What to choose: jewfish or seabream?

You want to cook fish for dinner but you don't know what to choose between jewfish and seabream?

Because it's sometimes hard to know which is which on fishmonger's stalls without actually being a specialist , Yahya fishery and development offers you a comparison between jewfish and seabream, to help you choosing more easily.

JEWISH

Description of jewfish

Jewfish or meager, from the scioenidae family, sometimes nicknamed “grogneur”, is a white fish living at depths of over 130 feet on sandy bottoms. Jewfish can be found along French (Gironde estuary), African (Mauritania, Senegal, Morocco) coasts, but also in the North Sea.

Frequently impressive on fishmonger's stalls, the jewfish average capture size varies between 1.6 and 3.2 feet. In the wild, jewfish can live around 15 years and measure up to 6.6 feet long and weigh 220 pounds. The has a taste close to that of the bass, jewfish has a rich in protein, fine and flavorful flesh.

When to eat jewfish?

When jewfish begins its breeding season, it gives the start of its fishing season. This period generally occurs in March and lasts several weeks. Jewfish is eaten throughout the summer months, that is to say from Juny to October.

How to choose a fresh jewfish?

Here are the elements used to select jewfish's freshness:

The jewfish must be firm and have shiny scales adherent to the skin
Its eyes must be present and bright
Its gills must be red

How long jewfish can be kept?

A jewfish newly bought at the fishmonger can be kept up to 48 hours. Once it is frozen, it can be kept from 3 to 6 months.

How to cook and eat jewfish?

Steamed, seared, roasted or in foil, jewfish can be cooked in a number of ways.
Often associated with bass taste and texture, jewfish goes very well with a wide range of assortments and accompaniments.

Description of Seabream

Red seabream

Also called Borabo or pink Pageot, red seabream average size varies between 0.9 and 1.6 feet and weigh around 4.4 pounds. The biggest specimen can reach up to 2.3 feet and weigh almost 8.8 pounds.

Mainly living in the Atlantic Ocean, red seabream, overfished, is nowadays a fish with a very regulated fishing. Its minimum capture size is 1.08 feet, which corresponds to its 5th year of existence. Red seabream known for its sweet and creamy taste, is nevertheless more expensive than its cousin, the black seabream.

Black seabream

Also called canthère or griset, black seabream average size varies between 0.9 and 1.3 feet and weigh around 4.4 pounds. Living close to the Atlantic, Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea coasts, the black seabream is overfished, it is however not a protected species. Black seabream fishing is regulated: it must not be fished under 0.75 feet, so that it can breed.

This species of seabream is highly appreciated by consumers for its rich in protein, fine and aromatic flesh. It also has a good value for money.

When to eat seabream?

The beginning of winter season implies the seabream fishing season start. From March to September, seabeam can easily be found on your fishmonger's stalls.

How to choose a fresh seabream?

Here are the elements used to select seabream's freshness:

Shiny scales adherent to the skin
Rigid body
Glossy and curved eyes

How long seabream can be kept?

A seabream newly bought at the fishmonger can be kept up to 48 hours. Once it is frozen, the seabream can be kept from 3 to 6 months.

How to cook and eat seabream?

Seabream can be cooked in a number of ways, it can be cooked in whole or in individual cuts, here is the different cooking methods:
Oven-roasted or salt crusted
Braised
Fried
Roasted
Steamed
Seared
Pickled
In sashimi
Into a soup

Jewfish and seabream, two fishes recommended by Yahya fishery and development.

Largely available during summer season, jewfish appears as the ideal dish to treat your guests during private events. Accompanied with a salad, this white fish and his fine and delightful flesh, whose taste is close from the one of the bass will embellish your summer meals.

Very popular in France due to its thousands of different ways to be cooked, the seabream, either red or black, is a fish greatly appreciated by the fine gourmets, and is enjoyed all year long.