Skinning and Fileting a Catfish

[bigcody83]

Great video

[MrJackiewilliams]

As the old saying goes, "there's more than one way to skin a cat(fish)."

[WestCoastBass]

Great video. I will put it to use tomorrow

[thehim34]

i like how you cut it on the top bye the dorcill fin usally pepole dont do that but i learned it helps with pulling the skinn off

[darrkitx11]

where do u get the catfish pliers? i want one tell me plaese

[gumbojoe59]

@darrkitx11 You can buy these pliers at Wal-Mart, Academy and Gander Mountain...(just to name a few).

[darrkitx11]

where do u get the catfish plyires :)

[gumbojoe59]

Did you hone those skills from being a surgeon? (I see a Dr. in front of your name?)

[drdave4545]

i nail a 16 penny nail in the tree and hang them on it by piercing the skin of the bottom jaw. then i use my knife and cut the skin all the way around behind the head being carefull not to cut the stomach meat open. After a few quick jerks with the skinners the skinning is complete. then i fillet them with the head and guts remaining on the fish. about a 3 to 5 min process if done correctly.

[fingerfeller]

nice clip, thanks, very instructive

[JBLAKIE1]

he had me at blood and guts

[comptonphil2008]

Thanks Gumbo Joe! It worked out great!!!!!!

[gumbojoe59]

@comptonphil2008 Glad it worked out for you.

[scopulus93]

Great vid.Quick and easy. love it.

[deerslayer586]

i filet them out with the head on and the guts in we just kill them first then use a boxknife down the side so we can grab the skin and pull it off then we throw the fish in our live traps to catch coons

[gumbojoe59]

@deerslayer586 I presume you mean that you toss the refuse (left over fish after filleting) into the coon trap, right?

[PamelaJansen100]

I hope for you it's dead.

[xXxWiNdOwLiCkR]

where do you get that tool

[gumbojoe59]

@xXxWiNdOwLiCkR You can get catfish skinners at your local bait and tackle shop. Wal-Mart carries them, too. Go to the sports section. It should be there.

[barragantony0]

hey my fellow american the names tony nice to meet u how can u cook and cut a cat fish just by using a knife and fire

[gumbojoe59]

@barragantony0 If you are in survival mode, you first gut the catfish (clean and wash it down well) . Next, skewer the fish with your knife by inserting it in through the mouth. Next, turn the fish slowly above the flame a couple inches away. The skin will begin to curl up. Remove as much of the skin that you can. Finally, you can finish cooking your fish, turning it every couple of minutes, until all the flesh is cooked. Note: Try to find some salt, if you can, to give it a little flavor :)

[amfrizzell]

I will tell you what. I am glad, glad GLAD i found your video. I don't have as big of catfish as this one but your technique gets two Thumbs Up from me. Thanks.

[gumbojoe59]

@amfrizzell Thanks for the review. Glad the video was helpful.

[darrylhaynes]

QUESTION...why are catfish so hard to skin????

[Dneal727]

This is how my daddy taught me when I was growing up. Thanks for the vids, love the Shrimp, italian sausage and mushroom jambalaya its now a family favorite.

[816hondarider]

Could you please make a video on the best way to cook a catfish i need a really good recipe

[MrLittlestephen]

Nice vid man

[gumbojoe59]

@MrLittlestephen thanks!

[ArduinoAlan]

do you bleed it alive or dead?

[gumbojoe59]

@ArduinoAlan either way. I've done them both ways. When you bleed them alive the beating heart hastens the process; when they are dead you must rely on gravity to help out.

[amotley129]

Im not sure why you didn't just Filet it first, then skin it. It is a lot faster for a cat that size. I usually only skin the smaller ones, then pull the fins off,

[gumbojoe59]

@amotley129 I am sure you've heard the old saying "there's more than one way to skin a cat", haven't you? Well, this is my way. Thanks for your input, tho.

[MJONES416901]

@gumbojoe59 welll said



[kophy2]

@gumbojoe59 was it alive?

[lgliggy]

"the bones of the fish will lead you to cutting it right"

sound like words of some Taekwondo master..lol. good vid

[joiebratz]

Anyone who can skin a living thing while it's still alive obviously hasn't evolved past the barbaric times of the caveman. I am absolutely disgusted and thoroughly disappointed in you as a human being.

[Mhorgrimify]

@joiebratz If you've actually ever seen a live catfish, they flip around when they are alive. (A defensive move to try and spur you) This fish is dead. Bread this sucker up and call it dinner. You can always go to long johns and eat some mystery fish instead :)

[TheDigihax]

@joiebratz what's the best way to kill them then ?...

[onesocalguy]

@joiebratz I assure you, what he did was far more humane than the way the meat in your local market is butchered. And as Mhorgrimify said, this fish is obviously dead... and he even mentioned that he "Bled it out" before he started

[smooretogo]

Wow...nice website....I cant find Catfish Courtbouillon tho

[gumbojoe59]

You can go to my website and plug in 'Courtbouillon' in the search. It will also come up as "fish stew". Thanks for the kind words.

[smooretogo]

@gumbojoe59 Oh yes, I found it. Looks good but I was hoping to find a way to use the rest of the meat after one of my messy fillet jobs. Any pointers? OH, I will for sure try your stuffed catfish. That sounds GREAT. Hope you dont mind if i spice it a little..lol

[SabrinaMarie741]

this helpd alot for our first time thank you

[weaponstroopusaf]

awesome thanks

[darknessevilmf]

It looks like you wasted a lot of meat filleting the catfish, I saw alot of meat left on the bones, and the belly meat is good meat too you just have to scrub the inside with a wire scrub brush. (just saying)

[gumbojoe59]

Thanks for your comment. I did NOT waste the meat. Instead I made some 'Catfish Courtbouillon'. It is a type of Cajun fish soup. If you visit my website you can find the recipe. It is called "Catfish Courtbouillon'. Again, thanks for posting your comment.

[MountainManWiggie]

I was always taught to nail their heads to a post before skinning. Its mostly a convienent thing for the skinning process, but im sure the nail puts them out quicker, and more humainly. nice vid. Im terrible at fileting, so thaks for the vid!!!

[gumbojoe59]

I understand your concern, but it was either a slow and agonizing death by freezing on a bed of ice or a quick job as you have seen me do here. By all means if you have a more quick and humane way of doing it please share.

[kikori126]

how come you didnt kill it first? It was still alive. You skinned it alive?

[MortenFS95]

does catfish taste like any othe kinds of fish? like trout/salmon or cod..

[gumbojoe59]

@MortenFS95 There are several species of catfish throughout the world. Here in the U.S. the most sought after for taste are called flat heads (some folks refer to them as opelousa). The meat is white and has a sweeter taste than some of the other varieties. I prefer the small channel catfish (12" - 16") as far as my personal taste is concerned. I used a prepared dough bait to catch mine (secret formula).

[micahmack24]

i caught some catfish but it had red dots they were 6 and 8 pounds each.

i heard that u get only 1/3 of the weight of the fish

[gumbojoe59]

@micahmack24 It's more like 1/2 to 2/3rds of the weight of the fish. The blue cats have bigger heads and therefore produce less flesh. They might fall into that category depending on the size of the fish.

[stealtru]

Awesome video, did you do one on how to steak a catfish to?

[gumbojoe59]

@stealtru No I haven't, but cutting them into steaks is easy if you use a larger serated knife. Just determine what size steaks you want and cut accordingly through the fish. I like to harvest the smaller channel catfish and I usually cut them into steaks small enough to fry in a medium to large size skillet.

[texaswildhunter]

Not new to skinning cats, but always looking for new ways. Think i just did nice vid.

[gumbojoe59]

@texaswildhunter Thanks! Glad I could help.

[hunterblake11able]

nice jobs me and my friend had 2 learn how 2 skin catfish so thanks

[gumbojoe59]

@hunterblake11able You are welcome.

[buttchug69er]

very nice can you do it to aussie catfish????

[gumbojoe59]

@buttchug69er I don't see why not. All catfish are basically the same but there are a few exceptions. The larger species are much harder to process than the smaller ones.

[buttchug69er]

@gumbojoe59 kk thanx buddy =]

[MrLuigi17]

You just saved me an hour of figureing out how to make a damn good meal

[gumbojoe59]

@MrLuigi17 Glad I could be of help.

[WickedNexus]

great stuff as a begginner catfish angler I needed a nice video to show how to properly fillet/clean a catfish.

[gumbojoe59]

@WickedNexus Glad to help. Pass it on to others if you like.

[007cn]

thank you for showing how to clean a catfish, great video.

[gumbojoe59]

@007cn Glad to help out.

[mlthomp1981]

You are very good at that! I always have trouble filleting them after they are cleaned. Well done sir!

[gumbojoe59]

@mlthomp1981 Thank you for the kind words. You can also hone your skills after processing hundreds of 'em like I have. :)

[lakai4187]

i have a question... i just caught 2 cats today and when i skinned them there was tiny white dots all inside the meat??? only where the skin was and not in the gut area? are they peracites or normal for a cat? this is my first time cleaning a cat so im not sure what to look for. it kinda looks like really small sesame seeds? thanks-adam

[gumbojoe59]

It sounds like a parasitic infection. Although it is difficult to pass on diseases from fish to humans, I always have a rule: when in doubt don't eat it.

I don't know if you caught this fish in a stagnant pond, or a creek-fed lake, or river - or what part of the U.S. you caught it, but any health concern should be directed to the governing body which addresses these kinds of issues - like your state's Wildlife and Fisheries service who usually have biologists on staff to check these things out.

[lakai4187]

ok, thanks for the info, i caught them from a creek fed lake in washington