After filleting the two sides of the fish, he ran his hand up from the tail end against the grain. He could feel a large, thick bone at about every finger's width.
With a fish this large, it was difficult to pull the bones out with just his fingers. Even if he managed, it would most likely tear the flesh to shreds.
But that was fine. This time, he didn't need to keep the flesh intact anyway.
He made a cut into the meat at the tail, then slid the tip of his knife along the skin toward the head. As he cut, he grabbed the skin and pulled it back, quickly separating it from the fillet.
Then he went back to feeling for the bones. When he found one, he sliced down to its base, grabbed the bone, and pulled it out sideways. Repeating this process, he soon had two perfectly deboned fillets.
