What does it mean to Unzip a Walleye Fillet and how to do it.

[FishnFast]

What does it mean to Unzip a Walleye Fillet and how to do it.

[JM]

I am not sure, but I think it is done by just cutting over the ribs(along the outside of them) instead of through them. When done correctly you will leave the entire bone structure of the fish behind. The only time I have ever heard the term unzipping was from a person cleaning rainbow trout(due to their challenging rib structure).
-In case you have never done it, cleaning a walleye is just like cleaning a longer bluegill/perch/bass/crappie, so I do not believe there would be any benefit to the "unzipping" methods.

[Hunter00015]

I have fished walleye for years up in Wisconsin, and it is really a preference thing for whether or not you "unzip" a walleye. When you fillet the fish, you will notice that there is a darker line running down the center of the fillet. Follow that all the way to the tail. Make a cut on both sides of that line about an inch into the fillet towards the front. You then grab the thin darker section and pull each side of the fillet, unzipping it. It is actually very easy to do. If you are still confused do a google image search of walleye fillet and the second image shows the result if done right. The thin section left over is discarded.

[jhjimbo]

Taking the dark line out of the fillet is unzipping. Then if you want to take the skin off, I use a electric knife and it comes off as clean as possible.
Hold the tail on a board and cut toward the front.