The same fish can have four names in Singapore. Your mother calls it ngor her, the recipe says threadfin, the market sign says ikan kurau and the menu writes 午鱼. Here are the names we use every day at our Jurong West stall for the fish customers ask about most, in English, Chinese, Malay and the dialect names you will hear at the market.
Fish names table
| English | Chinese | Malay | Also called |
|---|---|---|---|
| King mackerel | 巴当鱼 | Ikan batang, ikan tenggiri | Batang, Spanish mackerel |
| Spotted mackerel | 马鲛鱼 | Beh ka | |
| Indian mackerel | Ikan kembong | ||
| Saba mackerel | 鯖 | Saba | |
| Threadfin | 午鱼 | Ikan kurau | Ngor her |
| Black pomfret | 黑鲳 (hei chang) | Bawal hitam | Orh chiu |
| Golden pomfret | 金鲳 | Bawal emas | Gun chew |
| Red grouper | 红石斑 | Ikan kerapu | |
| Black grouper | 黑石斑 | Ikan kerapu | |
| Flower grouper | 花斑 (hua ban) | Ikan kerapu | Huay gau, garoupa |
| Red snapper | 红鸡 | ||
| Emperor red snapper | 红狮 | ||
| Goldband snapper | 红哥里 | Ang go li | |
| Golden snapper | 红潮 (hong chao) | Ikan ungah | Ang zhou |
| Sea bass, barramundi | 金目鲈, 鲈鱼 | Ikan siakap | |
| Leather jacket | 拔皮鱼 | Batik | |
| Parrot fish | 鹦嘴鱼 | Ying ko | |
| Yellowtail | 黄尾鱼 | Potato fish | |
| Scad | 巴肚 | Ikan batu | |
| Yellowtail scad | Ikan selar | ||
| Yellowstripe scad | Ikan kuning | ||
| Kee yu | 记鱼 (ji yu) | Kee he | |
| Yellow croaker | 黄花鱼 (huang hua yu) | ||
| Cod | 鳕鱼 | ||
| Atlantic salmon | 三文鱼 |
Names that get mixed up
- 马鲛鱼 is not always batang. Some sellers use 马鲛鱼 for every mackerel. At our stall it means beh ka, the smaller spotted mackerel, and batang is 巴当鱼. Read our batang guide for the full story.
- Ngor her is threadfin. Ngor her shun (午鱼顺) is a small threadfin we bring in for Chinese New Year. More in our threadfin guide.
- Kerapu covers every grouper. In Malay, red, black and flower grouper are all ikan kerapu, so say the colour when you order.
- Red snapper, emperor red snapper and ang go li are three different fish. Emperor red snapper is the firmest and the top choice for steamboat slices, red snapper is the softest, and ang go li is the local favourite for curry and assam.
- Ikan batu and ikan kuning are cooked the same way and cost about the same, so we suggest batu when kuning is not available that day.
Not sure what you are looking for?
Send us the name your family uses, in any language, and we will tell you which fish it is and how we would cut it. WhatsApp Xavier, or browse everything at the stall, delivered islandwide and free for orders over $75.
Going deeper on one family? Read our grouper, snapper and pomfret guides.
More on sea bass (ikan siakap, 金目鲈) and cod (鳕鱼)? Read our sea bass guide and cod guide.
