How to Write 鲳 (chāng) — Meaning “Pomfret”

Imagine a prosperous (昌) fish (鱼) that is flat and round like a silver coin — that is the pomfret. The character 昌 looks like two suns stacked, so think of a shiny fish reflecting sunlight, and the name sounds like "chang" as in change, because it is often cooked in different ways.

The left radical 鱼 must be written with the correct stroke order: first the top hook, then the middle horizontal, then the bottom horizontal, and finally the four dots carefully aligned. The right part 昌 has two 日 (sun) stacked; make sure the upper 日 is slightly narrower than the lower one, and write the horizontal strokes evenly spaced.

鲳 has the phonetic component 昌 on the right, while 鲑 has 圭 (guī) on the right and means salmon. 鲒 has 吉 (jí) on the right and refers to a less common fish or shellfish. To tell them apart, look at the right half: 昌 (two suns) for pomfret, 圭 (two earths) for salmon, and 吉 (scholar mouth) for the other.

鲳 appears mainly in food contexts, especially seafood menus and recipes. The phrase 清蒸鲳鱼 (steamed pomfret) is a popular dish in Chinese cuisine, valued for its tender white meat and mild flavor. In coastal regions, 金鲳 (golden pomfret) is a common farmed fish served at festive meals for its golden color symbolizing wealth.

Common words containing 鲳 include: 鲳鱼 (chāng yú) — Pomfret fish; 金鲳 (jīn chāng) — Golden pomfret; 清蒸鲳鱼 (qīng zhēng chāng yú) — Steamed pomfret..