skin on or off

[BILLY JOE]

when cleaning salmon i leave the skin on the guys that i fished with when i started did so i do to.tried a new smoked recipe this weekend and skinned the fish before brinning .also cooked some on the grill without the skin both turned out pretty good.just curious to see who leaves then skin on or takes it off and why .thanks todd

[mattmishler]

Personally I like skin off for everything, smoking, grilling ect. I dont like that mud in the fish. With customer it is usually a 75/25 mix of skin off to skin on

[Great Gazoo]

Off

Always

[Line Dancin]

Off always. I never leave it on. remove the lateral line fat. It totally changes the taste of the fish. You dont get the strong taste people complain about. I grill and smoke a ton of salmon without the skin and never have issues. for grilling you just cant flip it a bunch of times, cook till done on one side flip once and finish. Never an issue. For smoking to make it release from the racks i use grilling pam (same for grilling fish) and never have a piece stick and my grate clen up super easy in the dish washer that way. I also like the way the brine penetrates into the meat better. The other thing i like is it changes the texture of the fish yo0u dont have that slimy side while eating from the skin being on.

[EdB]

Skin off here.

[RedRider]

Skin off, that way when I grab a fillet for deep frying its ready to go.(all pkg. with lateral line out and bones removed)vacuumed sealed.

[RedRider]

Skin off always.

I also remove lateral line and pin bones before vac packing.That way if I grab a fillet for deep frying its ready to go other then cutting into nugget size pieces.

If I smoke some after freezing presentation is not an issue as most of the time it goes into salads or dips.

[freedom]

Skin off, canning, grilling, and deep frying.

[joelsanders]

Skin off. if i need skin, replace with bacon! BACON!

[Just Hook'n]

Interesting it's so one sided so far...we leave it on...don't really have a reason why - just dont' mind the "fishy" taste that peopel complain about. I guess it's fish it should taste like fish.

[TAKIN IT EZ]

So far I have left it on,had people eat my smoked fish for the first time ever. They thought it was great! Even a few were woman,who somtimes can be very picky. But I'm open to try somthing a new way. Rudey

[Turfwrench]

Skin on. Smoked, when I eat it I just peel the skin off and use fingers to remove the dark line, comes out real easy no foul taste. Grilled, fish slides right off the skin and with a spoon, fork or knife you can remove the line then, separates very easy, still no foul taste. Deep fried, boiled, or canned - skin off.

[rainman67]

Off always. I never leave it on. remove the lateral line fat. It totally changes the taste of the fish. You dont get the strong taste people complain about. I grill and smoke a ton of salmon without the skin and never have issues. for grilling you just cant flip it a bunch of times, cook till done on one side flip once and finish. Never an issue. For smoking to make it release from the racks i use grilling pam (same for grilling fish) and never have a piece stick and my grate clen up super easy in the dish washer that way. I also like the way the brine penetrates into the meat better. The other thing i like is it changes the texture of the fish yo0u dont have that slimy side while eating from the skin being on.

Same reasons as Line dancin, especially the brining part. Whether its to smoke, grill, fry or bake, the brine penatrates much quicker and more even with the skin off.

[DIRTY DOG]

Skin off for every thing, I think it has a way better flavor that way , but that's just my oppinion.

[SeaCatMich]

I do it both ways. If it is a fish that I think would be best to smoke or grill then the skin is left on. If it gong to be cooked any other way then I take the skin off. Ratio is probably 40% on, 60% off.

Either way, the whole skin on filets or the steaked out skin off pieces are sorted by species and go into big 1 gallon economy brand ziplocks bags to transport them home. Then the smaller pieces go in the pint/quart vacuum bags easier and are all ready to cook when I pull them out. The whole skin on filets go into vacuum bags from rolls cut to length.

[King Salmon 1]

Always take skin off grill, frying, baking, or jerky. Only leave it on if steaking for fish boil.

[Line Dancin]

Only leave it on if steaking for fish boil.

I even take it off for fish boils. Some if it will flake a little the real thin pieces on the edge but for as long as its in the water to just cook it through i havent had any problem with it falling apart. I use fillets not steaks when doing a fish boil.

[Eliminator]

Skin off for everything, way better taste, especially for smoking.

[RedRider]

I even take it off for fish boils. Some if it will flake a little the real thin pieces on the edge but for as long as its in the water to just cook it through i havent had any problem with it falling apart. I use fillets not steaks when doing a fish boil.

skin off for boils as well, those spring coho hold together just fine in the kettle.

[Tunas Pride]

Always off....and remove lateral line.. for everything.

[Building C's]

Anyone got some instructional videos on how to take the skin off? I would love to see some.

[Line Dancin]

heres a video i found on you tube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETSKgTP4rtg

[Leafybug]

I almost always leave mine on, until I decide what to do with it. For pan, oven, locs, chowders, canning and sometimes grilled, the skin comes off once thawed. For smoked, char grilled, or dry cured (jerky (not always)), the skin stays on. I see it as a possible guard against freezer burn, although thats been rare since my vaccum sealer.

Ya know, I got a big hankerin' to go trolling.....

[Just Hook'n]

Now that I've said I leave it on...I do have a great method for taking it off when people ask...someone showed me a while back and it'st he best I've found - even though I don't practice it much.

With your big foshner knife cut a small hole (just big enough for your index finger) in the tail. You will lose a little tail meat, but hopefully you caugt enough fish it doesn't matter. Put your non-knife index finger into the hole, put your knife in front of it (toward the head) and get eth angle just right so you are cutting the skin off and just pull with your non-knife hand. If you do it right you don't even have to move your knife hand much at all. Easy to watch than to explain...but like I said it works great even thought I don't practice it much.

[GLF]

I always do skin off. The brown/fat under the skin is where the strong taste comes from. After I remove the skin, I use a small fillet knife to trim the brown off my steaks.