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Stage 3 To fillet the fish, lay it on the work surface with the belly facing you. Keeping the knife edge flush to the back- bone, insert it behind the anal fin and cut through to the tail without jagging (8). Insert it again in front of the anal fin and cut along the line of the back bone towards the head end. Don’t damage the belly flap (9). Remove the top fillet in a single piece, working from tail to head (if the previous step is neat, it should almost lift off). Turn the fish over and prepare the second fillet in the same way (10).
Chop the backbone into three neat pieces
for stock. Many chefs will trim the belly flap for pres- entation purposes. Don’t do this for raw fish because the flesh is fatty and flavoursome. Instead, carving from the backbone cut
18 | Best of Chef | March 2016
16
through the ‘rib bones’ and between the flesh and membrane, protecting it from the belly (11). Pin bone (12).
Stage 4
This stage is done to order during service. If the mullet is large, as pictured, lay it skin- side up and split each fillet into two along its length (13). Rub a minimal amount of vegetable oil and a touch of sea salt over the skin. Blow torch until the skin starts to caramelise and the fat under the skin melts (14). If possible, use a long-bladed Japanese
sashimi bōchō knife to slice the fish. Hold it with the index finger directly over the blade, with the thumb and three fingers lightly gripping the handle (15). Keeping the knife edge at 45° to the fillet and starting at the thicker end, slice collops of raw
Assembly and plating
The Clove Club serves the raw fish as a cold starter on its five- and 10-course set menus. The portion size will vary accordingly. Brush the sliced red mullet with Kikkoman
soy, mustard oil and salt marinade. Arrange it on the plate with squares of mustard leaves. Accompany with dabs of Dijon mustard flavoured with powdered nori (dried seaweed) and a hint of powdered cumin.
Tips Gutting fish on a clean tray, means you can then fillet the fish on a clean board with no blood or bacteria on it.
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red mullet on the slant, about 1cm thick (16). When Japanese chefs slice fish, they don’t cut using the wrist, but use an elbow to shoulder pulling motion.
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