Even though they all look similar when they are filleted (hues of pink to red with streaks of white fat), the different types of Atlantic salmon fillets are drastically different from the other five species. We sampled salmon from Eastern Canada, Norway, Iceland, British Columbia, Scotland, and the Faroe Islands, which are between Norway and Iceland; we also tasted wild Sockeye salmon from Alaska. However, it does have one big thing going for it: its roe. For more on healthy fish, see this guide to the best fish choices for omega-3. According to the USDA, farmed salmon has 15 grams of fat for the same serving size, while wild salmon has 5 grams. A lot of it! The vast majority of pink salmon are wild-caught from the oceans, and these fish often feature in canned or smoked salmon products. In addition to being a prized game fish on the bucket list of most anglers, Atlantic salmon also make up the majority of salmon that are farmed in Norway, Scotland, Canada, and Chile. Pink and Chum: These are smaller fish and most often used for canned or smoked salmon and are good budget choices. 2023 EatingWell.com is part of the Allrecipes Food Group. We've been doing quite a lot of training here with supermarket chains to educate them on how we produce the fish in Norway and how they should handle it to maintain the quality. Farmed salmon actually contains more anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids than wild salmon (5 vs. 3.4 grams). AnotherstudyfromEnvironmental Researchpublished in 2017 found that wild Atlantic salmon also had more persistent organic pollutants (POP) than farmed salmon. You can read more about the differences below! Atlantic salmon were originally found along the northeastern seaboard of the USA and Canada, but native populations of Atlantic salmon are now largely extinct in these areas (though small breeding populations still remain in Maine and Quebec). Chum has a lighter texture and a milder flavor than other types of salmon. Keta is a smaller fishaveraging about 8 poundswith pale to medium-colored flesh and a lower fat content than other salmon. Sockeye salmon from Alaska is rich with nutrients from the wild and is more flavorful than farmed Atlantic salmon. You have reached your limit of subscriber-only articles this month. There're 5 Pacific salmon types, and each of them have unique characteristics. When it comes to Atlantic salmon, there are five important differences that many consumers - and even chefs - dont know about. Salmon is confusing. The curing process varies depending on the size of the fish, says Lee-Allen. Pictured Recipe: Lemon-Garlic Pasta with Salmon. However, since king salmon have been successfully introduced into many lakes, including the Great Lakes, you can find excellent king salmon fishing spots in New York, Michigan, and other salmon fishing spots in the USA where they did not exist before. The average size of a sockeye salmon is 12-14 inches. Coho: Coho is milder and often lighter in color. History and food are a source of empowerment to change the narrative regarding nutrition and health across the African diaspora. The Scottish salmon we tasted ($14.95/pound at Captain Mardens, raised at Wester Ross Fisheries) is everything salmon should be: perfect moist texture, delicious flavor that tastes of the sea, almost buttery. According to Mr Steenslid, in the Malaysian market, salmon was traditionally the fish du jour for affluent urbanites, but trout is now gaining prominence. However, both salmon species have been introduced into waters outside of . Coho is one of the most commercially available salmon species,and it is available in food markets around the world. Fish with higher fat may be easier to cook and retain moisture better. It usually takes a minimum of four years for salmon to go from hatching to spawning, with roughly half that time spent in fresh water and half at sea. A few months ago, we did a big lobster blowout and I promoted it on social media to the point where we had the police show up because it got out of control, Jordan says. 3. Because of their small size, Cohos are often used when cooking a whole salmon. For instance, wild salmon feed on smaller fish, squid, and plankton. EatingWell may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. What is the difference between Scottish and Atlantic Salmon? Environmental groups like Seafood Watch and Environmental Defense Fund have created a salmon buying guide to help you to make an informed choice. Pacific salmon are in the genus Oncorhynchus, which contains numerous individual species including Chinook, Coho, and Steelhead. Generally speaking, farmed salmon has higher levels of fat than wild varieties. This mortality in the early sea cage phase leads to significant economic loss . We wish you all the best on your future culinary endeavors. Melanie Fincher is a Birmingham, Alabamabased food writer who covers everything from cooking techniques to gadget reviews. Atlantic Salmon are big fish that excrete a lot of waste! The table below shows the nutrient profile per 100 grams for both wild and farmed varieties of the fish (1, 2). Read on to learn about the six common types of salmon. MCI (P) 076/10/2022, MCI (P) 077/10/2022. These days, Atlantic salmon is typically farmed, while Pacific salmon species are primarily wild-caught. In this article well walk you through the key differences between king salmon and Atlantic salmon, to help you tell them apart easily on your next fishing trip, and well also cover which one of them tastes better. Sockeye: An oilier fish with deep red flesh, sockeye salmon has a stronger flavor and stands up well to grilling. The image above summarizes the key differences between king salmon vs Atlantic salmon. A barely visible iridescent pink beginning at the gills and running the length of its body revealed one of the two fish to be something other than an Atlantic salmon. Then theres the Faroe Islands salmon that I keep noticing on restaurant menus, but hardly ever spot at the market. Pink and Chum: These are smaller fish and are most often used for canned or smoked salmon and are good budget choices. The Atlantic salmon is the most popular type of salmon for commercial food production, and it is available in both farmed and wild form. Therefore, you cant go wrong with whatever option you choose; salmon is one of the healthiest foods we can eat. While farmed salmon contains more fat than wild salmon, a large portion of that fat comes from omega-6 fatty acids ( 2, 9 ). Its Not Just Price: 5 Key Differences Between Atlantic Salmon and Wild Salmon. Salmon (top) and trout (above) are often mistaken for each other in restaurants and supermarkets, but on closer inspection, there are obvious differences in colour and even the shape of each fish. Consumer and environmental groups have questioned farming practices, citing pollution, use of antibiotics, and other concerns, which have been addressed with varying degrees of success over the years, says Marden, whose wholesale arm distributes to 300 restaurants. In wild salmon, the amount and type of omega-3s found are based on the algae and plankton found in their diet. That was the first day of the rest of my life, so that was a great memory for me in the seafood business.. Most Atlantic salmon is found to come from salmon farms whereas most pacific salmon is wild-caught. 0.1 mg. Phosphorus. Less fat translates to higher protein. Scottish salmon has a perfect moist texture and a delicious, almost buttery, flavor that makes it stand out. Dan Barber squares off with a dilemma facing many chefs today: how to keep fish on the menu. The way we fish for popular seafood such as salmon, tuna and shrimp is threatening to ruin our oceans. To make the salmon's flesh a vibrant, attractive pink for consumers fish pellet producers need to add synthetically made carotenoids to the fish feed (either canthaxanthin or astaxanthin). Norwegian smoked salmon is distinguished by its peachy-pink color, leaner - since it has less fat, some attribute it less taste- and is has a more densely smoky flavor than the Scottish variety, with a more intense aroma. 1.1 Norwegian salmon From Norway The meat of the Norwegian salmon is firm and orange in color. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our. Everything You Need to Know, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The fjord trout grows to a weight of 2kg to 5kg, a tad smaller than salmon, which tends to weigh between 3kg and 6kg. Because it's farm-raised, Atlantic salmon also tends to be cheaper than most wild salmon. Also, the fjord trout does not have the trademark earthy, muddy notes that mark its sister, the river trout. To ensure that the fish remains in optimal condition in Malaysian supermarkets, Mr Steenslid and his team have embarked on a mission to educate local retailers. A steelhead is a type of trout, a completely different fish type but from the same fish family with salmons. At the market, you see different names like Pacific, Norwegian, Atlantic and Alaskan. Faroe Islands is connected to a bit of controversy. Follow her on Twitter @sheryljulian. The differences between the two groups may be related to the treatment dose of A. salmonicida. Norway is the largest salmon producer in the world. Published by SPH Media Limited, Co. Regn. Many farmed Atlantic salmon are given astaxanthin or another pigment called canthaxanthin to deepen their flesh color. Overall, Atlantic salmon tend to have a more slender and torpedo shaped body, while king salmon tend to have a more stocky build. In addition, they also saw too much Faroe salmon on the market and wanted to have something that was exclusively theirs. High in fat, rich, and large in size, King salmon (also known as Chinook) is loaded with omega-3s. The carotenoid in salmon is a particularly potent antioxidant known as astaxanthin, which has been shown to protect against cardiovascular disease, cancer, inflammation, eye diseases, general aging and many other conditions, per a 2020 publication in Current Developments in Nutrition. Why? Scottish salmon is generally farm-raised Atlantic salmon, and as far as that goes is essentially identical to farm-raised salmon from Chile or Norway. Norwegian fjord trout is farmed in the untainted, ice-cold Norwegian fjords where seawater meets fresh meltwater from the glaciers and snow. This is because both farmed and wild salmon have more healthy unsaturated fats and less unhealthy saturated fats compared to other commonly consumed sources of protein, like steak and chicken. Loaded with heart-healthy and brain-boosting omega-3 fats, salmon is among the healthiest, tastiest and most popular fish. Pictured Recipe: Poached Salmon with Fennel & Lemon. Wild Salmon Vs. Farmed Salmon: What's the Difference? Norwegian salmon is one of the most popular varieties in today's market. According to the Norwegian Seafood Council (which promotes and disseminates information about Norwegian seafood), while the local palate still gravitates towards home-grown fish such as kembong (mackerel) and keli (catfish), there is an increasing proclivity for imported fish such as salmon and trout, especially among middle- and high-income urbanites. The texture is silky smooth, a little on the oily side, with a flavor that . "What we see so far is that there is a kind of a mix-up in the understanding of salmon and trout. Atlantic Salmon are available in a variety orange and red hues because they have to be artificially colored. The biggest recorded was 1.74m (5ft8) long and weighed 33kg (72lbs)! In addition, king salmon also tend to have a wider base of their tail fin, while Atlantic salmon have a more slender base of their tail fin. Both look fairly similar and the problem is compounded by the fact that retailers sometimes mislabel trout as salmon and both fish often receive the dubious misnomer salmon-trout. Atlantic: According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the Atlantic species make up 90% of the farmed salmon market. Browse our collection of healthy salmon recipes for meal ideas and inspiration today! The fish is ubiquitous on wedding, bar mitzvah, and other celebration menus. Villagers in the remote islands, which are part of Denmark, carry out a centuries-old ritual of slaughtering pilot whales at the edge of the sea for meat and blubber, a practice international environmental groups have tried to halt for years. Salmon swim upriver to spawn and reproduce but dams have blocked Atlantic Salmon from swimming upriver for decades. One of the things that produces good tasting fish is the base of the feed, says Marden. . Shrimp, krill and other tiny crustaceans then eat the phytoplankton and accumulate astaxanthin in their bodies (which is what makes them pink), and then salmon eat them and store the astaxanthin in their skin and muscles. This salmon is deserving of its royal title. It's loaded with heart-healthy, brain-boosting omega-3 fats. This zooplankton provides significant amounts of carotenoids and B12. Some studies have also shown that farmed salmon may have higher concentrations of contaminants than wild salmon. This means that the "Fresh Grilled Atlantic Salmon" featured on the menu never swam in open waters or swam upriver to spawn. The New Bedford Fishing Heritage Center: A Hidden Gem in the South Shore, Gulf of Maine Sashimi : A Game Changer for Chefs, Seafood lovers and New England Fishermen, A Day of Local Seafood in Providence: Monkfish at North. When you fill out the RSVP card that says chicken or fish, or whatever the meat protein is, along with a seafood choice, youre probably going to be served salmon. Follow along while we review Atlantic salmon facts and some of the significant differences between sockeye vs. Atlantic salmon and why choosing wild-salmon may be a better choice for your family. Plus, they only take 30 minutes or less to prepare, so dinner tonight is bound to be a breeze. Gill cover: While Atlantic salmon have black spots on their gill cover, king salmon have no spots on their gill cover. Lower fat content than other salmon budget choices and as far as goes... 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