Fish scaler?

[dwest]

Looking for fish scaling ideas, because after a decade or two of catch and release fishing I just started keeping fish for the table. Best candidates so far (other than getting someone else to do it):

Ring curry:

http://www.statelinetack.com/global/sea ... &Ne=156695

Japanese Urokotori.

http://www.japanese-knife.com/Merchant2 ... gory_Code=

Cabela’s scaler:

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templ ... &noImage=0

Thoughts?

[HiTechKoke]

My reco would be to skip the scaler and learn to fillet them and simply fillet off the skin. Once you get a technique down it's really easy to do with a good fillet knife and board to hold the head. The fillets work very well for the frying pan and for better smoking. The only Kokes I could not fillet were the minnows from Pardee.

[dwest]

Would love to fillet and remove skin, but my practice [with other fish in the past and for kokanee for the first time in 2007] is to bleed and fillet on the water.

The challenge is that DFG regs require they be able to identify species - that means leaving at least some skin on. See:

http://www.kokaneepower.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=487

So, I'd like to eliminate scales from my skin-on fillets in the cooler.

[D Brown]

Don
One of the best ways to de scale a kokanee,is to get yourself some of the plastic scrubbers you use in the kitchen.The one to clean dishes with.
Phil Johnson showed this method to me many years ago.It is simple and quick,when done, you can either throw the scrubbers in the dishwasher or throw them away.
I buy mine at Trader Joe's.
Don

[HiTechKoke]

Definitely getting them on ice fast makes a big difference in meat quality as most realize. You'll know if you have kept them cold if the ribs are still tight to the meat. I bleed them first, then gut them and get them on ice within 15 minutes whenever possible. Then at home I do the quick fillet work or at the fish station if camping.

[gaabio]

Hi,

The best tool I've ever used to removes the scales from the fish body is
KAAG Professional Fish Scaler. This new product hand-held fish scaler intended for professionals in the food service industry is now used by most seafood professionals in Canada and will probably be in the States very soon.

It helps removes scales very quickly with ease, without damaging the fish skin and prevents scales from flying off the walls and dirty the cleaning area.
It is very durable and made from food approved materials. You can bring it very where you like...it's non electric. Also, it is very easy to clean with just water and mild soap.

This product is now available on Ebay or you purchase it directly on the

company web site at : http://www.kaagfishing.com

Watch this awesome video on Youtube showing this scaler in action at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jzpvEgHIWQ

I've used those you mentioned in the past...they are just not comparable to this one...very ergonomic and more, very appealing.

I hope this helps.

Gaabio.

[LBlum]

You can skin the fish. I personally don't have a problem with the scales on the fish unless I'm smoking or canning them, then I skin them. My wife usually eats the skin, scales and all.
In Oregon you can't clean fish in the lakes or streams so the best you can do is bleed them and put them on ice until you are back in camp or home.
To skin them start with a whole fish, slice open the belly, remove intestines if you didn't already do so. Make a shallow cut through the skin along the back, from the rear to the tail, and just behind the gill plate. With a pair of pliers grab the skin at the junction of the back cut and the gull cut hold the head and pull the skin towards the tail. Do the same to the opposite side then cut off the tail with both sides of the skin attached and remove the head. This works well for smoking and canning of Kokanee. You do lose some belly meat with the skin but that is not much.
For those who don't already know. Canning (pressure cooking in jars) softens the bones and makes them edible so you don't have to remove them. Adds more calcium to your diet. I understand that it does not work with Steelhead trout however.

[LBlum]

It appears someone has figured out how to hack into the messages here. In my description of how to skin a fish someone entered SPAM SITE - WHAT A WASTE TIME- DON'T BOTHER LOOKING AT IT!!

Has this happened before?

[HiTechKoke]

Hey LBlum - This was actually a mechanism in the Forum to convert certain words to pre-programmed alternatives. So in your post it had the word a n a l which the software thought be p o r n related so it changed it. Obviously it was not and a legitimate usage that happens to correspond with your fish post. So mystery solved. No hacking involved in this case.