walleye pollack; Alaska pollack
The fish Theragra chalcogramma. In everyday Japanese, the fish itself is more commonly called スケトウダラ (介党鱈). 明太 is often used in the context of its roe.
from Korean myeongtae
See also: スケトウダラ
明太 is sometimes used as another name for walleye pollack.
walleye pollack roe; spicy salted pollack roe
Abbreviation of 明太子 (めんたいこ). Refers to the salted and spiced roe, a popular ingredient in Japanese and Korean cuisine. This is the most common usage of 明太 in modern Japanese.
See also: 明太子
I love mentaiko pasta.
This mentaiko has just the right amount of spiciness.
spicy cod roe; mentaiko
burbot; Lota lota
Standard kanji spelling for the fish and its roe. The reading メンタイ is also common in katakana contexts.
Katakana spelling often used in menus, product labels, or when emphasizing the Korean origin.
From Korean 명태 (myeongtae, 'walleye pollack'). The roe sense is an abbreviation of 明太子 (めんたいこ), which adds 子 (こ, 'child/roe').