Many people are not familiar with such sea fish as the hare fish. If you are interested in knowing what this sea creature is, then this article is for you. We will discuss whether there are benefits from this fish. We will also find out whether it poses any harm to the human body.
To see this fish in full, you need to consult a reference book. The point is that she is not sold head on. You can only purchase fragments of its fish body, so to speak. They are sold in purified form. Therefore, it is very difficult to understand what kind of fish it is in its original form. There is a lot of deception on fish counters. Since the hare fish is often passed off as a simple hake or pollock. The cod-like little fish are similar to our marine species.
What is hare fish?
This fish is cartilaginous. She doesn't have a bubble. Therefore, in order to stay afloat, she constantly needs to be on the move. Like the shark, this fish will otherwise simply fall to the seabed. Hare is prepared like any other fish. It needs to be salted, then coated with flour or batter, and then fried in a hot frying pan.
Some sources indicate that this fish emits an unpleasant odor. But that's not true. Although the smell of hare is not as pleasant as the smell of cod, it does not stink to the point of disgrace. The taste of the finished fish is simply amazing. Regular fish has bones, but this one has cartilage. Thanks to this structure, fish meat is very easy to separate using cutlery.
Benefits and harms
Distrust of our fish is caused by the fact that it is considered an exotic product, and many people know absolutely nothing about it. In fact, hare fish meat is very nutritious and juicy. This fish was not considered suitable for consumption until the twentieth century. Now it is a rare delicacy in many expensive restaurants around the world. 
She's very helpful. It contains quite a lot of protein, which is easily and quickly absorbed by the human body. It also contains a lot of vitamins such as A, E, and D. Moreover, this fish is filled with useful minerals. Since fish contains a large amount of fatty acids, its meat is considered particularly nutritious. The calorie content of fish is such that for one hundred grams of its meat there are one hundred and sixteen kcal.
Is there any harm from eating this fish? You can only suffer if you are personally intolerant to this marine product. Our hare also has a poisonous fin. This is the top fin. Because of this, fish carcasses should be separated with extreme caution. The fish is quite oily. It should not be abused.
additional information
The fish has expressive eyes. Apparently, this is the reason that she was given such a name as a hare. But she is nothing more like an ordinary hare. Since fish lead an unusual lifestyle, they are sometimes called the rats of the seas. They feed on solid foods such as shellfish or crayfish. The fish's jaws are very powerful, so fishermen are very careful with this fish. The hare lays eggs. Scandinavians eat these eggs.
The price issue is not certain. The cost of fish fluctuates. In general, hare fish costs a little more than regular cod. But you won’t find our fish in every store. There is a better chance of finding this delicacy in special stores selling exotic marine products. The hare fish is also of the aquarium type. It is decorative and is not consumed as food. This kind of fish is very expensive.
It is believed that sellers sell fish much higher than the stated price. They may invent their own names for the hare fish to show it as a rarer and more expensive fish. Some even sell tasteless fish with tough meat, passing it off as a chimera. It is easy to fall for such deception.
The fact that the fish has a rather funny nickname. This suggests that it is not extremely rare. Abroad, it is found in many restaurants. You shouldn’t be afraid and believe all the nonsense about hare fish that you can find in various sources. This fish is healthy, tasty, and not very expensive.
If you have a chance to try the meat of this fish, do not deny yourself this pleasure. Be sure to try this one. Its taste is reminiscent of shark meat. Therefore, not everyone will like it as a main course. So, now you know what hare fish is. You know why it is useful and whether it can be dangerous. You have all the information you need about our exotic fish. You know that hare fish can be a great addition to your overall diet.
Recipe (video)
Sea hare is a tasty and healthy fish. It contains a large amount of easily digestible protein, vitamins A, E and D, macro- and microelements, as well as fatty acids, making the dishes very nutritious. The main thing is to choose the right semi-finished product. Sea hare is a fish sold frozen in our country. Moreover, it is recommended to buy a whole carcass, not fillet. Her eyes should be transparent and shiny, and her gills should be closed and red in color. Cutting the carcass will not take much time. Now you can start cooking.
Fish "Hare". Recipe with tomatoes
To prepare the dish, you will need to make fillet and cut it into pieces of one hundred grams. Let the rice cook as usual for a side dish. Cut four tomatoes into medium cubes and place in a deep saucepan. Simmer them a little under the lid over low heat. Next, add six chopped garlic cloves, a large spoon of your favorite seasoning, salt, bay leaf, dry parsley and ground pepper to the sauce. Simmer covered for another five minutes. Place the fish pieces in the pan. The dish will be ready in twenty minutes. Serve it with rice and sprinkle with sauce.
Sea hare (fish). Recipe with cheese
To prepare the dish, you need to cut the fish into thin slices (the weight of each of them should be no more than one hundred and fifty grams). Make the breading by mixing a glass of breadcrumbs and finely grated Parmesan with a pinch of salt. Beat the egg very well. First, roll each piece of fillet in flour. Then dip it into the beaten egg and finally into the breading. If desired, these steps can be repeated again. Fry for five minutes on each side. If desired, the dish can be baked in the oven at a temperature of two hundred degrees. This will take no more than fifteen minutes.
Sea Hare: "Fish for Beer"
To prepare the dish, you first need to make half a kilo of fillet and cut it into small thin pieces. The semi-finished product must not be completely defrosted. Coat each piece thickly with cayenne pepper and leave for half an hour. After the fish is completely defrosted, roll the portions in corn flour, to which it is recommended to add a little black pepper and salt. Heat a deep saucepan and add a glass of vegetable oil. Fry the pieces in boiling fat for three to five minutes on both sides. Next, place them on paper towels for a few minutes. This will remove excess oil. This dish can be served with beer either hot or chilled.
Sea hare: "Fish with garnish"
First you need to boil the rice as usual. Next, fry a portioned piece of fish weighing no more than two hundred grams in one frying pan. Place mugs of one onion and cubes of four tomatoes in a deep saucepan. Simmer the sauce for five to seven minutes. Then add five chopped cloves of garlic, ten olives, cut into circles, salt and black pepper. Simmer the sauce for ten minutes. Place on a plate as follows: first - a heap of rice, then - a piece of fish, pour sauce on top. Bon appetit!
The harefish is a close relative of the shark and stingray. This is a tasty and healthy fish. It contains a large amount of vitamins, amino acids and easily digestible protein. In our country it can only be purchased frozen. It is recommended to buy a whole carcass rather than ready-made fillets. Despite the large number of beneficial properties, its use can be harmful to human health.
A close relative of the shark has many names, one of them is the harefish. general description
Harefish, chimera, sea rabbit - these are names of the same creature. The peculiarity of this fish is the absence of a bladder, therefore, in order to constantly stay afloat, it must always move, otherwise it will simply lie on the bottom. Sea rabbit is widely used in cooking. It is prepared in the same way as any other fish.
The fish is unusual in addition to its appearance in that it does not have a bladder and the entire skeleton consists of cartilage
The chimera has large expressive eyes and a small mouth. There are 4 beak-shaped dental plates on the upper part of the jaw, and only 2 on the lower part. The body is elongated, the thinnest part is the back part. The fins are quite large. The skeleton is not made of bones, but of cartilage.
Because of its lifestyle, the chimera is called the rat of the seas. This is explained by the fact that it eats only solid food, such as shellfish or crayfish.
There is a system of sensory channels on the head. The skin is soft with rudimentary spines. The sea creature has a dark brown color with a reddish tint. There may be spots on the sides, the ventral side is lighter than the whole body. An adult can grow up to 1.5 m in length. The maximum weight of the fish is 2.5 kg.
It is almost impossible to purchase a whole sea rabbit on the market. It is cut up and sold in parts. Before buying, it is advisable to look at a photo of how it should look, otherwise you risk purchasing cod or hake at the price of a chimera.
Species and habitat
Distribution area of chimeras- The Pacific and Atlantic oceans, as well as the Barents Sea. There are 3 varieties in total. The fish with a plow-shaped head belongs to the family Callorhynchidae. It can be found in the coastal zone. This species is distinguished by its unusually shaped snout, so the fish easily finds mollusks on the sandy bottom.
The chimera may be one of three families, differing only in head shape The blunt-nosed species belongs to the family Chimaeridae. It lives at a depth of up to 500 m, has sensitive eyes, so it quickly notices smaller inhabitants that suit it as food.
The long-nosed chimera from the family Rhinochimaeridae can be found at quite great depths. It is distinguished by its sensitive and elongated snout, so it can find food even in the darkest waters.
Beneficial properties and harm
Sea hare fish is a rather exotic product, so before eating it, you need to familiarize yourself not only with its beneficial properties, but also with its potential dangers.
Beneficial features:
- a large amount of protein, which is quickly absorbed by the body;
- meat is low-calorie, so cooked fish quickly satisfies hunger without creating additional stress on the heart and kidneys;
- content of vitamins D, A and E, which help eliminate toxins;
- high content of fatty acids, which remove cholesterol from the body.
The meat of this fish has various beneficial properties, but eating improperly prepared sea rabbit can also be harmful to human health. Dishes made from such a product can be used to prevent the development of hypertension and atherosclerosis.
The chimera has a poisonous fin and may cause an allergic reaction
Despite the large number of positive properties, hare fish can cause harm to the body. Before purchasing and preparing a chimera, you need to pay attention for the following details:
- The sea rabbit has a poisonous fin. It is located on the top of the carcass. When cutting fish, you need to be very careful or buy carcasses without the dangerous fin.
- The fish is quite oily. Eating it frequently can lead to excess weight gain.
- An exotic product may cause an allergic reaction. Before eating, you must make sure there are no allergies. To do this, you need to try a small piece and monitor the body’s reaction.
In our latitudes, such fish is sold only frozen, so there is a risk of buying a product that has already been frozen several times. Frequent freezing not only kills beneficial substances, but also negatively affects the taste.
Cooking recipes
There is no single price for this fish, but it will definitely cost more than regular cod. You can’t find it in every store, as it is a rather exotic product. There are decorative versions of sea rabbits that cannot be eaten. The Chimera is not a rare fish. Quite often it can be found on the menu of European restaurants. There are a lot of myths about what meat is tasteless and hard. However, it is not
Cooking recipes There is a lot of this delicacy. The easiest option is to bake in the oven. For 0.5 kg of frozen fish you will need 2 tbsp. l. olive oil, 1 tsp. curry, carrots, cucumber, olives, salt and pepper. A mixture is prepared based on curry, pepper and salt, which will be used to rub the meat. Next, you need to wrap it in foil and put it in the oven for half an hour. After cooking, the dish must be kept in foil for 10 minutes.
There are a huge number of recipes for cooking sea rabbit, but most of them can be mastered by anyone who has ever cooked ordinary fish. No less tasty is recipe for sea rabbit in pomegranate sauce. For 1 kg of chimera you will need 1 tbsp. vegetable broth and the same amount of pomegranate juice. For cooking you also need garlic, onions, vegetable oil, nuts, tomato paste, salt and flour.
The fish is cleaned, cut into pieces, which are then rolled in flour and fried. Nuts, onions, peppers and garlic are mixed with juice and broth. Tomato paste is added to the resulting mass. The sauce is prepared over low heat, after boiling, fish is placed in it and simmered for 10 minutes. The best side dish for such a dish is boiled rice.
In terms of characteristics, sea rabbit fish is not quite similar to ordinary fish, but it is prepared in the same way as hake or cod. It is important that the chimera is fresh, otherwise the taste of the dish will be lost.
.. or Adventures of a Housewife.
Friends, recently at the market I saw a beautiful fish: a silvery carcass with spots without a head and tail, only 1 fin across the entire back, a clean stomach, white meat and no scales! Not a fish, but a housewife's dream!
The only thing that confused me was the name - Chimera.
What is a chimera
In a word Chimera in ancient Greece they called fictional monsters that combined parts of various animals - a lion, a goat and a snake. The ugly appearance was combined with an evil disposition.
But the fish lying in front of me was so good that, despite vague forebodings, I bought it.
How I prepared the chimera
At home, I quickly cleaned the chimera, cut it into pieces, salted and peppered it, rolled it in flour and put it in a frying pan in hot oil.
The fish was fried, but no golden crust or thick fishy smell appeared. Another time you fry fish, the smell is enough to take away the saints. And then time goes by and nothing happens!
I tried a thin piece - the fish is no longer raw, but it does not come off the spine, it crumbles.
The pug Filimon, a big fish lover, was hanging around nearby. We ate a small piece of the chimera with him. My mouth felt bitter.
Our pug loves fish)))
What kind of fish is a chimera?
Feeling a strange taste, I thought: “Maybe I’m cooking chimera fish incorrectly?” I decided to look on the Internet.
The very first headline blew me away. I quote:
Is chimera fish edible?
And then it was written: “Until the beginning of the 20th century, the Chimera fish was considered inedible.” True, the Scandinavians used its liver to prepare wound-healing medicines (well, this still doesn’t say anything, their knights and fly agarics ate them), and the cunning Japanese learned to cook the chimera in some special way (that is, it became clear that according to traditional fish You can’t cook a chimera with recipes).
What does a chimera fish look like?
A photo of the fish was attached to the description. Indeed, a monster: a huge head, large, white eyes, green pupil. The pectoral fins are so large that they resemble wings, and half of the one and a half meter body is a thin tail. It's not for nothing that a chimera is on sale - without a head and tail...
That's what she is, a chimera. Photo: blogtiburones.com
No, the fish cannot be called ugly. She's just scary. Maybe that’s why there are legends about how, having gathered in a flock, predatory chimeras attack people, gnawing off pieces of them.
Arctic chimera, drawing: twinkleinglight.tumblr.com
Do chimeras really attack humans?
I think that these are fairy tales and not true, after all, the chimera is a deep-sea fish. But I don’t recommend dating her, even fried. The bitterness in my mouth remained for several hours. What if the piece of fish eaten was larger?
Imagine the epitaph... “Natasha Rybka, who died from the Chimera fish”)))))))
Afterword
I didn’t take a photo of either the fresh or the fried chimera, I was so stunned by the whole situation at the time. And a week later I went to the market again, to the fish rows. To take a picture of this strange, conditionally edible (or, still not?) creature for history.
The chimera was in place. But instead of its terrible name, the price tag read: sea hare. I thought it was disguised. Well, what can you expect from a chimera?
I asked the seller why you sell inedible fish. She assured that that batch of chimera (aka sea hare) was frozen incorrectly, which is why it tasted bitter. Well, you know, I didn’t bother checking to see if this was true, health is more valuable.
Also, for impressionable dog breeders, I hasten to assure that not a single pug was harmed during the preparation of the chimera.)))
Well, can this long tail of a chimera be called a fin?! This is just some kind of whip. Photo: zoosite.com.ua
Comments from the site administration
We also became interested in the question of what kind of fish this is, a chimera.
First, we looked through the search to see what they were looking for with the word Chimera. The results were impressive. This is not only Max Fry’s Nests of Chimeras... a chimera’s claw (we didn’t find claws on the fish), and a house with chimeras (what a horror), and a harpy, a gargoyle (also scary), at the behest of a pike (some optimists were looking for this), Woland , tantalum torment and even Homeric laughter.
We ended up on an Italian forum, where one of the participants told with surprise how he found this wonderful fish on the counter, asking his friends how it could even be that this horror ended up on the market.
We quote:
I agree that it is a shame to see a chimera (sea rabbit) among the game fish...Probably, she was caught by accident, it was a pity to abandon her, so they tried to sell the chimera. But I don't know anyone who has the courage to eat a chimera!
Thank you very much for your comments about the sea rabbit (chimera). Now it needs to be put in the refrigerator, tomorrow I will bring it to the marine biology department where we meet, and I think it will be preserved in formaldehyde.
Hi all.
one lady asked:
One thing is not clear to me...
You are indignant because you are disgusted to see a chimera on sale,because: 1) it is a rare species that cannot be caught or 2) it tastes lame?
What different and unusual fish exist in nature, and what names have not been invented for them! For example, the chimera fish: the very name of this animal evokes not the most pleasant associations. But if you look at this inhabitant of the deep sea, opinions may differ. Some see a very cute and cute fish that looks like a soaring bird, while others see a monster. So who is she really, this mysterious sea resident, who is also called by another strange name - sea hare fish.
Very close relatives of the chimera are and: they are all cartilaginous fish and have a backbone made of cartilaginous tissue. Look at the photo of the chimera fish and try to find similarities with sharks!
All the most interesting things about chimeras
When the name chimera is mentioned, it does not mean that there is only one single species. The genus Chimaera (lat. Chimaera) unites 6 species, of which the most famous is the European chimera (lat. Chimaera monstrosa) from the eastern Atlantic. There is a Cuban chimera (Chimaera cubana), which was initially mistaken for a European one, but was later identified as an independent species. It lives off the coast of Cuba at a depth of 400-500 meters. Other species of the genus Chimera are known from the waters of the eastern Pacific Ocean (Philippine Islands, Yellow Sea and Japanese Islands).
Place of chimeras in the fish system
The genus Chimera, of which the European chimera is a representative, is included in the family Chimaeridae, in which there is another genus with species that differ from the genus Chimera in the shape of the caudal fin.
All fish of the Chimaera family have a blunt snout. This is an important difference from other families of the Chimaeriformes order, including the family. Nosed chimeras with a very elongated snout and a pointed one at the end. And the third family is the proboscis-snouted chimeras (Callorhynchaceae). They are distinguished by the elongated and bent down and back of the front end of the snout.
Below, in the photo, chimera fish are depicted in drawings, and you can see the differences in the structure of the snout in representatives of each family, which were mentioned above.
Representatives of the order Chimera: 1 - fam. Chimaeras; 2 - sem. Proboscis snouts (Callorhynchaceae) and fam. Nosed chimeras. As already mentioned at the beginning of the article, the chimera fish is cartilaginous, and accordingly, belongs to the class “Cartilaginous fish,” which has two subclasses. Having much in common in internal and external structure with elasmobranchs (sharks and rays), chimeras differ from them in that their upper jaw is completely fused with the skull. Therefore, they are classified into the subclass Whole-headed or Joint-skulled.
Appearance of chimaeras
All chimaeras have a characteristic body shape: valval, slightly compressed laterally and very thin towards the tail. This is clearly visible in the photo of the sea hare fish (European chimera).
Other features of the appearance of chimera representatives:
- There are two fins on the back, the first is tall and short, having a powerful spike in front, which together with it, if necessary, fits into a special groove in the back. The second is long and can stretch all the way to the base of the caudal fin and does not fold.
- The caudal fin is often shaped like a long cord.
- The pectoral fins are very well developed and each of them is shaped like a fan.
- The pelvic fins are smaller than the pectoral fins and are located next to the anus, being pushed back.
- At the base, all paired fins are equipped with fleshy blades, thin and flexible.
- The lower mouth (lower) of chimeras has a characteristic three-lobed upper lip.
- The gill openings located on the sides of the head are covered by a fold of skin supported by finger-like cartilages.
- The naked body, devoid of placoid scales, is covered with a large amount of mucus.
Spine in the first dorsal fin of a European chimera. European chimeras - beauties or beasts?
The European chimera has the Latin name Chimaera monstrosa, which evokes associations with some kind of monster. This fish has many names, one of the names that the chimera fish bears is the hare. This may be due to the large, slightly elongated pectoral fins and huge eyes. It is also called sea rabbit fish, apparently for the same reasons.
And among the Norwegians, the chimera is a royal fish. It is called so because of the thin bony growth curved backwards, which is located between the eyes of males.
A stylized image of a male chimera with a bony growth between its eyes. The body length of the European chimera can be up to one or one and a half meters, and its tail is very long and thin, so another name has been assigned to it - the sea rat.
What color is the chimera?
Rudimentary spines are sometimes found on the bare skin of the European chimera. However, the skin looks smooth and soft and has a characteristic color:
- the back is in dark brown and golden shades in combination with brown and whitish, a dark brown stripe stretches along the upper part of the back;
- the ventral side of the body is light;
- a blackish-brown edging is noticeable on the back of the long dorsal fin, as well as on the caudal and anal fins.
The color image of the chimera is completed by the green color of the pupil against the background of the white iris of its huge eyes.
European chimera, photo by Roman Fedortsov, Murmansk, @rfedortsov_official_account Distribution, lifestyle and movement
The European chimera fish is not found in tropical waters. Its range is the eastern part of the Atlantic Ocean:
- In northern waters - from the Strait of Gibraltar (coastal waters of Morocco) to the island of Iceland and the Scandinavian Peninsula, entering the Barents Sea.
- Southern waters - near the coast of southern Africa (this information requires confirmation).
The sea hare fish spends most of its life at the bottom, so ichthyologists classify it as a bathydimersal (bottom deep-sea) fish. After all, the depth at which it can be found is from 40 to 1400 meters. But most often this species lives at relatively shallow depths: two hundred to five hundred meters (in the northernmost part of its range) and three hundred and fifty to seven hundred meters (in the waters off the coast of Morocco). By winter it comes to coastal waters, where off the coast of Norway (where the depth is from 90 to 180 meters) a number of individuals can be caught by trawls.
These fish are quite gentle and do not resist at all when caught. Once removed from the water, they die very quickly. Placed in an aquarium, they do not survive well.
Way to travel
The chimera or sea rabbit fish is not a fast and high-speed swimmer, and it does not need it. See how gracefully it moves with the eel-like curve of its rear body and tail and the undulating wing-like movements of its large pectoral fins. The pelvic fins are also involved in ensuring the swimming of the fish; they are located horizontally and act as movement stabilizers.
Being at the bottom, chimeras can “stand” on the ground, resting on almost all of their fins: the pectoral and pelvic fins serve as four limbs, and the tail serves as additional support.
Nutrition issue
This part of the article is devoted to two questions:
- what does sea rabbit fish eat?
- Is it possible to eat chimera fish, that is, sea rabbit?
The diet of chimeras consists mainly of benthic invertebrates. Among them are mollusks, crustaceans (mainly crabs), echinoderms (sea urchins, brittle stars). Small fish were only occasionally found in their stomachs. When examining the contents of the chimeras' digestive tract, it was discovered that they do not swallow food whole, but bite off small pieces of prey or crush it with strong dental plates.
Do people eat chimeras?
So, is it possible to eat chimera fish? There is no definitive answer to this question. Fishing for chimaeras is carried out off the Pacific coast of the United States; they are caught in Chile and Argentina, as well as in the waters of New Zealand and China. The volume of production is especially large in New Zealand, where representatives of the family Callorhynchidae (proboscis-snouted chimeras) are caught.
Only fresh callorhynchus meat, which has excellent taste, is suitable for food. However, if it sits for even a little while, it begins to emit an unpleasant odor of ammonia. For housewives, the chimera cartilaginous fish, which has no scales or hard bones, is, of course, very convenient to prepare.
Fat is extracted from the liver of chimeras, which has long been known as an excellent wound healing agent.
The current trend towards increasing the volume of catch of the European chimera by deep-sea trawling for the purpose of producing medicines from the liver oil of this fish has led to the inclusion of this species in the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List. The chimera hare fish has a protected status as a species close to a vulnerable position.
