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Loup de mer

Fish · Moronidae

Loup de mer in English is Sea bass. It belongs to the Moronidae family; the names below show how the same fish is sold across international markets.

Also called
🇺🇸🇬🇧Sea bass🇲🇽🇪🇸Lubina🇵🇹Robalo🇮🇹Branzino🇩🇪Wolfsbarsch
→ How it's cooked: Loup de Mer au Fenouil (Whole Sea Bass with Fennel)
Loup de mer — Moronidae fish

Elelicht, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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European sea bass is one of the great naming confusion fish — the same farmed species is called loup de mer in France, lubina in Spain, branzino in Italy, and robalo in Portugal and Brazil. It has delicate white flesh, few bones, and a clean mild flavor. Farmed extensively in the Mediterranean, it is most commonly cooked whole — roasted in salt crust, grilled over open flame, or baked with herbs.

Names by country

CountryNameNotes
🇺🇸United StatesSea bassOften sold as branzino in the US, using the Italian name
🇬🇧United KingdomSea bass
🇲🇽MexicoLubinaIn Mexico robalo refers to snook, not European sea bass
🇫🇷FranceLoup de merprimaryEn croûte de sel (in a salt crust) is the classic French preparation
🇪🇸SpainLubina
🇵🇹PortugalRobalo
🇮🇹ItalyBranzinoAlso called 'spigola' in southern Italy; whole-roasted or al sale (in salt crust).
🇩🇪GermanyWolfsbarschSometimes sold under the French loanword 'Loup de mer' on restaurant menus.

Does your butcher call it something else?

Classic recipe

Loup de Mer au Fenouil (Whole Sea Bass with Fennel)25 min

The Provençal way with loup de mer, the fish Italy calls branzino and Spain lubina: a whole sea bass stuffed with fennel…

Culinary substitutes

Dorada
Dorada

Both are farmed Mediterranean fish with mild white flesh, similar size, and best cooked whole — sea bass is slightly more delicate, bream slightly sweeter.

Bacalhau
Bacalhau

Both are mild white fish suited to similar preparations — sea bass is more delicate and expensive, cod is firmer and more robust.

Huachinango
Huachinango

Monkfish tail is used as a substitute for sea bass in stews and roasts due to its firm texture — monkfish is denser and more robust, sea bass more delicate.

Robalo
Robalo

Both are prized coastal white fish with mild, firm flesh — snook has a slightly stronger flavor and is found in warmer waters.

Grouper
Grouper

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

Striped bass
Striped bass

Both are Moronidae with firm white flesh, ideal roasted whole or seared skin-on, and they are the closest true equivalents across the Atlantic — but they are different species. Striped bass runs larger and tastes fuller; European sea bass is more delicate and usually sold at plate size.

Often confused with

Loup de mer vs Sea basssame fishLoup de mer vs DoradaLoup de mer vs BacalhauLoup de mer vs HuachinangoLoup de mer vs Robalo

Handling fish at home

Fresh whole fish ready for preparation

$$ · filleting, skinning, and trimming whole fish

Fillet a whole fish without wasting half of it

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

Victorinox Fibrox 8-Inch Flexible Fillet Knife

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