How to Remove Pin Bones from a Fish Fillet

How necessary is it to have fish bone tweezers in your kitchen?

I would say, absolutely 100% necessary. Pin boning fish is something not a lot of home cooks are in the habit of doing, but it should be one of the steps we do, every single time we cook fish. Who hasn’t had that awkward experience where you bite down on a bone in the middle of your dinner? It is annoying, frustrating and can actually be quite dangerous. I feel this experience puts a lot of people off fish for life when if the proper care were taken in the first place, the situation could be easily avoided. Hands down, these Curved Fish Bone Tweezers from Global are the best I have ever seen or used. I wanted to add ‘seen’ because I’ve never actually seen any others like this before. Global have put a lot of thought and care into the design of these tweezers – not only do they keep in line with the sleek look of the Global Knife Collection, they have a thickness and a sturdiness that show off the quality of the tool, and a unique curve to the handles, which help to grip. You just know when you look at these tweezers that they are going to perform like a dream. Global products are known for their great design, with the elegant dot pattern on the handles. The whole element is made from one continuous piece of the highest quality stainless steel, which gives the products their sleek trademark look but also makes them the most hygienic knives on the market as they are easier to thoroughly clean. Same goes for these tweezers – I love the look of the classic dot pattern on the side and the fact that it goes so well in my kitchen with my favourite Global knife collection.

The curved handle and thick sides really help to grip the tweezers. The point that comes down on the sides of the handle lines up where your thumb sits on one side and your middle or ring finger on the other side. This gives a perfect pressure point with which to pull out the bone from the fish in one easy motion. This is so perfectly thought out – other tweezers I have used in the past for this purpose now seem flimsy and awkward to me.

Here's How You Remove Pin Bones from a Fish:

1. Lay the fish fillet out on a clean countertop, skin side down. Make sure there is a good light source so you can see clearly.

2. Lightly rub your fingers along the edges and down the middle of the fillet. You should feel any pin bones protruding out.

3. Take some fish boning tweezers and grip down on each small bone, pulling out away from the fish in one confident motion. Place the bones in a pile on the side and discard. 4. Double check for any remaining bones with your eyes and fingers, pressing a little harder, this time but not hard enough to damage the flesh. I love simply cooked fish, with a little condiment to compliment the fish and bring out the flavour. Check out my recipe here for Pan-fried Fish with Pineapple Sambal. This is a great entertaining recipe. The sambal (an Indonesian salsa) is both salty, sweet and spicy at the same time and definitely has the wow-factor!