Most of us experienced the awful feeling of a fishbone getting stuck on our throat. It is painful, uncomfortable and extremely frustrating to get the bone out once it gets stuck. We always have some bananas on hand whenever we eat fish because it’s the only way we know how to get the fishbone out of our throats. Nevertheless, we never got tired of eating fish even with the risk of getting a fishbone caught in our throats. These risks can be managed with the use of deboning techniques that will get rid of these pesky eating inconveniences even before the fish is cooked.
All you need is a chopping board, a sharp knife, (preferably the deboning kind) and medical forceps. Once you have your gear in place, then its time to start picking on your fish. Here are the steps involved in deboning a milkfish:
1. Position the knife flat on the dorsal side of the fish.
2. Gently insert the tip of the knife in the area just above the fishtail and run the edge of the knife along the backbone. Do your cutting from the tail to the head.
3. Once the fish is open, remove the gills and the viscera, in other words take out everything that is bloody red inside the fish! But don’t be averted by the bright red blood, it is actually an indication that the fish is fresh.
4. Clean the fish with the use of running water after it has been gutted.
5. Place the fish back in the chopping board with the open side up.
6. Put the knife in a flat position with the tip aimed at the top end of the backbone.
7. Run the knife’s edge through the backbone and start removing it from head to tail.
8. Make a shallow cut along the dorsal muscles on both sides of the fish. With the use of the forceps, pull out intermuscular spines or smaller and finer fish bones that are implanted in the flesh.
9. Wash the fish and drain.
10. The fish may simply be seasoned with salt and pepper and have ready for cooking. You may also marinate it in garlic and vinegar or simply store it in the freezer.
Deboning the fish may be tedious, but when you have toddlers to feed, it is better to get it over and done with during the preparation process. It’s a bit hard to pick the bones from the fish when the kids are good and ready to eat. Now if you don’t have the patience to debone, then simply go for the deboned version in the grocery or stick with the fillet cuts.
