Every fish has a different bone structure and body shape. This means that when each fish is gutted, filleted or portioned it has a different yield. It is important to be familiar with yields because they can help you figure out the size of the fillets as well as the final cost of the product therefore helping you price the product correctly for your menu. In the next few pages we will break down: How yields can help you know what size fillet that a fish will produce. How to figure your final cost of your finished product.
After cutting a fish or fillet to your finished product–what was the yield
You will need to know 2 things to start:
What is the total weight of the starting product?
What is the total weight of the finished product?
What Size Will A Whole Fish Produce?
You will need to know 4 things to start:
- What is the size of the fish that you are starting with?
- What is the yield of the fish?
- Every fish has 2 sides.
- There are 16 oz in a pound.
Take the size of the fish, multiply (x) by the fish yield, Divide (/) by 2 = Size of Fillets
Note: you will sometimes need to convert the whole fish into ounces with smaller sizes
EX:10# fish with 40% yield
10#x .40 = 4# / 2 = 2# Fillet
EX: 3# fish with 53% yield
3# X 16oz= 48oz x .53 = 25.4 oz / 2 = 12.72oz Fillet
How to calculate the cost using a yield?
First you must know 4 things
- What is the original cost of the fish?
- What is final product that you are selling?
- What is the yield that corresponds with that product?
- What is your Packaging & Labor cost?
Take the Cost of the fish, divide (/) by the yield, Add (+) packaging and labor = off the knife cost
Ex: $5.25original cost, selling skinless fillets and have a 40% yield
$5.25/ .40 = 13.125 + .50 = $13.625 off the knife
