Schrod? What fish is it?

[mcel215]

I live close to Boston and this item is on some menus.

I stopped at a local fish shanty tonight and got the schrod instead of the haddock, because it was much cheaper than the haddock. I also knew from ordering it long ago that it's a white mild fish. So, what was the difference? I always thought it was cod, but when I buy cod, it's a lot thicker than what I had tonight.

Just wondering, thanks.

[MizBunny]

I lived in and around Boston and the seashore all my life. The locals always said that if you like Cod then order SCROD on the menu, and if you like Haddock, you should order SCHROD, because the spelling denotes the type of fish used. I always ask anyway, and at the bonafide seafood restaurants, they always looked at me like I had two heads, and said the same thing to me - if there is an "H" in the spelling, it's Haddock, no "H", it's COD. The name denotes the way it is prepared - broiled with specially seasoned breadcrumbs and butter. There is no such fish as Scrod or Schrod. By the way - the "thin, delicate" piece of fish used is just the tail end of the fillet (which nobody ever wants! lol)which some people think has a fishier taste than the thicker end or is somehow of lesser quality.

[cheesemaestro]

I grew up in the Boston area and don't recall seeing the spelling "scrod." If I had, I would have thought it was an error. I would not have assumed that the one spelling referred to cod and the other to haddock. Most of the time, schrod was cod. I haven't seen the word "schrod" on menus or in stores outside of New England. I wonder if others here have.

[Cheese Boy]

The pecking order (from highest to lowest) , is haddock, cod, scrod, and then pollock.
Haddock and cod will always provide you with the best results especially when it comes to making a good chowder because their flesh is usually thicker and firmer.

[Quine]

It's not a kind of fish. It is a young (small) whitefish, usually cod that is sold already cut and split (filet). So being a young fish it will be thinner, and seemingly more delicate.

[rockycat]

Which brings to mind an old joke from my college days:

(from "How to Get Around MIT" Glossary)
scrod - (1) n. A baby codfish. Example: “I got scrod by the Dining Service.” (2) v. Past tense of screw. Example: “I got scrod by the Dining Service.”

[Quine]

Glad to bring back a laugh or two!

[jumpingmonk]

The version I remember.

A chef hails a cab outside Harvard. When he gets in he tells the cab driver "Take me somewhere I can get scrod." The cabdriver turns to him and say "I've hand an awful lot of people in my cab make that request, but you are the first one who has ever done it in the Past Pluperfect!"

[juliasqueezer]

I once had a t-shirt that had a big fish on it with the caption "I got scrod last night at Legal Seafood."