Salmon Meat Color

[cby]

Ok got to ask? What's with the different colors of meat in Chinook salmon Red, Orange, White, Pink, Orange and White (Marble)? Is this related to diet or genetics? Any know the answer to this? As well is there a way to find out what color the meat is. I usually look under the gill plate? Not really a fan of white springs really oily? I hear in New York White spring is in hot demand, really expensive there?

Any answers to this would be helpful. Cheers.

cby

 

[new generation]

I know harrison river fish are gentically white.Not really sure why? The white ones smoke really well....

 

[bee15]

personally i cant stand the white ones i yhink they are dry and also taste gross

 

[gradyboat]

It is prawns and shrimp that give salmon there orange colour........... when they are eating fish they turn white....... They are marble when they change there diet to the current food source..

Hope that helps.............GB

 

[finaddict]

quote:Originally posted by gradyboat

It is prawns and shrimp that give salmon there orange colour........... when they are eating fish they turn white....... They are marble when they change there diet to the current food source..
Hope that helps.............GB

Actually GB that is no longer considered correct. While the biologists used to think that the keratin that is found in shrimp was the major cause for pigmentation in flesh, they now have confirmed that it is genetics, not diet that determines flesh colour. There are many strains of salmon that are almost exclusively piscivorous yet they have very red flesh.

 

[rbv]

Its actually a genetic trait. The red-orange colour in the meat comes from a "carotenoid" (a pigment) in prawns and shrimp etc., but it is believed that the whites cannot metabolize these pigments like the reds can, and their flesh remains white.

see this link:
http://www.wc.adfg.state.ak.us/index.cfm?adfg=wildlife_news.view_article&issue_id=43&articles_id=244

I enjoy them both equally... I understand they taste a bit different but it must be a physcological thing if someone enjoys the red meat yet finds the white meat "gross".

 

[gradyboat]

very interesting the shrimp and prawns make the flesh orange in some genetic strains but not others. Did it mention anything about the marbled fish................... I guess i should look at the link

Good post cby........

 

[Merrittboy]

Most of the fish that I caught out in Renfrew this summer were red meat, with the exception of one white. A few were close to marble. Have fished the Chilliwack vedder a great deal and have never taken a red spring. All whites, with maybe a marble. It is said that the marble is a cross between the two. Question seems to come up a great deal though. I find that the whites, especially in the river, have a much stronger smell. They do smoke well though.

 

[highlights]

Over cook any fish and it can become dry fishy and taste quite "gross". I think alot of people out there just do not know how to prepare and great meal using what they catch.
Too bad.

 

[frango]

My wife and I did a little test.We had in our frezzer ,red, white and marble.She cooked all 3 and I tasted all 3, blind .They all tasted the same to me.You need to catch more fish or get over the colour. If you think the flavor is differant then I suggest you do the same test.If you catch all 3 that is?? .To suggest it's all food related,is a gross miss understanding of the gene pool.I love the New york market tool.The power of suggestion is indeed powerfull.

 

[happy hooker]

quote:Originally posted by Merrittboy

Most of the fish that I caught out in Renfrew this summer were red meat, with the exception of one white. A few were close to marble. Have fished the Chilliwack vedder a great deal and have never taken a red spring. All whites, with maybe a marble. It is said that the marble is a cross between the two. Question seems to come up a great deal though. I find that the whites, especially in the river, have a much stronger smell. They do smoke well though.

The Vedder has two different runs of Springs. I believe that the reds come up in June/early July and the big whiteys come up in late Sept/Oct. The run of whiteys is also much larger than the earlier run of reds I believe.

22' Hewescraft Searunner

 

[flydon]

I remember hearing that the whites in the Vedder were transplants from the Harrison because of a lack of Vedder River chinook. They used the Harrison chinook because of the similar distance from the Fraser.
I was also told that the marble chinook were when hatcheries crossed red eggs/milk with white eggs/milk.
Don

 

[Degree of Freedom]

If you find whites dry and gross, I think you're doing something wrong. They typically have a higher fat content and are therefore more moist than reds.
I love bbq'd white.

 

[Northof49]

"King (also called Chinook) salmon with white or red meat are the same species, Onchorhynchus tshawytscha. From a nutritional standpoint, research has shown the white kings and the red-fleshed kings are identical in composition of lipids, moisture, protein and omega -3 fatty acids, the “good” fats that can protect one from heart disease."

That's from the above linked article.

Both "ivories" I've caught this year have been marbled and delicious.

 

[Sitkaspruce]

quote:Originally posted by bee15

personally i cant stand the white ones i yhink they are dry and also taste gross

I will take all the whites off you!!![]

I could care less about flesh colour, they all taste the same to me. It is in how you kill them, clean them and prepare them that makes the taste difference.

Cheers

SS

 

[Striper Sniper]

Maybe it is just me but I always thought that the whites smoked up better than the reds.......... I have yet to eat a white that I did not enjoy. SS

 

[cby]

Ok I called DFO and they had the answer. It is Genetic 100%. It has to do with enzyems in the Meat that break down the red pigment produced from eating Shrimp, Krill and crabs. They said if you cut off a salmon steak and look at it closely there are 4 sections to the steak. Each section will produce different pigmentation. So if the enyzem is present in all four sections you will get a white salmon as it breaks down the pigmentation of red. If only a couple of sections marble and no section red or orange. Thanks for all the responses and feedback. I learned something today.

cby

 

[bee15]

Maybe I'll try the blind test and a different cook on the white spring i still have here and give the whites another chance. i might be missing something.

 

[TelStar26]

quote:

I could care less about flesh colour, they all taste the same to me. It is in how you kill them, clean them and prepare them that makes the taste difference.

Cheers

SS

What is the best way to kill them to get the best taste?

 

[Striper Sniper]

From my experience, bonk them, bleed them and get them on ice.... If you can clean them sooner than later, all the better. SS