Dear Terry,
The fish I believe you are referring to is Pangasius bocourti. This is a
catfish that is grown in Vietnam. The species is raised in pens on the
Mekong River.
It is not related to roughy (except in being a fish). It was touted as a
roughy substitute when it was being introduced into the US market a couple
of years ago. It has also been sold as Chinese sole among other
things.Today it is widely marketed as basa. There are a number of related
species also marketed in this country, often as basa. One of the more
prominent is Pangasius hypophthalmus.
Availability of the product in the US has been growing rapidly. Imports
into the US were reported to be 3.4 million lbs Jan. through July 2000
versus 1.1 million lbs. for the same period in 1999.
In working with the fish I have found it to have mild flavor and odor.
Texture is similar to the catfish grown in the US. It readily accepts
flavors in recipes and handles well. The shape of the fillet gives very
good plate coverage. On the downside, there has been the occasional
complaint about "muddy" or "freshwater" flavors.
Hope this gives you a start.
George Souza
Southstream Seafoods
401-737-2300
----- Original Message -----
From: "Terry Hall" <thall@aholdusa.com>
To: <seafood@ucdavis.edu>
Sent: Thursday, February 01, 2001 6:32 AM
Subject: Bocourti hybrid
> Hello All,
> I'm interested in any information I can obtain about a fish called
> Bocourti. All I know about it is it's a fresh water farm raised hybrid
> product. A company has a "White Ruffy" brand from Vietnam. Is this a type
> of roughy? Also, does anyone know the market name for this fish?
> Thanks
> Terry Hall
> Giant Food Stores, Inc.
>
>
>
>
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