CarneAtlas

Grouper

Fish · Serranidae
Grouper — Serranidae fish

NOAA, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Also called
🇲🇽🇦🇷🇪🇸Mero🇫🇷Mérou🇵🇹🇧🇷Garoupa🇮🇹Cernia🇩🇪Zackenbarsch

Grouper is one of the most prized fish in Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean. Multiple species — red grouper, black grouper, and gag grouper — appear under the same market name. All share firm, white, mildly sweet flesh that holds up well to grilling, frying, and baking. The grouper sandwich is an iconic Florida coastal staple. In Mexico it is called mero and is fundamental to Yucatecan cuisine — mero frito and mero a la plancha are found on coastal menus from Veracruz to Quintana Roo. In Portugal and Brazil it is garoupa; in France, mérou.

Useful gear for preparing fish

$ · lifting and turning delicate fish fillets

OXO Good Grips Little Fish Turner

Sliding beneath fillets and turning them with less tearing than a thick spatula.

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$$ · filleting, skinning, and trimming whole fish

Victorinox Fibrox 8-Inch Flexible Fillet Knife

Following the bones and contours of whole fish with a narrow, flexible blade.

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Names by country

CountryNameNotes
🇺🇸United StatesGrouperprimaryRed grouper and black grouper are the most common market species — the grouper sandwich is a Florida institution
🇬🇧United KingdomGrouper
🇲🇽MexicoMeroThe dominant fish of Yucatecan and Gulf Coast Mexican cuisine — mero frito, mero a la plancha
🇦🇷ArgentinaMero
🇫🇷FranceMérou
🇪🇸SpainMero
🇵🇹PortugalGaroupa
🇧🇷BrazilGaroupaPopular in northeastern Brazilian coastal cuisine
🇮🇹ItalyCerniaMultiple Mediterranean grouper species fall under 'cernia' — bruna, dorata, di scoglio.
🇩🇪GermanyZackenbarsch

Culinary substitutes

Huachinango
Huachinango

Both are firm, white, mild-flavored fish from the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean — grouper is meatier and thicker-fleshed, red snapper is sweeter with more character.

Loup de mer
Loup de mer

Both are prized mild white fish well suited to whole cooking and restaurant menus — grouper is firmer and more robust, sea bass more delicate.

Rabirrubia
Rabirrubia

Both are Florida Keys and Caribbean reef fish suited to whole cooking — yellowtail snapper is more delicate, grouper is meatier and holds up better to frying.