To process Cutlet catfish for export you need to follow the six steps listed below: steps to processing cutlet catfish for export- business
- Source for your life Catfish.
- Clean and gut the fish.
- Cut or slice the fish.
- Brine or season the fish.
- Oven-dry the fish.
- Package the fish for export.
Cutlet catfish are one of the sweetest dried fish known. They are very delicious, and satisfying and can be cooked with a lot of food.
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There has been an increasing demand for Cutlet catfish in Nigeria, Africa, and other parts of the world. This has increased the number of people seeking knowledge on how to process the Fish.
Therefore in this chapter, we will see the step-by-step process on how to process Cutlet catfish for export.
The first step is to:
Source for your life Catfish: You are to look out for Catfish farmers who sell table-sized Catfish to you at a good price. Catfish are usually more expensive than common fish like Hake or Panla fish, Kote, and Titus. Therefore, it will be good to look out for farmers who are close to you to cut down the cost of transportation.
Clean and gut the fish: The life Catfish can be killed by dropping a small quantity of salt on its skin to make it weak.
When dead, you can wash the body with clean water to remove the stains and dissolve mucous or slippery fluid around it skin.
The salt you applied earlier does three works which are:
- Help to kill the Fish.
- Help to remove the slippery fluid or mucous around the skin of the Catfish.
- Helps to give taste to the fish.
After washing the fish, use a sharp knife or cutter to pierce a little part of the belly to have access to the gut. Use your hand to pull out the gut and all the dirt inside and wash with water.
Cut or slice the fish: Use your knife to cut or slice the fish into small parts or Cutlet. This should be carefully done to prevent damaging the fish’s skin.
Brine or season the fish: This is the process that gives your fish that sweet taste. This is determined by the processor’s choice and the available resources.
It involves mixing some ingredients in considerable amounts inside a Bad or Bowl and soaking the sliced fish in the seasoning for about five minutes to allow the taste to penetrate the fish.
Oven-dry the fish: After seasoning the cutlet catfish, it is now time to move them into the Oven for the drying process.
The first thing to do is to:
- Clean your processing facility.
- Turn on the heat source for some minutes to sterilize the facility against germs or any living organism.
- Arrange the fish in the Oven rack.
- Allow the fish to heat consistently for about 10 hours.
- Start checking the fish at regular intervals after the fifteenth hour.
- Be patient enough to allow the fish to get well-dried and not get burnt.
- After the fish has dried to your satisfaction, it is time to move to the final stage.
Package the fish for export: This is a very important process. It will determine the level of satisfaction of your customers and their feelings about your products because everyone likes to be treated specially.
Your packaging should be very neat and attractive, this will make your customers happy and satisfied with your delivery.
The process of how to package your dried fish has been clearly explained in the previous chapter.
