Skinning

If you are serving a flat fish whole, only the dark skin needs to be removed - the white skin is left on to help hold the fish together during cooking. If you plan to serve the fish as fillets, you can remove both dark and white skins while the fish is whole, as with this Dover sole, or you can skin individual fillets.

1. Working on the dark side first, scrape the skin away from the tail with a knife to loosen it from the flesh.

   

2. Grasp the skin and tail using a tea towel to prevent your hands from slipping. Pull the skin away from the tail and over the head, detaching it completely from the fish.

   

3. Turn the fish white-side up. Cut around the head of the fish to loosen the skin.

   

4. Working from head to tail on both sides, use your fingers to loosen the skin and pull it back from around the edge of the fish. Once the skin is well loosened, grasp it at the tail end and pull it away from the flesh, detaching it completely.