This Type Of Fish At A Sushi Restaurant Signals A Bright Red Flag - Tasting Table

"If you visit a sushi spot and the menu simply lists "white fish," "white tuna," or "seasonal white fish," that might be your cue to head back out the door. This sushi restaurant red flag comes to us from head sushi chef Akar Win at Uchi, an award-winning family of sushi restaurants. According to Win, these fish listed on a sushi menu could mean what you get served is actually escolar, sometimes considered fake tuna."

"In fact escolar may also parade under names like "super white tuna" or "king tuna" but is in fact in the family of snake mackerel, not tuna at all. What really makes these flags bright red is that yet another name for this breed is "Ex-Lax fish," due to its ability to motivate lavatorial activity when consumed raw. Let's be clear - it's not a red flag if restaurants serve types of white fish such as grouper and snapper, which are delicious and safe for fresh sushi."

"The red flag is when the menu simply lists "white fish" without naming which white fish species they're slicing up. More often than not, as Win has warned, that means it's escolar on your plate. Escolar is a bycatch of tuna and swordfish fishing, but the flesh of the fish is extremely oily, with a high concentration of indigestible waxy esters called gempylotoxins that create gastric havoc."

"To boot, the fish can also be over 20% fat, which also contributes to its digestive disturbance. Sadly, this doesn't stop some sushi restaurants from serving it in lieu of actual tuna or a preferable white fish species. The fish is so undesirable that it was banne"

Menus that label items only as “white fish,” “white tuna,” or “seasonal white fish” can signal a lack of species transparency. Escolar may be served under misleading names such as “super white tuna” or “king tuna,” even though it belongs to the snake mackerel family rather than tuna. Escolar is sometimes called “Ex-Lax fish” because eating it raw can trigger intense bowel activity. The concern is not about all white fish; safe options like grouper and snapper are typically acceptable when properly identified. The risk increases when restaurants do not specify which white fish species is being used, since escolar is often substituted for tuna or other preferred species.

Read at Tasting Table