An often asked question is "how do i butterfly fillet a gar"well this is how i do it.I use a rounded butter knife sharpened to a nice edge.put the knife right through the fish just below its butt and cut down to the tail.now cut towards the head but don't cut through the ribs,then slice down behind the head too the backbone.now with an angled knife cut through the pin bones but over the top of the ribs but don't cut all the way through the fish and leave the gut intact.It will look like this when done but fold it back into place and turn the fish over.this time start with the downward cut behind the head then with an angled knife again run the knife towards the tail cutting through the pin bones but not the ribs.like this.then pick up the fish and fold the fillet near the head so it is skin on skin and tear the fillet away from the fish,it is important to get it started correctly so you don't end up with any black on the fillet.the end result is a clean fillet without any mess on the board or the fillet.Any errors you make like cutting through the ribs should be corrected before you start to tear the fillet away from the belly or you will get black lining on your fillet.It takes about 35 seconds per fish once you are proficient. cheers brenton
