Mentaiko substitutes
Mentaiko substitutes — 6 options, ranked, with the exact amount
Use Tarako plus chilli
Same amount as the mentaiko
Plus ½ tsp gochugaru or ½ tsp sriracha per sac
Tarako is the same product without the chilli, so use it 1:1 and add half a teaspoon of gochugaru or a squeeze of sriracha per sac. Salted or smoked cod roe is the next closest at 1:1 and is much easier to find in European shops. Grated bottarga will give you the salt and the deep marine flavour at about one tablespoon per sac, but it brings no creaminess, so add an extra tablespoon of butter and a spoonful of pasta water. Understand what you are replacing: mentaiko is doing three jobs at once, salt, marine umami and creamy body, and most substitutes only cover two.
- Verdict —
- Works
- Best for —
- mentaiko pasta
Updated 26 Jul 2026 · no sponsored swaps
Every option, one card
Ranked| # | Substitute | Instead of mentaiko | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tarako plus chillimentaiko pasta | Same amountPlus ½ tsp gochugaru or ½ tsp sriracha per sacWorks | Works |
| 2 | Salted or smoked cod roementaiko pasta | Same amount by weightWorks | Works |
| 3 | Taramasalatapasta sauce | About 3 tbsp per sac of mentaiko, and cut the butter by halfYou'll taste it | You'll taste it |
| 4 | Grated bottargapasta | 1 tbsp grated per sac (about 40g), plus 1 tbsp extra butterYou'll taste it | You'll taste it |
| 5 | Ikura, masago or tobiko, mashed with butterpasta | Same amount by volumeYou'll taste it | You'll taste it |
| 6 | Anchovy paste plus Japanese mayonnaisementaiko pasta | 2 tsp anchovy paste + 2 tbsp mayonnaise per serving, plus a pinch of gochugaru and shredded noriYou'll taste it | You'll taste it |
Tarako plus chilli
similar taste and texture
Literally the same roe, cured without the chilli marinade.
- Best for
- mentaiko pasta, onigiri filling, rice bowls, mentaiko mayonnaise, grilled on rice
Identical texture and identical salinity, so the only gap is heat and a little of the marinade's savoury depth. Gochugaru keeps it clean and Japanese-tasting; sriracha adds sugar and garlic, which is fine in a pasta and wrong on plain rice. Stir the chilli in and let it sit ten minutes before using.
Salted or smoked cod roe
similar taste and texture
The European equivalent, sold as smoked cod roe in Britain and as the base of Greek taramas.
- Best for
- mentaiko pasta, dips and spreads, on toast, rice bowls
Very close in behaviour: fine-grained roe that melts into butter and cream the same way. Smoked versions add a distinct smokiness that mentaiko does not have, which tastes good but no longer tastes Japanese. It is usually saltier, so use a little less and do not salt the sauce at all.
Taramasalata
different taste and texture
Cod roe that has already been emulsified with oil, bread and lemon, which is a shortcut and a compromise at once.
- Best for
- pasta sauce, spreads, dips
It brings the roe flavour and the creamy body in one step, but it is looser, much more lemony and often garlicky, and the bread in it dulls the roe. A mentaiko pasta made this way is pleasant and noticeably tangier. Reduce or skip the added butter and cream, since the emulsion already has fat.
Grated bottarga
different taste and texture
Dried, pressed mullet or tuna roe, and the most intense of the substitutes.
- Best for
- pasta, rice bowls, finishing dishes
This delivers the salt and a deeper, drier, more concentrated marine flavour, but no creaminess at all, because the water is gone. Add butter and a good splash of starchy pasta water so the sauce still coats. It is much saltier than mentaiko, so add no other salt and taste before adding more.
Ikura, masago or tobiko, mashed with butter
different taste and texture
Right flavour family, wrong physical behaviour, and worth knowing why.
- Best for
- pasta, rice bowls, toast
These are loose beads with tough membranes, so they stay whole rather than dissolving into a sauce; you end up with roe scattered on pasta instead of roe sauce coating it. Mash them into softened butter with the back of a spoon first to break some of them down, and accept a chunkier, less silky result.
Anchovy paste plus Japanese mayonnaise
different taste and texture
The genuine pantry fake, honest about how far it gets.
- Best for
- mentaiko pasta, mentaiko mayonnaise for bread or potatoes, rice bowls
This covers all three jobs in the right proportions, salt, umami and creamy body, and it makes a good dish. It does not taste like mentaiko: anchovy is more savoury and less marine-sweet, and there is none of the faint granular texture of roe. The nori is what makes it convincing, so do not skip it.
Questions
5 questionsWhat is the difference between mentaiko and tarako?
Both are salt-cured Alaska pollock roe. Tarako is the plain salted version, and mentaiko, properly karashi mentaiko, is tarako that has been marinated with chilli and usually a little sake and kombu. If a recipe calls for mentaiko and you have tarako, add chilli and you have effectively made it.
Can I just leave mentaiko out of mentaiko pasta?
No, because it is the sauce rather than a garnish. Without it you have buttered pasta. If you have no roe of any kind, the closest honest version is two teaspoons of anchovy paste and two tablespoons of Japanese mayonnaise per serving, tossed off the heat with butter, pasta water, shredded nori and a pinch of chilli flakes. It is a good dish under a different name.
Is mentaiko raw?
It is cured in salt rather than cooked, so treat it like any other raw cured fish product: keep it refrigerated, use it within a few days of opening, and freeze what you are not using. If you would rather not eat it uncured, grilling the whole sac until just firm is a traditional preparation, though it loses the creamy quality that makes the pasta work.
Can I use cod roe paste from a tube instead?
Yes, and it is a decent shortcut, but it is usually smoked, much saltier and pastier than fresh roe. Start with about half the quantity, add no salt to the dish, and expect a smokier flavour that reads more Scandinavian than Japanese.
Where do I buy mentaiko?
The refrigerated or frozen section of a Japanese grocery, usually near the tarako and the pickles, and occasionally at Korean supermarkets, where a similar salted pollock roe is sold for stews. Outside those, smoked cod roe from a fishmonger or a good deli is the most reliable stand-in.
Tips for substituting mentaiko
5 tips- Slit the sac lengthwise with a small knife and scrape the eggs out with the back of the blade, then throw the membrane away. Cooking the sac whole is a different dish, grilled mentaiko, and its skin is tough in a sauce.
- Toss it off the heat, always. Mentaiko sauce is made by stirring the raw roe into butter, cream and hot pasta with the pan off the burner. Any real heat turns the eggs grainy, dull pink and dry, which is the classic mistake in mentaiko pasta.
- It is intensely salty, so salt the pasta water more lightly than usual and add no salt to the sauce. Taste before you reach for the soy sauce too.
- Starchy pasta water is not optional. Two or three tablespoons of it turn the roe and butter into a glossy sauce instead of a grainy paste, and it is what makes the difference between restaurant mentaiko pasta and a dry bowl.
- It freezes well in individual sacs. Wrap each one tightly, freeze, and thaw in the fridge for a few hours, which means one expensive purchase covers several meals. Nori, shiso, lemon zest and butter are its natural partners.