Species sheet · The Edible Ocean
Surmullet
Red and gold, with two barbels scouting the sand ahead.
- Grilled whole, scales left on, à la niçoise
- Pan-seared fillets over fennel purée
- Fried whole, lightly floured
- In French
- Rouget-barbet
- Scientific name
- Mullus surmuletus
- In the water
- Sandy or rocky coastal bottoms of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, from the surface down to about 90 metres, often in small groups.
- Season & buying
- Best in summer, when it moves onto the warmest coastal grounds.
- Common length
- ~20 cm
- How to identify it
- One unbroken golden stripe from eye to tail
Two long barbels under the chin
Dorsal fin banded in red and yellow
On the plate
Fine, delicate flesh, one of the most prized fish in the Mediterranean; even the liver is eaten.
Avoid: Gutting it before cooking if the recipe calls for keeping the liver: it is what flavours the whole fish.
The surmullet sweeps the sand with its two barbels to flush out worms, shellfish and small crustaceans, much like a metal detector.
In Umay recipes
One Umay recipe calls for it.
