Escolar - Time to clear its name

To all the Escolar critiques out there or those sitting on the fence about whether or not to give this fantastic fish a go, this post is dedicated to you.

Firstly, it is important to know that there are in fact two different species of Escolar. In the industry, they are known as smooth skin (Lepidocybium Flavobrunneum) and rough skin (Ruvettus Pretiosus) Escolar, the later (rough skin) being the much cheaper and problematic fish causing the purgative problems mentioned in so many other posts. It is such a pity these two different fish species have been lumped together as it is an amazing eating as well as environmentally sustainable fish to consume.

I honestly believe this fish has earned a bad reputation for an unjust reason based around greed through suppliers trying to make a few extra pennies by purchasing the cheaper version, the Rough Skin. It is imperative that consumers and chefs ask your purveyors what specie of Escolar they are serving and how was it processed. A good seafood processor would ensure too deep-skin the Escolar as this would remove the high oil content muscle tissue between the skin and flesh.

That being said, I urge people to give this fish a try. Firstly, it is not necessary to even eat more than 5oz of the fish due to how rich and filling this fish is. It has the same satiate quality of lobster, and believe it or not when you order a 8oz lobster tail you are only getting around 5oz's of actual lobster meat. Yet you are satisfied correct. Secondly, eating too much of anything is going to cause you problems, food should be consumed in moderation and overindulging in any rich food will have negative effects.

Again, next time you are in a restaurant order the Chilean sea bass and note the size of the portion. You are likely to get nothing over 6 ounces. Eat too much of this fish will also result in you running to the toilet. smooth-skin Escolar is a great fish and should be heralded as such. Be sure to always consume the right specie ... any good chef should know this, and if they don't they will soon!