Also asked as: “Is sturgeon halal?” · “Is fish roe halal?”
The sturgeon question
The Hanafi school permits only fish, and some scholars questioned whether sturgeon counts as a scaled fish. Many contemporary Hanafi scholars, and the other schools, accept it.
Preservatives
Caviar may contain borax (E285) or boric acid (E284), which are minerals and halal.
Caviar and roe
Caviar is salted roe from sturgeon, and other fish roe such as salmon, trout and lumpfish are cheaper options. Roe is eaten as a spread, a topping and in sushi.
The question about sturgeon comes from the debate over whether it has true scales. Most scholars accept sturgeon, while a few Hanafi opinions are cautious. Lumpfish roe is often dyed, so check the colouring.
Written and checked by
Hafiz Nasir Mehmood
Quran HafizIslamic researcher