Group · Fish
Shark
Shark (known in French as requin) is sold in France under trade names that hide the species: saumonette (rock salmon), veau de mer, dogfish. Its firm, boneless flesh, as its skeleton is cartilage, suits the grill and slow-cooked dishes.
In terms of nutrition facts, raw: 115 kcal per 100 g for 20.8 g of protein and 2.91 g of fat, including 0.85 g of omega-3. It provides 355 mg of potassium, 201 mg of phosphorus and 1.49 µg of vitamin B12 per 100 g. But its real issue lies elsewhere, as explained below.
Macronutrient breakdown
Nutrition table per 100 g
| Calories | 115 kcal |
| Kilojoules | 484 kJ |
| Protein | 20,8 g |
| Carbohydrate | 1,4 g |
| Fat | 3 g |
Micronutrients per 100 g
All measured nutrients, ranked by share of the daily reference intake.
- DHA0,53 g212 %
- EPA0,32 g128 %
- Vitamin B121,49 µg60 %
- Total omega-30,85 g34 %
- Phosphorus201 mg29 %
- Vitamin B60,4 mg29 %
- Vitamin B33,67 mg23 %
- Potassium355 mg18 %
See the other 14 nutrients
- Vitamin D0,6 µg12 %
- Vitamin B50,7 mg12 %
- Magnesium37 mg10 %
- Vitamin A70 µg9 %
- Vitamin E1 mg8 %
- Iron1,12 mg8 %
- Zinc0,43 mg4 %
- Calcium33 mg4 %
- Copper0,03 mg3 %
- Vitamin B20,05 mg3 %
- Vitamin B10,03 mg3 %
- Vitamin B93 µg2 %
- Manganese0,02 mg1 %
- Vitamin K10,1 µg0 %
Anses Ciqual 2025. Source: Anses, 2025, Ciqual food composition table
Tips
Mercury is the central question. Shark is a top-of-the-food-chain predator and lives a long time: it concentrates methylmercury like no other common fish. Anses (the French food safety agency) recommends avoiding it for pregnant and breastfeeding women and children under three, and strongly limiting it for everyone else.
Stocks are in poor condition. Many shark species are threatened and several are banned from fishing in Europe. The trade name is not enough: ask for the species and the fishing zone.
It smells of ammonia when it is not fresh. Like skate, it excretes urea through its skin. A strong smell signals a fish that has gone off, which no rinsing can rescue.
Its flesh does not fall apart. That is its culinary advantage: it withstands slow cooking and skewers, where a white fish collapses. Allow fifteen minutes of cooking for 3 cm pieces.
For omega-3, a small fish is better. Sardine or anchovy provide far more, without the mercury problem and for a fraction of the price.