Kosher Fish and Kashrut

No, shark is not kosher. It has fins but no valid scales, because its tooth-like denticles cannot be removed without tearing the skin. Here is what the OU and cRc say, plus the market names that hide shark.

Can you eat fish and meat together? Not in one dish. Jewish law keeps fish and meat apart for health, though you can have both at one meal with a rinse.

Is caviar kosher? Traditional sturgeon caviar is not, but salmon roe and other kosher fish roe are kosher when certified. Here is how to tell.

Is sturgeon kosher? No. Its embedded ganoid scales can’t be removed without tearing the skin, so the OU, cRc, and Star-K all rule it out.

A kosher symbol, or hechsher, is a certifying agency’s trademark showing a food meets Jewish law. Here’s what the OU, OK, Star-K, Kof-K, and cRc mean, what the D, DE, P, and pareve codes tell you, and why a plain K is not the same.