With Your Health! It wasn't food poisoning, it's just a fish that makes a lot of people sick...

Escolar is a white fish that some of our favorite restaurants in California and Hawaii have on the menu.  It tastes delicious but after experiencing food poisoning-like symptoms after after eating it three times in nice restaurants, we were prompted to do a little investigative research.  Actually, just type "escolar" into Google and one is besieged with warnings and tales of woe!

escolar

appearances can be deceiving....

Escolar, also known as "butterfish," "white tuna," "Hawaiian Walu or Waloo," is a rich, firm white fish that has high amounts of wax esters in its flesh.  These wax esters, also known as gempylotoxin, are indigestible by much of the population causing food poisoning-like symptoms hours after ingestion

Escolar is actually banned in Italy and Japan and in the 1990s, the FDA actually considered imposing laws against importing and selling escolar in the United States but backed off as it hasn't been linked to actually killing anyone.  Just making you feel like you want to die for several hours.

escolar

We just wanted to let you all know so nobody has to waste time on their Hawaiian/Californian vacation feeling like death!  Or any other time or place.  Order escolar at your own risk.  And if you own a restaurant, please take it off your menu.

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