The head and bones are excellent for soups or fumet. It is prepared both as a whole fish and as fillets. It has a flavor which is similar to, but a little more pronounced than Hawaiian Snappers. The sac may be cut out of the flesh and is harmless if eaten. Hapu is a low fat content fish with beautiful, white, semi-firm flaky flesh and a clean, delicate taste. Other available tuna include Aku (Skipjack Tuna) and Tombo (Albacore Tuna.) Hapuupuu - Sea Bass or Grouper: A delicate, flaky white fish with a mild flavor. The only quality problem which may arise is the occasional presence of saclike parasites in hapu‘upu‘u flesh. Hapu‘upu‘u keeps well (2 weeks) when properly brined and iced after capture. However, the waste factor is higher for hapu‘upu‘u, due to its large head, than for substitute species, and the lower yield (40% of round weight) has discouraged wider use by restaurants. Although the skin is tough, the flesh is easy to fillet due to the lack of small bones. The larger-sized fish harvested in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands are filleted for the restaurant market. You dont get fresher fish unless you know all the Uncles that fish around the island.
![hapu upu fish hapu upu fish](http://tropicfishhawaii.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Grouper-Sea-Bass.jpg)
The ethnic and household retail market components have a strong preference for smaller fish (1 to 5 pounds in round weight) that can be steamed head-on. Hapuupuu the only native Sea Bass to Hawaii on tomorrows. The fish is initially sold head-on so that buyers can assess product quality by the clarity of the eyes and the color of the gills. chefmichaelmina located fsoahu Minas Fish House re-imagines the Hawaiian fish house. Russell Mori was shorecasting at the beach. Seabass, giant (Hapuupuu), 563 lbs, Russell Mori, Maui, 02/27/89.
![hapu upu fish hapu upu fish](https://www.marinelifephotography.com/fishes/groupers/epinephelus-quernus-6.jpg)
Most of the hapu‘upu‘u is landed as whole, iced fish. Bottom Fish, Weight, Angler, Location, Date. Most of the hapu‘upu‘u caught off the main Hawaiian Islands are from 5 to 10 pounds in size, whereas the waters around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands yields fish mostly in the 10 to 30 pound size range Product Forms & Yields The majority of the hapu‘upu‘u catch in recent years has come from the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. The largest landings of hapu‘upu‘u usually occur in the fall and winter (October-December) and in the spring (February-April).