Yellowtail substitute

Best substitute

Kanpachi (Greater Amberjack)

Use the same amount as the yellowtail you are replacing

Best for sashimi

Close match

For raw dishes, kanpachi or kingfish are essentially the same fish and swap 1:1. Sushi-grade striped bass or madai (sea bream) is the next best, leaner and cleaner, so add a little olive oil or ponzu. Sushi-grade salmon is the easiest to buy but changes the plate to orange and tastes much richer. For a cooked collar or teriyaki, a mackerel or salmon collar or a thick swordfish steak works. Any raw swap must be fish your supplier sells for raw consumption.

Other yellowtail substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Yellowtail Kingfish or Amberjack
Close match
Use the same amount
The same genus, sold as kingfish in Australia and New Zealand and as amberjack elsewhere.
What changes
Best for
sashimi, crudo, grilling, collar
Often literally the same species under a different market name, so treat it as a straight swap. Wild-caught amberjack can be firmer and more strongly flavoured than farmed hamachi, which is worth knowing if the dish is a plain slice with soy.
3Madai (Sea Bream) or Striped Bass, Sushi-Grade
Taste and texture differ
Use the same amount
Lean, firm white-fleshed fish that slices cleanly for raw service.
What changes
Best for
crudo, sashimi, carpaccio with citrus
The slices look elegant and stay firm, but the fatty, almost creamy quality that makes hamachi special is gone, so the dish tastes clean and a little austere. Put the richness back with a spoon of good olive oil, or dress it with ponzu and a few grains of flaky salt.
4Salmon, Sushi-Grade
Taste and texture differ
Use the same amount
Farmed salmon prepared and sold for raw consumption.
What changes
Best for
nigiri, crudo, poke, rolls
By far the easiest to buy and a genuinely enjoyable swap, but it changes the dish visually and on the palate: bright orange instead of pale pink-white, and a soft, oily, distinctly salmon flavour instead of hamachi's clean buttery one. In a plated crudo where colour matters, this is a noticeable change rather than a hidden one.
5Halibut or Fluke, Sushi-Grade
Taste and texture differ
Use the same amount
Very lean flatfish with a delicate, almost translucent slice.
What changes
Best for
crudo, sashimi with citrus and chilli
Delicate and slightly sweet, with a pleasant snap rather than a melt. It is the leanest option here, so it needs help: citrus, olive oil, flaky salt and a little chilli. Slice it thinner than you would yellowtail or it eats rubbery.
6Mackerel, Salmon or Cod Collar (for Cooked Dishes)
Different taste
Use the same amount by weight
The fatty collar cut of another fish, broiled hard with salt or teriyaki glaze.
What changes
Best for
hamachi kama style grilling, broiling, teriyaki
For a cooked collar, this works well because the cut matters more than the species. Salmon collar is the closest in fat and richness, mackerel collar is more assertive and oilier, cod collar is leaner and mild. A thick swordfish or mahi steak also stands in for a grilled yellowtail steak, though swordfish is drier and much firmer.

What is Yellowtail?

Yellowtail is the farmed Japanese amberjack sold as hamachi, buri or yellowtail kingfish, a firm, pale, buttery-fatty fish eaten raw as sashimi and crudo and grilled on the bone as the collar.

Cooking tips

For raw service, buy from a supplier who explicitly sells the fish for eating raw. There is no legal grade behind the words sushi-grade, so it comes down to the fishmonger's handling and their willingness to say the fish is intended for raw use. Substituting a random fresh fillet from the counter is the one swap on this page you should not make.
Chill the loin hard before slicing, almost to the point of firming up, and use the longest sharp knife you own. Cut across the grain in a single pulling stroke about a quarter of an inch thick. Sawing tears the fibres and makes even excellent hamachi look and feel mushy.
The belly is the fattiest and best part for sashimi; the darker bloodline running down the loin is bitter and metallic, so trim it away rather than slicing through it.
Salt raw fish at the moment it goes to the table, not in advance. Even a few minutes of contact draws moisture out and turns the surface of the slices opaque and slightly firm.
For the collar, broil it skin and bone side up on a rack until the skin blisters and blackens in spots, 8 to 12 minutes depending on size. The cut is full of fat and connective tissue, so it takes hard heat far better than a fillet does. Serve with lemon and grated daikon.

Frequently asked questions

Is hamachi the same as yellowtail?

Yes. Hamachi is the Japanese name for younger farmed Japanese amberjack, which is sold in English as yellowtail. Buri is the same fish when older and fattier, and kanpachi is a close relative. All of them work in the same recipes.

Is yellowtail the same as yellowfin tuna?

No, and this is the most common mix-up. Yellowfin tuna, sometimes called ahi, is a tuna with dark red meat and a meatier, more mineral flavour. Yellowtail is a jack with pale pink-white flesh and a soft buttery texture. Yellowtail snapper is a third, unrelated fish. If a sushi recipe says yellowtail, it means the pale one.

Can I use fish from the supermarket counter for yellowtail sashimi?

Only if the seller tells you it is intended to be eaten raw. Fish sold for cooking is not handled or frozen with raw service in mind, and freshness alone is not the issue. If you cannot source fish for raw use, cook the substitute instead: a seared, sliced fillet with ponzu is a good dish in its own right.

Can I just leave it out?

No, because in sashimi, crudo or a collar dish the fish is the entire recipe. If you have no suitable fish, the honest move is to change the dish rather than the ingredient: raw scallops, which are sweet and soft, make a fine crudo, and a seared tuna or salmon steak covers the same meal.

Why does my yellowtail taste sour or metallic?

Usually one of two things: you have sliced through the dark bloodline, which is bitter, or the fish is past its best. Fresh yellowtail smells of almost nothing. Any sharp, sour or ammonia-like smell means it should be cooked at most, and if the smell is strong it should be thrown out.

Related substitutes

More seafood substitutes

Yellowtail substitute

Other yellowtail substitutes

2Yellowtail Kingfish or Amberjack

3Madai (Sea Bream) or Striped Bass, Sushi-Grade

4Salmon, Sushi-Grade

5Halibut or Fluke, Sushi-Grade

6Mackerel, Salmon or Cod Collar (for Cooked Dishes)