How to Take the Y Bone Out of a Northern Pike
- 1). Lay the fillet flat with the interior side down on the cutting board and the exterior side, skinned, facing upward.
- 2). Run the knife blade along the top half of the fillet without making any cut. The sharp edge will catch the protruding end of the Y bones and pop them up out of the surface of the fish.
- 3). Cut shallowly above the newly exposed ends of the Y bones along the length of the fish (about three quarters of the distance from the bottom of the fish to the top).
- 4). Use your finger to expand this new cut carefully. You should feel the ribbed surface of bones, having cut down to the level of the bones.
- 5). Cut upwards toward the fish's top, running along the bone, but not all the way to the edge of the fillet. Extend this cut the entire length of the fillet and use your finger to stretch it out.
- 6). Locate the solid bone stripe that runs along the center of the fillet from head to tail. Cut below this line, making an incision about a half inch deep.
- 7). Make another cut from the bottom of the below-center cut you just made, upwards toward the top of the fillet, just like you did higher on the fillet. Run your finger through the cut to make sure it is open.
- 8). Grab the section between the two cuts with your fingers and separate it from the main of the fillet. This section contains the Y bones and can be discarded.
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