A skinning knife includes a handle and a blade carrier coupled to the handle, the blade carrier including a mount having a mounting surface, a boss extending outward from the mounting surface, and a spring including a front portion, a middle portion, and a rear portion. The skinning knife also includes a blade including a sharpened edge, a body, and a slot formed through the body, where the slot extends in a longitudinal direction from a front end to a rear end and includes a narrow portion of a first width and a wide portion of a second width greater than the first width. The blade is releaseably secured to the blade carrier by interaction between the boss and the spring of the blade carrier and the slot of the blade.