How To Butcher A Whole Salmon | Video
This video will teach you one of many techniques for butchering a whole salmon, or any "symmetrical fish," as opposed to a flat fish like halibut or sole.
In this video I state that I like to brine the fish briefly in a "5% brine." The brining process will keep the salmon moist during cooking. To calculate a 5% brine, weigh out enough filtered water to cover the finished salmon fillets. Multiply the weight of the water by .05 which will give you the amount of salt needed to achieve a 5% brine. For example, if you need 1,000g of water to cover your salmon fillets, simply multiply 1,000g X .05 = 50g of salt. Disperse 50g of salt into your water, which will result in a 5% brine.
Brine salmon for 20-60 minutes, rinse under a gentle stream of cold, running water and allow to drain.
Further Information:
- Smoked Salmon Pate (Recipe)
- How To Pan Roast Fish (Video)
- SCS 6| Sauteing, Searing and Pan Roasting (Audio Lecture)
- How To Break Down an Ahi Loin (Video)
- How To Portion a Side of Halibut (Video)
- Basic Beurre Blanc (Video): A great sauce to serve with any piece of fish.
- How To Make A Stabilized Beurre Blanc (Video): Great for professional chefs and cooks who want to make a stabilized beurre blanc to serve with their fish that won't "break" during dinner service.
- Ponzu Sauce (Recipe): This is the sauce that will currently serve our salmon with. Great "all purpose" teriyaki" sauce.
| This post is part of our ongoing Culinary Knife Skills Video Series, which teaches you a wide array of knife skills used in professional kitchens. For more information, you can also view our How To Cook Video Index. |
I really like they way you have the web pages layed out with all the show notes, adjustable recipes, etc. Had you not been a Chef, you probably would have had another successful career in IT. ;-)
I know everyone has their own style, but I find leaving the head on a very convenient 'handle' for holding the fish while running the knife along the rib cage. You can also not cut out at the tail but flip the fish around and use the tail as another 'handle' for taking off the skin.
Usually I am cleaning anywhere from 5 to 20 salmonoids in a sitting and any time saving techniques I can use, I will.
My style has changed too and I am not too concerned about getting all the meat that is next to the skin. That dark area is called the lateral line and is actually a sensory organ and is used by fish to sense another fish along side them. I find the lateral line's flavor to be off putting.
Great feed back. I've seen people use the tail as a handle as well as the head. One of the hardest things about shooting instructional videos is finding the technique that will be a good starting point for someone who's never done it before but also yield something that would be acceptable in a professional kitchen. I would love to eventually be able to travel around and shoot other chef's versions of the techniques taught on this site. The more techniques you have to choose from, the better in my opinion.
I'm with you on the lateral line. It seems like a lot of non-professionals have a huge aversion to even an ounce of waste, but in a restaurant you just calculate your yield cost and charge accordingly. If I'm paying $30+ for a salmon entree I want the fillet to be trimmed properly.
maybe you do, but not as much???