimp peelings.

Fish broth! Hmmm

Last time I cooked golden perch I just ran the knife along the top and bottom and used pliers to pull the skin and scales off. Then cut the fillets, seasoned and steamed.

Fillet or Whole, is a personal choice.

Filleting means you do the work before cooking.
Whole means you do the work after cooking.

I am not a big lover of Fresh fish, I much prefer fish from the ocean, I only mention this as the kids not having ate fish before may not like the taste or texture.

I would be inclined to make fish cakes, This is a good option if you find you have trouble filleting fish and the fillets do not look very appetizing.

Mush the defigured fillet ( good way to remove small bones ) and add with mash potatoes and a few vegies and shape into patties, A very light coating of flour and fry/grill (like hamburgers).

regards
Ron

That too Ron!

My first ever freshwater fish was probably one I grew myself, having grown up catching bream, flathead, whiting etc. I must say that I didn't notice any issues with flesh texture, or taste for that matter. Even saltwater fish vary significantly by type in terms of texture. With my perch, I found them to be quite firm/meaty in texture (maybe no the best description), which suits me fine. My boy did however comment once that he thought the fish was tough - god knows how

To fillet or leave a fish whole ??

A fillet should be done in three cuts, anymore and you probably start leaving good meat on the bone. To cook it whole with guts and gills removed, no part of the fish will be wasted..

depends what your intending on making.

Filleting takes practice too. The cook seems to prefer cooking whole after scaling and removing the guts and heads. I would tend a bit to the fillet since I don't much like picking through my food for bones. A word of caution, those new to filleting my wind up with bones in the fillet so caution must still be used while eating.

If the fish are really big, filleting is easier but it can still be done on small fish depending on size.

Good luck deciding.