Fillet

A fillet is a boneless piece of fish or meat. To fillet means to cut that piece away from the skeleton. The word is used most for fish, but recipes also use it for the beef tenderloin (often called beef fillet in the UK) and for boneless chicken breast.

How to do it

For a round fish such as trout, mackerel or sea bass:

1. Scale and gut the fish, then rinse and dry it.
2. Lay it on its side with the back toward you.
3. Cut behind the gill and the side fin down to the backbone. Do not cut through the bone.
4. Turn the knife flat and run it from head to tail along the top of the backbone, keeping the blade pressed lightly against the bones.
5. Lift the flesh as you go and cut over the rib cage until the fillet comes free.
6. Turn the fish over and repeat on the other side.
7. Trim off the belly edge and pull out the pin bones with tweezers.
8. If you want, skin the fillet.

Why it works

A thin, flexible knife bends along the bones, so it follows the skeleton instead of cutting into it. Keeping the blade against the bones leaves almost no flesh behind. Long, smooth strokes give a clean surface that cooks evenly.

Common mistakes

• Using a thick, stiff knife. It tears the flesh and leaves meat on the bone.
• Sawing back and forth in short strokes, which leaves a ragged fillet.
• Forgetting the pin bones. Run your fingertips along the center of the fillet to find them, and debone it fully.
• Turning the fillet with a fork in the pan. Use a thin fish spatula so it does not break.

In recipes

"Filleted" fish has been cut off the bone. "Fish fillets, skin on" still have their skin, which crisps well in a pan. "Filet" is the French spelling, and in American English it often means a beef tenderloin steak, as in "filet mignon". To cut citrus segments free of their skin is called supreming, not filleting, though some recipes use both words.