How to skin a fish fillet

Anyone who's ever bought fish at their local grocery store knows that skinning a fish is a talent and not a skill everyone has mastered. Some grocery store seafood counter workers can skin a fish with the best of them, while others may mangle the fillet or leave much of the skin on. Shoppers who want to skin their own fillets can follow this advice, courtesy of cookbook author Andrew Schloss.

To remove the skin from a fish fillet, place the fillet skin-side down on a cutting board, long side facing you. Have the tail end closest to your knife-holding hand. Slip a thin-bladed boning knife between the skin of the flesh and the tail end of the fillet. Holding your knife blade parallel to the board and angled slightly toward the skin, run the blade between skin and the fish flesh, sawing gently to strip the skin from the flesh. Try to leave as little flesh on the skin as possible.