Milt is the seminal fluid of

fish Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of ...

, mollusks, and certain other water-dwelling animals which reproduce by spraying this fluid, which contains the sperm, onto

roe Roe ( ) or hard roe is the fully ripe internal egg masses in the ovaries, or the released external egg masses, of fish and certain marine animals such as shrimp, scallop, sea urchins and squid. As a seafood, roe is used both as a cooked in ...

(fish eggs). It can also refer to the sperm sacs or testes that contain the semen.

Milt as food

Milt or soft roe also refers to the male

genitalia A sex organ (or reproductive organ) is any part of an animal or plant that is involved in sexual reproduction. The reproductive organs together constitute the reproductive system. In animals, the testis in the male, and the ovary in the female, a ...

of fish when they contain sperm, used as food. Many cultures eat milt, often fried, though not usually as a dish by itself. In Indonesian cuisine, the milt (called ''telur ikan''; fish egg) of snakehead and snapper is usually made into

kari Kari or KARI may refer to: Places *Kari, Jhunjhunu, a village in Rajasthan, India * , a village in Mouhoun Province, Burkina Faso *Kari, Tikamgarh, a town in Madhya Pradesh, India * Kari, Iran, a village in Bushehr Province, Iran * Kari-ye Bozorg ( ...

or woku. In

Japanese cuisine Japanese cuisine encompasses the regional and traditional foods of Japan, which have developed through centuries of political, economic, and social changes. The traditional cuisine of Japan (Japanese: ) is based on rice with miso soup and oth ...

, the testes (白子 ''shirako'' 'white children') of cod (''tara''), anglerfish (''ankō''),

salmon Salmon () is the common name for several commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family Salmonidae, which are native to tributaries of the North Atlantic (genus ''Salmo'') and North Pacific (genus '' Oncorhy ...

(''sake''), squid (''ika'') and pufferfish ('' fugu'') are eaten. In Korean cuisine, the milt ( ''iri'') of

Alaska pollock The Alaska pollock or walleye pollock (''Gadus chalcogrammus'') is a marine fish species of the cod genus '' Gadus'' and family Gadidae. It is a semi-pelagic schooling fish widely distributed in the North Pacific, with largest concentrations ...

, cod, blackmouth angler,

bogeo The fugu (; ; ) in Japanese, ''bogeo'' (; 鰒魚) or ''bok'' () in Korean, and ''hétún'' (河豚; 河魨) in Standard Modern Chinese is a pufferfish, normally of the genus ''Takifugu'', '' Lagocephalus'', or '' Sphoeroides'', or a porcupinefis ...

, and sea bream are eaten. In Romanian cuisine, the milt of carp and other fresh water fish is called "Lapți" (from the Latin word '' lactes'') and is usually fried. In Russian cuisine, herring milt (молока, "Moloka") is pickled the same way as the rest of the fish, but eaten separately, sometimes combined with pickled herring roe. Various whitefish soft roes are usually consumed fried and it is an inexpensive everyday dish. In Sicilian cuisine, the milt of

tuna A tuna is a saltwater fish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the Scombridae ( mackerel) family. The Thunnini comprise 15 species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, ranging from the bullet tuna (max len ...

is called "Lattume" and is used as a typical pasta topping. In British cuisine, soft cod roes are a traditional dish, usually fried in butter and spread on toast. File:Smelt milt.jpg, Smelt milt File:Shirako.JPG, Shirako gunkanmaki File:Alaska pollack liver roe milt.jpg,

liver The liver is a major organ only found in vertebrates which performs many essential biological functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the synthesis of proteins and biochemicals necessary for digestion and growth. In humans, it ...

, and milt

References

* Reproduction in animals Fish products Semen {{biology-stub

Milt as food

See also

References