SushiUniversity®

Sevenband grouper (Mahata)

【Nigiri sushi: Shiromi】
What is Sevenband grouper (Hata)?
Mahata (Sevenband grouper) is distributed from southern Hokkaido to the East China Sea, excluding the Ryukyu Islands. It inhabits shallow to deep reef areas along the coast. The larger the size, the deeper the habitat. Its length exceeds 1 meter. Natural Mahata is rarely seen in the Toyosu market, and a rare large one can cost more than US$200. Although aquaculture has become popular, the price is still high.

What does Mahata sushi taste like?
The shiny pale-pink flesh has a fine taste, rich texture and sweetness. The very scarce ingredient that can rarely be seen at even fancy sushi restaurant counter. If you find one, don’t miss the opportunity to try it.

Also called True bass.

【Nutrition and Effects of Mahata】
This fish contains high levels of glutamate, aspartic acid, alanine, leucine and other amino acids that are known as umami components, and are the source of this fish’s deliciousness. If Hata sashimi is matured for two to three days, the umami condenses, giving it a good flavor. This happens because of the mechanism of the amino acids mentioned above, which brings out the umami.

【Substitute fish】
Orange-spotted grouper: Epinephelus coioides (Hamilton, 1822)
Duskytail grouper: Epinephelus bleekeri (Vaillant,1878)

(Revision date: January 17, 2024)