Walleye - Our most popular fish!
 

Walleyes are one of the most popular fish in our lake.

The common name, "walleye," comes from the fact that their eyes, like those of cats, reflect light. This eyeshine is the result of a light-gathering layer in the eyes called the tapetum lucidum which allows the fish to see well in low-light conditions. In fact, many anglers look for walleyes at night since this is when most major feeding patterns occur. Their eyes also allow them to see well in turbid waters (stained or rough, breaking waters) which gives them an advantage over their prey. Walleye anglers will commonly look for days and locations where there is a good "walleye chop" (i.e., rough water).

Steps to Fillet a Walleye

  • Put your knife behind the fish's fin with your knife blade pointing down.
  • Cut straight down to the backbone without cutting through the backbone, and then turn your knife sideways to point the blade towards the tail.
  • Cut straight down the backbone to the tail.
  • Now you have the fillet sliced off the fish. The next step is to take out the rib cage.
  • Put your blade at the edge of the rib cage and slice along the rib cage about 1 inch in. Keep the edge of the knife close to the rib cage so you don't cut into the meat.
  • On a Walleye, the rib cage is about an inch wide and 5 inches long. Point the blade down on the other side of the rib cage and slice down about 1/8th of an inch the whole length of the rib cage.
  • Now grab the rib cage and tear it out.
  • Hold the thin end of the fillet (the tail) with your fingernail and cut down to the skin and then cut straight along the skin while keeping the knife close to the skin so it is basically scrapping it. Go all the way down to the end and remove the skin.
  • Now you have a fillet but there is still a tiny row of bones to cut out. You can feel the bones with your fingers. They go about half way down the fillet. Cut through the fillet on either site of the ridge of bones and take them out.
  • Now wash the fillets in clean water and they are ready to cook.

See a video of it done here!