Copy of `Nutribase - Fish Meat Poultry Glossary`

The wordlist doesn't exist anymore, or, the website doesn't exist anymore. On this page you can find a copy of the original information. The information may have been taken offline because it is outdated.

Nutribase - Fish Meat Poultry Glossary Category: Food and Drink > Fish Meat and Poultry Date & country: 13/09/2007, USA Words: 266

Abalone
This gastropod can be found along the coasts of California, Mexico and Japan. The edible portion is the 'adductor muscle' (false foot) by which it clings to rocks. Its iridescent ear-shaped shell is the source of mother-of-pearl.

Ahi
These tuna reach about 300 pounds in weight. They feature a pale pink flesh that is relatively mild. Also called 'Yellowfin tuna.'

Aku
This small tuna (6 to 8 pounds) has a light-colored meat similar to yellowfin. The Japanese call this fish 'Katsuo.'

Akule
This marine fish, found near Hawaii, is normally served salted and dried. Also known as 'Bigeye Scad.'

Alaskan Cod
This saltwater fish, which is not a true cod, has a soft textured flesh and a mild flavor. Its high fat content makes it a good fish for smoking. Also called 'Sablefish.'

Albacore
A highly prized, mild-flavored tuna that weighs between 10 and 60 pounds. This high-fat fish is the only tuna that can honestly be called 'white.' It is the most expensive variety of canned tuna.

Alewife
One of the most popular members of the herring family, the alewife is anadromous (it spawns in fresh water). This fish provides high-fat flesh with a fine, soft, texture.

Alligator
A large aquatic reptile that grows up to 19 feet in length. The meat is generally only available in its native regions--Louisiana and the Gulf States. Alligators feature meat ranging from white to dark--mild to strongly flavored.

Amberjack
A lean, mild fish found along the South Atlantic coast. Difficult to find in markets; usually sold whole.

American Buffalo
American Buffalos are presently raised on game farms. The meat is very tender and tastes quite a bit like lean beef. It has no pronounced gamey flavor. Also called 'bison.'

Anchovy
There are many species of small, silvery fish known as 'anchovies,' but the true anchovy comes from the Mediterranean and southern European coastlines. Often filleted, salt-cured, and canned in oil. Used sparingly to flavor foods.

Angler Fish
This large low-fat, firm-textured salt-water fish has a mild, sweet flavor that compares with lobster. Sometimes referred to as 'poor man's lobster.' Also called 'Monkfish,' and 'goose-fish.'

Antelope
A large, deer-like animal that inhabits Asia, Africa, and Europe. Their meat is called 'venison' and may be cooked by roasting. Plenty of fat is recommended to prevent the meat from becoming too dry.

Arctic Bonito
This small tuna (6 to 8 pounds) has a light-colored meat similar to yellowfin. The Japanese call this fish 'katsuo' and the Hawaiians call it 'aku.'

Awa
An important food fish of the Indo-Pacific region that offers a tender, white flesh. Hawaiians use Awa for making fish cakes and sashimi. Also called 'Milkfish.'

Bacon
A smoked and cured product made from the meat taken from the back, sides, and belly of pigs. Fat, which gives bacon its sweet flavor and tender crispness should be half to two-thirds of the total weight.

Barracuda
A pike-like sea fish with long pointed jaws filled with razor-sharp teeth. It is a firm-textured fish with moderate fat content. The type most commonly found in the U.S. is the Pacific barracuda (also called the California barracuda).

Bass
A term that refers to numerous and often unrelated freshwater and saltwater fish. True basses include groupers, black sea bass, and the striped bass. Largemouth, redeye, rock, smallmouth and the spotted bass, are actually sunfish.

Bear
A large, partly carnivorous quadruped found in America, the Arctic, and in Europe. Bear steaks should be cooked like beef, except that they are generally marinated for a couple of days in oil and vinegar or wine to help tenderize the meat.

Beaver
A semi-aquatic animal of the rodent family. The tail is considered the best part to eat. Care must be taken when skinning to avoid severing the musk gland, which will permeate the entire flesh when cut.

Beef
The meat from cows, steers (males castrated when very young), heifers (females that have never borne a calf) and bulls under 2 years old. The eight USDA grades are Prime, Choice, Select, Standard, Commercial, Utility, Cutter, and Canner.

Beef Tartare
A dish of coarsely ground beef. The meat is normally high-quality, lean, and seasoned with salt, pepper, and seasonings. Beef tartar is often served with a raw egg placed on top, along with capers, parsley, and onions.

Beefalo
A cross between the American bison (commonly called buffalo) and cattle, the beef strain being dominant. The dark red meat of beefalo is very lean and has a somewhat stronger flavor than beef.

Beerwurst
A German cooked sausage with a garlic flavor and a dark red color. Normally used as lunch meat. Also know as 'Bierwurst.'

Belly-Fish
This large low-fat, firm-textured salt-water fish has a mild, sweet flavor that compares with lobster. Sometimes referred to as 'poor man's lobster.' Also called 'angler fish,' 'monkfish,' and 'goosefish.'

Bison
Also know as the 'American Buffalo,' bison is presently raised on game farms. The meat is very tender and tastes quite a bit like lean beef. It has no pronounced gamey flavor.

Black Cod
This saltwater fish, which is not a true cod, has a soft textured flesh and a mild flavor. Its high fat content makes it a good fish for smoking. Also called 'sablefish.'

Black Pudding
This large link sausage is made of pig's blood, suet, bread crumbs, and oatmeal. It is generally sold precooked. Also known as 'blood sausage.'

Blackfish
A lean, delicately flavored Pacific Ocean fish that is popular in Chinese cookery. Also called 'Black Trout' and 'Chinese Steelhead.'

Blood Sausage
Also known as 'blood pudding' and 'black pudding' in Ireland. This large link sausage is made of pig's blood, suet, bread crumbs, and oatmeal. It is generally sold precooked.

Blue Crab
Named after its blue claws and dark blue-green shell, this crab is found along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts. It is sold in both its soft and hard-shell stages. The 'soft-shell crab' is simply a blue crab caught just after molting.

Bluefin Tuna
Among the largest of tuna, the bluefin can weigh over 1,000 pounds. As bluefin age, their flesh turns from light to dark red and takes on a stronger flavor.

Bluefish
A fatty, fine-textured fish that is also known as 'bulldog of the ocean' because of its tenacity. Found in the Atlantic and Gulf coasts. Discard the dark oily strip that runs down its center to prevent a strong, fishy flavor.

Bluegill
One of a large number of North American freshwater fish closely related to the perch. Known for their bright, sunny colors, bluegill are also known as 'sunfish.'

Boar
An uncastrated male swine. In culinary terms, it is the male of a wild boar species found in Europe, Asia, North Africa and the U.S. Young boar is the best eating and is often prepared roasted, grilled, braised, or smoked like ham.

Bobwhite
A small game bird of the partridge family that resembles a small, plump chicken. The flesh is white and delicately flavored. Most of these birds are raised on bird farms today. Known also as 'quail.'

Bockwurst
A German ground-veal sausage that is flavored with chopped parsley and chives. This sausage is normally sold raw. Bockwurst is traditionally served with bock beer, particularly during the Bavarian bock beer festivals.

Bologna
Also known as 'baloney.' This is a highly seasoned sausage meat that takes its name from the Italian city of Bologna. True Italian sausage is called 'mortadella.'

Bonito
This variety of tuna is the smallest of the tuna family, rarely weighing over 25 pounds. They range from moderate to high fat and are the most strongly flavored of the tunas. Many Japanese recipes call for dried bonito ('dashi').

Brains
Gourmets say that sheep's brains are best, followed by calves, then pigs. Often boiled with salted water and a dash of vinegar, then reheated with butter and capers or deep fried in egg and bread crumb batter.

Bratwurst
A German sausage made of pork and veal and seasoned with ginger, nutmeg, and coriander or caraway. Each German district has its own special variety of this sausage. Also called 'brotwurst.'

Braunschweiger
A smoked German liver sausage made with eggs and milk. It is soft enough to spread and is usually served at room temperature.

Buffalo
Also know as the 'bison,' buffalo is presently raised on game farms. Buffalo meat is very tender and tastes somewhat like lean beef. It has no pronounced gamey flavor.

Buffalo Fish
This freshwater fish, which belongs to the sucker family, is similar to carp. It offers a coarse but sweet, low-fat flesh that lends itself to a variety of cooking methods.

Bullhead
A small, freshwater catfish that usually weighs in at under a pound. Its flesh is lean and mild in flavor.

Burbot
A freshwater cod with a lean white flesh and a delicate flavor. It is normally poached, baked, broiled or sautéed.

Butterfish
This small, high-fat fish has a tender texture and a rich, sweet flavor. Found off the coast of the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico, this fish is also called the 'dollarfish,' 'Pacific pompano,' and 'pomfret.'

Calamari
This ten-armed cephalopod, commonly known as 'squid,' is related to the octopus. They vary in size from 1 inch to 80 feet in length. The meat is firm and chewy, with a somewhat sweet flavor. Over-cooking can lead to a rubbery texture.

Calico Bass
One of a large number of North American freshwater fish closely related to the perch. Known for their bright, sunny colors, calico bass are also known as 'sunfish.'

California Sheepshead
A saltwater fish belonging to the wrasse family. Also called 'sheepshead,' 'fathead,' and 'redhead.' Its meat is white, tender, and lean.

Candlefish
A rich and oily mild-flavored fish. This variety of smelt is so named because Indians sometimes run a wick through their high-fat flesh and use them for candles. Also known as the 'Eulachon.'

Capocollo
An Italian sausage made from pork shoulder and flavored with sweet red peppers. It is pressed (rather than chopped), put into casings, and air dried. It is a specialty of the Parma region of Italy.

Capon
The culinary term for castrated chicken that is fed on a special diet until it is slaughtered at the age of 6 to 9 months. Considered by most to be the best eating chicken available.

Caribou
Any of several large North American deer which are related to Old World reindeer. Caribou meat is called 'venison.' Antelope, elk, deer, moose, and reindeer meat are also classified as venison, the most popular large animal game meat.

Carp
This freshwater fish ranges from 2 to 7 pounds and has a lean white flesh. It is the primary ingredient for the Jewish dish called 'gefilte fish.'

Catfish
This fish is firm, low in fat, and has a mild flavor. Most catfish are fresh water varieties, but there is a salt water variety that called the 'hogfish.' The channel catfish is considered the best for eating.

Chicken
This bird, taken from the jungles of southeastern Asia around 1400 B.C., has become a popular food fowl throughout the world. Boiler-fryers are 2.5 months old; roasters are 8 months old; stewing chickens are 10 to 18 months old.

Chikuwa
A variety of Japanese fish paste cake.

Chinook Salmon
Considered the finest Pacific salmon. This high-fat, soft textured fish can reach up to 120 pounds. Also called the 'king salmon.'

Chitterlings
The small intestines of animals, usually pigs. They are cleaned, simmered, then served with a sauce or used as a sausage casing. Chitterlings are also added to soups or battered and fried.

Chorizo
A spicy, highly seasoned, coarsely ground pork sausage flavored with garlic, chili, and other spices. Widely used in Mexican and Spanish cooking.

Chub
One of the most prized whitefish found in the Great Lakes and in Canada. May be prepared in any manner suitable for salmon. Also called '?Lake Herring' and 'Cisco.'

Chum Salmon
This, the smallest and most delicate flavored of the salmons, has the lightest color and the lowest fat content of the various salmon varieties. Also called the 'dog salmon.'

Cisco
One of the most prized whitefish found in the Great Lakes and in Canada. May be prepared in any manner suitable for salmon. Also called 'lake herring' and 'chub.'

Clam
These bivalve mollusks come in two varieties. Hard-shell clams include littleneck, cherrystone, and chowder clams. The soft-shelled clams, such as steamer, razor, and geoduck clams, have thin brittle shells that can't completely close.

Cod
A popular lean, firm, white meat fish from the Pacific and the North Atlantic. 'Scrod' is the name for young cod (and haddock) that weight less that 2.5 pounds. 'Haddock,' 'Hake,' and 'Pollock' are close relatives of the cod.

Coho Salmon
This high-fat variety of salmon provides a firm-textured, pink to orange-red flesh. Also called the 'silver salmon.'

Corn Dog
A frankfurter or other sausage that has been dipped into a heavy cornbread batter, impaled onto a smooth round stick, then deep-fried and often served with mustard. Created in 1942 by Neil Fletcher for the Texas State Fair.

Corned Beef
Beef brisket (or round) cured in a seasoned brine. Old-fashioned corned beef is grayish-pink and is very salty; the newer style is bright reddish and less salty. Most corned beef today is free of nitrites (alleged carcinogens).

Cornish Game Hen
Also called 'Rock Cornish game hen.' This is a hybrid of Cornish and White Rock chickens. These miniature chickens are about 4 to 6 weeks old and weigh about 2.5 pounds... usually enough for one serving.

Crab
Any of a large variety of 10-legged crustaceans (shelled animals). There are freshwater and salt water varieties. It is the second most popular shellfish. (Shrimp is the most popular.)

Crappie
One of a large number of North American freshwater fish closely related to the perch. Known for their bright, sunny colors, crappie are also known as 'sunfish.'

Crayfish
Also called 'Crawfish' and 'crawdads.' Crayfish are freshwater crustaceans that look like tiny lobsters. Crayfish can be prepared in any manner appropriate to a lobster.

Croaker
Any of a variety of fish named for the peculiar drumming or deep croaking noise they make. These fish are firm and low in fat. The croaker family includes the black croaker, black drum, hardhead, kingfish, and redfish.

Cusk
A large saltwater fish related to the cod. It has a firm, lean flesh. Also called 'tusk' or 'torsk.'

Cuttlefish
A relative of the squid and octopus, the cuttlefish has ten arms that can reach up to 16 inches in length. 'Sarume,' which is available in ethnic stores, is cuttlefish that has been seasoned and roasted.

Dab
This flatfish is variety of flounder that features a sweet, firm flesh.

Dollarfish
This small, high-fat fish has a tender texture and a rich, sweet flavor. Found off the coast of the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico, this fish is also called the 'butterfish.'

Dolphin Fish
Also called 'Mahi Mahi' and 'Dorado.' Although this fish is a dolphin, it is not a mammal. To avoid confusion, the Hawaiian name 'Mahi Mahi' is becoming prevalent. This fish is moderately fat with firm, flavorful flesh.

Domestic Turbot
A highly prized flatfish with a lean, firm white flesh and a mild flavor. Turbot is also the market name for several varieties of flounder fished from Pacific waters.

Drum
Any of a variety of fish named for the drumming or deep croaking noise they make. These fish are firm and low in fat. The drum family include the black croaker, black drum, hardhead, kingfish, and queenfish.

Duck
Any of a variety of species of wild or domestic web-footed birds. Broilers and fryers are under 8 weeks old, roasters are no more than 16 weeks old. Duck is generally higher in fat than other domestic birds.

Eel
A long snake-like fish with smooth scaleless skin and a rich, sweet, and firm flesh. Eels, which are considered a fatty fish, are very popular in Europe and Japan.

Egg
Most eggs come from hens, but duck, goose, and quail eggs are available too. Eggs should be refrigerated in the original container, large end up. Because the yolk is high in cholesterol, imitation eggs come from egg whites and additives.

Egg Yolk
This part of the egg contains all of the fat in an egg. Yolks are a good source of protein, iron, vitamin A, vitamin D, choline, and phosphorus. The egg white is a good source of protein and riboflavin.

Elk
A large member of the deer family. Elk meat is called 'venison.' Antelope, caribou, elk, deer, moose and reindeer meat is also classified as venison, the most popular large animal game meat in the U.S.

Eulachon
A rich and oily mild-flavored variety of smelt fish. The eulachon is also called the 'candlefish' because Indians sometimes run a wick through their high-fat flesh and use them for candles.

European Turbot
A highly prized flatfish found in European waters. This fish has a lean, firm white flesh and a mild flavor. Turbot is also the market name for several varieties of flounder fished from Pacific waters.

Fathead
A saltwater fish belonging to the wrasse family. Also called 'California sheepshead.' Its meat is white, tender, and lean.

Filet Mignon
An expensive and very tender cut of beef that is taken from the small end of Tenderloin.

Finnan Haddie
A world-famous smoked haddock from Scotland.

Flatfish
Fish that have a flat body with both eyes located on the upper side. Flatfish swim 'sideways' and include 'flounder,' 'halibut,' and 'sole.'

Flounder
A fine-textured flatfish prized for its delicate flavor. Some of the more popular varieties include 'Fab,' 'English Sole,' and 'Plaice.'

Flying Fish
This fish, a delicacy in the West Indies and Japan, gains speed underwater then leaves the water except for the lower lobe of its tail. It then vigorously beats its tail, extends its ventral fins and can fly a 1,000 feet or more.

Frankfurter
A smoked and seasoned precooked sausage that is also called the 'hot dog,' 'wiener,' and 'frank.' These sausages, which can be made from beef, pork, chicken, or turkey, are America's most popular sausage.

Frog's Legs
The tender, faintly sweet white meat from the hind legs of frogs. Because of their delicate flavor, they should be cooked briefly without too many seasonings.

Frogfish
This large low-fat, firm-textured salt-water fish has a mild, sweet flavor that compares with lobster. Also called 'angler fish,' 'monkfish,' or 'goosefish.'

Gefilte Fish
This popular Jewish dish consists of ground fish mixed with eggs, matzo meal, and seasonings that have been formed into balls or patties then simmered in vegetable or fish stock. The fish used is usually carp, pike, or whitefish.

Giblet
Giblets usually refers to the heart, liver, gizzard, and sometimes the neck of poultry. All of these except for the liver are normally used to flavor stocks, soups, and gravies.

Goat
Goat meat has been eaten in other countries for centuries, but it never got very popular in the U.S. Most goat meat comes from kids--goats under 6 months old. Kid meat is as tender and delicate as lamb.