With electric knife I fillet, then skin each fillet and cut off rib cage! 18" or so up I keep backbones....easiest way to remove bloodline is with jet tip on hose.
I give away lots of whole and sectioned fillets but never backbones!
My technique is a little different from the traditional filleting process common with thicker skinned fish as reds or largemouths.....I begin by making a belly cut from
anus to throat and then on each side from top head diagonal to intersect the first cut...before removing the head and belly section created I cut from tail forward
on each side along the backbone and remove fillets which I place skin side down on a flat cutting board and with the tip of knife held at the end of tail section I then take
electric knife and begin separating skin by working cutting surface toward the larger front section. On most fillets as soon as I separate a couple inches of skin
I grab it with a gloved hand and pull the fillet against the knife. The last thing I do is remove ribcage which is much easier with skin already separated.
If I'm saving the backbone I then cut through the thicker section behind the head and remove the tail and grab hose and remove bloodline. What's discarded is
head and belly strip with guts attached.
I've had people watch me and question my technique but it works great for me! I'll compare the end result with anyone's. The reason I devised this technique
is the problem with trout's thin skin and easier skin removal with the fillet laying flat. The same technique can be used with a GOOD fillet knife but I find the electric easier and faster. Also, the colder and stiffer the fish are the easier they are to clean!
