Onaga Flavor Profile
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Texture |
Onaga is revered as one of the best snappers in the world. It is used both as sashimi and cooked. Raw Onaga has beautiful pinkish flesh with a creamy texture and mild sweetness. Cooked Onaga is white with a delicate, sweet flavor and large, moist flakes. Fish from the winter months have a higher fat content and are therefore considered better, especially for sushi. But summer Onaga is still very good.
Typical Cooking Methods
- Bake
- Broil
- Deep-Fry
- Grill
- Poach
- Saute
- Smoke
- Steam
- Sushi
Alternate Names
Hawaiian Red Snapper, Long-tail Snapper, Ula-ula, Ruby Snapper, Scarlet Snapper
Description (Etelis coruscans)
Onaga has beautiful brilliant red skin with a long, elegant swallow-like tail. In the days of the Hawaiian Kings, the fish was caught specifically for them, and today it is still often used in Hawaii to celebrate weddings and New Year’s. Average weight is between 1 – 18 pounds.
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Fresh Onaga Availability
Fresh seafood availability chart: green areas show peak availability, light green show limited availability, gray indicates not available fresh.
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Onaga Butchering Yield Percentage and Recovery
Item | To Skin/On Fillets | To Skin/Off Fillets | Notes |
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Whole Head/On ungutted | 38% | 34% | If you have additional yield info on this fish please leave a comment below. |
Yield % varies according to a number of factors including: size of fish, season, sex, and the skill of your fishmonger. |
Range & Habitat
Onaga is a bottomfish which inhabits deep waters of 600-1000 feet, especially around outcroppings along rocky b0ttoms. Onaga caught around the Hawaiian Islands range in size from 1 – 18 pounds, while Onaga caught in the South Pacific are typically larger.
Typical Wholesale Products
Whole Fish, Skin/On Fillets, Skin/Off Fillets
Onaga Sustainability Info
Name | Alternate Names | Catch Method | Catch Region |
Seafood Watch |
Ocean Wise |
Sea Choice |
Mercury Concerns |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Onaga | Hawaiian Red Snapper, Long-tail Snapper, Ula-ula, Ruby Snapper, Scarlet Snapper | Wild, Hook & Line, Handline | US Hawaii | ![]() |
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n/a |
Disclaimer: The sustainability info above is accurate to the best of our knowledge. However, each program randomly updates their information without our knowledge. We therefore recommend that you verify the current accuracy of this information. | |||||||
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Updated August 2013 |
Nutritional Informationbased upon a 6 oz (171 grams) raw edible serving.
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