Food fish
Caught and eaten around the world. 308 fish on EveryFish so far.
Fish is one of the main foods of humanity. The Food and Agriculture Organization reckons that aquatic foods provide about 15 per cent of the animal protein people eat worldwide, and much more in coastal and island countries and in places such as Bangladesh, Indonesia and West Africa. Thousands of fish species are eaten, but a few dozen, such as anchovies, pollock, tunas, herrings, carps and tilapia, make up most of the catch.
Fish in Indian kitchens
Most Indians eat fish at least sometimes, and in Bengal, Odisha, Assam, the North-East, Kerala, Goa and the Konkan, fish is at the centre of everyday meals. Bengalis prize rohu and hilsa cooked in mustard. Kerala cooks sardine, mackerel and pearlspot with coconut and kokum. Goans eat fish curry and rice daily, and Mumbai's Kolis fry bombil and pomfret. Dried and fermented fish are basic foods in the North-East and along the coasts.
From catch to plate
Fish spoils quickly, so ice, cold chains, canning, freezing, drying, salting and smoking shape how it reaches people. A large share of the world's catch of small fish such as anchovies is turned into fish meal and oil for farmed fish and animals rather than eaten directly. Large predatory fish such as some tunas and swordfish can build up mercury, so health agencies give advice on how often to eat them. EveryFish describes these uses as practice and tradition, not health advice.
Famous food fish fish
Still to be written: Atlantic cod, Ilish, Skipjack tuna, Alaska pollock, Peruvian anchoveta, Indian mackerel, Atlantic herring.
Further reading
🇵🇭 Philippines and 4 moreMilkfish
The sole living species of the family Chanidae, found across the Indo-Pacific.Other · Coasts and shelves
🇦🇺 Australia and 1 moreAustralian ghostshark
A cartilaginous fish native to southern Australia and New Zealand waters.Other · Coasts and shelves
🇧🇷 Brazil and 4 moreGolden dorado
A large predatory freshwater fish native to South America known for its golden colour.Other · Rivers and lakes
🇧🇼 Botswana and 1 moreAfrican tigerfish
Predatory freshwater fish known for sharp teeth and leaping hunting behaviour.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1861
🇺🇬 Uganda and 2 moreSilver cyprinid
A small pelagic fish from Lake Victoria that supports regional food security.Other · Rivers and lakes
🇺🇸 United StatesGuadalupe bass
A rare Texas endemic black bass prized by anglers for its fighting spirit.Other · Rivers and lakes
🇧🇷 Brazil and 3 moreTambaqui
A large freshwater fish from South America known for its heavy body and seed-eating habits.Other · Rivers and lakes
🇧🇷 BrazilBanded leporinus
A striped freshwater fish from the Amazon kept in home tanks and occasionally caught by anglers.Other · Rivers and lakes
WorldSnakehead
Elongated freshwater predators with air-breathing organs found in Asia and Africa.Other · Rivers and lakes
Southeast AsiaGiant snakehead
A large freshwater predator from Southeast Asia known for air breathing and invasive potential.Other · Rivers and lakes
🇷🇺 Russia and 3 moreBurbot
A coldwater freshwater fish with a chin whisker, native to the Northern Hemisphere.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1758
🇺🇸 United StatesWhite bass
A silver-striped freshwater fish native to North American rivers and lakes.Other · Rivers and lakes
🇧🇷 Brazil and 1 moreRed-bellied Pacu
A large South American freshwater fish related to piranhas, farmed for food and kept in aquariums.Other · Rivers and lakes
🇰🇭 Cambodia and 4 moreGyrinocheilus aymonieri
A Southeast Asian freshwater fish known for its suction-like mouth and role in the aquarium trade.Other · Rivers and lakes
🇨🇳 China and 4 moreThree spot gourami
Hardy freshwater fish native to Southeast Asia with distinct side spots.Other · Rivers and lakes
WorldBigeye trevally
A large marine fish found in tropical oceans, known for its nocturnal hunting and distinctive dark dorsal fin.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1825
WorldGreat barracuda
Large predatory fish found in warm oceans worldwide.Other · Coasts and shelves
EuropeMediterranean spearfish
A marlin species native to the Mediterranean SeaOther · Open ocean
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Rohu: Wiki Farazi, CC0, source
- Milkfish: Wiki Farazi, CC0, source
- Australian ghostshark: fir0002 flagstaffotos [at] gmail.com Canon 20D + Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8, GFDL 1.2, source
- Golden dorado: David Morimoto (treez44est), CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- African tigerfish: Totti, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Silver cyprinid: Boulenger, George Albert; Loat, L., Public domain, source
- Guadalupe bass: Nick Loveland, CC0, source
- Tambaqui: w_endo, CC0, source
- Banded leporinus: Ltshears, Public domain, source
- Snakehead: Sir Francis Day, Public domain, source
- Giant snakehead: George Chernilevsky, Public domain, source
- Burbot: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- White bass: Nick Loveland, CC0, source
- Red-bellied Pacu: Omnitarian, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Gyrinocheilus aymonieri: Pseudogastromyzon, Public domain, source
- Three spot gourami: Gourami Watcher, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Bigeye trevally: Jens Petersen, CC BY 2.5, source
- Great barracuda: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Mediterranean spearfish: ALCUSTOM boats, Public domain, source