Sweetlip = morwong

[Nic]

I was in Woolworths yesterday and they had whole morwong (slatey bream, mother-in-law fish) listed as sweetlip. I was pretty unimpressed and looked up the species on the DPI's Fishweb site.

I was amazed to find that slatey bream ARE actually classified as painted sweetlip -- although I'm sure many of you already knew this. I had heard that grassies and red-throats had been officially put under the 'emperor' umbrella under the new naming rules, but it was still a shock to hear morwong called sweetlip... it felt like heresy!

Anyway, it's a warning to be careful when ordering sweetlip at a restaurant or fish & chip shop. I know slateys are edible, as I have tried one myself, but they're a poor substitute for an emperor species.

[disorderly]

I've never been actually able to bring myself to eat one of those....
With the fantastic array of easily caught reef fish ...a great majority of which are very tasty...why would anyone want to eat a "mother-in-law" fish???.

I thought this widespread mislabeling scam was finally being rectified...but obviously not.

Anyway Nic I doubt you will get caught out buying them...you surely must have a freezer full of yummy red coloured fish after some successful reef trips,dont you.

Scott

[Nic]

Well, actually I was at Woolies to buy calamari to accompany some coral trout we had vac-packed. Still, I sometimes order fish while eating out, and I wouldn't want to be caught out.

I know some Ausfishers would already know morwong are called sweetlip, but for all those who didn't know I just wanted to give a head's up!

[Scott nthQld]

Hey Nic, They also go by the name Blackall so watchout for that one too

[Roo]

I've tried some of this fish....i didn't think there was anything wrong with it. My Nephew had caught it off Hervey bay and Dad cooked it up that night on the barbie with just a bit of lemon and butter, was surprised how good it was. I'd heard their nickname of Mother in law fish and had preconceived ideas about it to be honest....but it was good eating.

Cheers Roo.

[stickbender]

The small morwongs are good if you put then in the smoker

[jtpython]

We used to get some big ones around the keppels and at certain times of the year are as good as any reef fish but you soon know if you bleed them, but they make good BBQ fish to give to ya mates (that you don't care much for)
No seriously some are good chewing bleeded and the top fleash along the top taken off is quite good not that i have eaten one for a long time now.
Yes is strange when you've grown up with sweetlip as ya grassy's and red throats and spangleds to think they have all come under the emporer catigory and the MOKE under painted sweetlips but such is the way it is
Cheers
JT

[castlemaine]

I've tried some of this fish....i didn't think there was anything wrong with it. My Nephew had caught it off Hervey bay and Dad cooked it up that night on the barbie with just a bit of lemon and butter, was surprised how good it was. I'd heard their nickname of Mother in law fish and had preconceived ideas about it to be honest....but it was good eating.

Cheers Roo.

I have to agree, I'm a very fussy fish eater but found morwong very nice eating. Won't be throwing them back again.
The retailers should mark fish with their rightful names, so no confusion.

[bennykenny]

they are named as sweetlip on the DPI website how is this any kind of mislabeling, if its good enough for the dpi to call the sweetlip, cant woolworths

I thought this widespread mislabeling scam was finally being rectified...but obviously not.

The retailers should mark fish with their rightful names, so no confusion.

[Benno1]

they have to make the names more "palatable" to move product...Mowong VS Painted Sweetlip...*dingdingding*...we have a winner

Mrs Benno1

[disorderly]

they are named as sweetlip on the DPI website how is this any kind of mislabeling, if its good enough for the dpi to call the sweetlip, cant woolworths

B/K...I dont agree...I think that heaping a bunch of fish under the same common name is unacceptable for marketing purposes...particularly when there may be different eating qualities involved...

Call it for what it is so the consumer can differentiate and is aware what they are purchasing.

Scott

[Scott nthQld]

Scott,

I seriously doubt that the average person buying fish from Woolies would know the difference between a slatey and a sweetlip, after all, most of them are the same people that buy Basa fillets.

Slatey's aren't that bad eating, I think we're just spoilt for choice up here, and when there are nannies, reds and trout on offer, you don't want your esky filled with slatey's, taking up valuable space in the esky and numbers in your bag.

[Nic]

I'm thinking Woolworths should have been specific and called the fish 'painted sweetlip' to avoid any confusion. That's how they are named on the DPI site and in the new standardised Fish Names Brand Scheme (I just looked them up to check.)

I suppose after a few years we'll get used to hearing red-throats and the like being called emperors, we just have to get through this teething stage where we're all getting used to more retailers using the standardised system.

Anyway, no matter what happens, when we see a whole fish at the fishmonger's we all know exactly what it is... no labels necessary.

[Outsider1]

Here is a link to the new "Standard" fish names;

http://www.marine.csiro.au/caabsearc...ish_names_list

If you go down the page to Painted Sweetlip and click through you will see that the old marketing name was "Sweetlip Bream", and that they are part of the "Grunter Bream" family; Haemulidae.

Part of the problem is the common perceptions of what are called Sweetlip. Most are actually part of the Emperor family.

Cheers

Dave

[bennykenny]

B/K...I dont agree...I think that heaping a bunch of fish under the same common name is unacceptable for marketing purposes...particularly when there may be different eating qualities involved...

Call it for what it is so the consumer can differentiate and is aware what they are purchasing.

Scott

so the next time i go and buy mariln fillets i should ask if the are blue, black or striped marlin Apart from all that im still trying to figure out why they renamed the fish painted sweetlip, if i was to think of a painted fish i would think it would have a lot of bright colours