Cleaning Perch with an Electric Knife – Fast and Easy

Title: Mastering the Art of Cleaning Yellow Perch with an Electric Fillet Knife

Yellow perch are one of the most beloved freshwater fish in North America. Whether you’re out on the ice or trolling the shallows in spring, perch are fun to catch, easy to locate in schools, and most importantly, absolutely delicious. But any seasoned angler knows that catching a pile of perch is only half the work—the real labor begins at the cleaning table. In this post, we’ll walk you through an efficient, professional method to clean yellow perch using an electric fillet knife, ensuring boneless fillets perfect for the ultimate fish fry.

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Why Yellow Perch Deserve Special Attention

Over the years, I’ve eaten a wide variety of fish from both freshwater and saltwater, and yellow perch remain at the top of my list for flavor. Their flaky, mild-tasting flesh is hard to beat. But when you get into a big school and end up with dozens of fish, you’ll need a system to clean them quickly and cleanly.

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Tools of the Trade

For this demonstration, I’m using a Bubba Blade electric fillet knife, a popular choice among anglers. It comes with four interchangeable blades, and I’m starting with the smallest and most flexible—perfect for smaller species like perch and other panfish. In addition, I use a straight-edge fillet knife for the detail work, like removing pin bones.

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Step-by-Step Perch Filleting

1. Preparing the Fish

Start with a beautiful yellow perch laid out on a cutting board. Be sure the safety is off on your electric knife and that it’s powered up and ready to go.

2. Making the Initial Cuts

• Place the knife just behind the gill plate and in front of the pectoral fin.
• Make a downward incision until you hit the spine.
• Turn the blade 90 degrees and follow the spine all the way down to the tail.
• Be careful not to cut through the backbone to avoid damaging the fillet on the opposite side.
• Flip the fish over and repeat on the other side.

3. Removing the Fillets

Once you’ve cut both fillets off the fish:

• Set them aside in a clean pile.
• Continue processing the rest of your perch before coming back to clean the fillets further. This assembly-line style approach saves time when you’re dealing with high numbers.

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Cleaning the Fillets: Ribs, Pin Bones, and Skin

4. Removing the Rib Cage

• Use your electric knife to scoop out the rib cage.
• Position the blade at the top of the rib cage and make a controlled, scooping motion to follow the shape of the bones.
• The ribs tend to curve out from the fish and down into the fillet, so a gentle, upward turn of the blade helps preserve more meat.

5. Taking Off the Skin

• Anchor the fillet by placing your index finger on the tail end.
• Run the electric knife perpendicular to the table surface along the hide.
• Avoid flexing the knife to ensure you remove the skin cleanly and maximize meat retention.
• Stay close to the edge of the table for optimal control.

6. Eliminating the Pin Bones

• Locate the pin bones, which run along the lateral line of the fillet.
• Use your straight-edge knife to carefully slice along the line, effectively “zippering” the fillet into two boneless pieces.
• This step is optional for some, but for hosting guests—especially those less familiar with eating fish—it ensures a bone-free experience.

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Ready for the Fryer

After this process, you’ll be left with clean, boneless yellow perch fillets—perfect for the skillet or deep fryer. Whether you keep the fillets whole or cut them into smaller pieces, they’re ready for your favorite recipe.

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Final Thoughts: Efficiency and Quality

While a traditional fillet knife is a necessary tool for any angler, when it comes to processing a large number of fish like perch, an electric fillet knife is a game changer. It not only saves time but also helps you preserve more meat and produce cleaner, more uniform fillets.

If you’re serious about your fish fries and want to make sure every bite is free of bones and full of flavor, adding an electric fillet knife to your fishing gear is well worth it.

So the next time you get into a school of perch, you’ll be ready—not just to catch them, but to clean them with skill and speed.

Cleaning Perch with an Electric Knife is the way to go. Over the years, I’ve eaten lots and lots of perch! And for a good reason. Yellow perch are one of the best-tasting fish on earth. Seriously. I’m into eating fish, and I’ve eaten a lot of both freshwater and saltwater fish.

Perch are the deal, hands down. If I had to choose, it would be the only fish I  would ever eat!

And when you get over a school of perch, that can mean a big pile of work to do at the end of the day on the back end of fishing, having fun, and harvesting perch.

I’m going to show you (watch the above video!) how we process through a massive pile of perch using an electric fillet knife to get delicious fillets off the fish. We will get the rib cage out and then using a smaller knife from Bubba Blades to get every bone for a tasty fillet.

I started with an incision right behind the gill plate, turn the blade, and go all the way down until I hit the spine with the teeth of the knife.

Next, turn the blade and follow along the top of the backbone until you reach the tail of the fish. Try not to cut through the backbone. (Meaning: after you turn the blade, try to glide it right alongside the spine, keep your blade level along the back. It will take some practice, and if you cut through the backbone—don’t worry! It happens to even the most experienced fillet master!)

Next, flip the fish over and repeat the same process on the other side of the perch.

Next is rib removal. So with the rib cage, start at the top, closes to where the head would have been. Follow right along the top of it, and you can see that the ribs come out on the fish, but they swoop into the fillet. You want to have a sweep and scooping action with the knife. (You’ll catch on! watch the video above.) Do it slow and follow the rib cage to prevent wasting much meat.

Lastly, you are ready to remove the skin. Just put index finger down on the tail and start the knife just under the fillet between the meat and the skin. Now sweep forward until the fillet is free from the skin.

Pin bones: Run the knife perpendicular to the cutting knife right near the lateral line. You can feel them every time with the tips of your fingers before you cut.

*Noteworthy is the fact that with smaller fish, and for people who fry their fish, leave out this step. But I like to remove them. Why? You are not wasting hardly any meat, and, when I have people over for a big perch fry, I don’t want to be worrying about a guest worrying about bones in their food.

Bubba Fillet Knife 8″ Ultra Flex
Bubba Lithium Ion Cordless Fillet Knife

How do individuals maintain and sharpen their knives for filleting fish?
Individuals keep their knives sharp for filleting fish, with some opting for a selection of regular old knives that are kept really sharp. This ensures that the knives are efficient and effective for filleting fish throughout the year.

How do individuals approach filleting fish for different purposes, such as eating fresh fish or catch and release?
Some individuals fillet fish for consumption, using standard fillet knives for all species. Others practice catch and release, filleting only a few meals of fresh fish per year.

Do individuals use electric knives or regular knives for filleting, and for which types of fish?
Individuals use both electric and regular knives for filleting fish. Some use electric knives for small panfish, while others use regular knives for species like walleyes, northern, and lake trout/salmon.

How do individuals adapt their techniques for filleting specific fish, such as walleyes, panfish, pike, lake trout, and salmon?
Individuals adapt their techniques by using electric knives for filleting walleyes, panfish, and pike, while using regular knives for species like walleyes and northern. They also adjust their techniques based on the size and type of fish being filleted.

What types of knives do individuals use for filleting different fish species?
Individuals use a variety of knives for filleting different fish species, including electric knives, standard fillet knives, longer and sturdier knives for lake trout/salmon, and regular old knives that are kept sharp.