A sharp, flexible filleting knife is the best one to use for most types of fish cookery. The blade yields to glide flat along the fish skeleton, yet it is sharp enough to cut off heads and tails, and through tough fish skin.

It's pointed tip pokes easily into nooks and crannies, helping you extract the maximum amount of flesh.

The Japanese have a few types of kitchen knives designated for fish, including the deba, which is used for boning and filleting, the yanagi, which is used for slicing sashimi, and the tacobiki which is designed for dealing with octopus.

There are also cutlery fish knives associated with formal meals. These are intended primarily for soft white fish, rather than meaty fish steaks. They are not as sharp as regular dinner knives, and sometimes have a very curved blade.

In addition to their role in filleting and boning whole fish, flexible filleting knives are also handy for deboning poultry.

Store knives in a block, on a magnetic rack, or protect their blades with plastic or fabric covers. Do not let them rattle around in a drawer.