Food glossary
What is Hake?
Hake — The various fish that come under the banner 'hake' are deep-sea members of the cod family and are popular throughout Europe and America. Hake is quite a mild fish, having a more subtle flavour than cod. In France it's known as 'saumon blanc', while in the US it's called ling or whiting (rather confusingly, whiting in Europe is a different, less tasty fish). One tip - if you're buying your hake…
The various fish that come under the banner 'hake' are deep-sea members of the cod family and are popular throughout Europe and America. Hake is quite a mild fish, having a more subtle flavour than cod.
In France it's known as 'saumon blanc', while in the US it's called ling or whiting (rather confusingly, whiting in Europe is a different, less tasty fish).
One tip - if you're buying your hake frozen, avoid the South American variety, which has a poorer flavour. Hake is easy to prepare, as it has few bones. You'll usually see it for sale fresh or frozen, whole, or as fillets and steaks. It's a reliable fish fried or poached or used in fish soup.
You can read more about whitefish in our Back to basics feature.