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Hello,
Today, I caught a 22-inch, 4.2 lb rainbow trout. I also caught a smaller trout that I had to keep, because it was going to die if I released it due to me hooking it on the Gill.
I started processing the fish, when I noticed something interesting. Both fillets were different colors. The smaller fish, which had a clipped fin, obviously a stocked trout, had much darker meat. The meat from the larger fish was almost white, with a little bit of pink. I am attaching a picture.
This got me thinking, and I have a question for you all. Why is some trout meat one color and some trout meat another?
Jared
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Looks like your bigger fish has spawned, that's how they look this time of year, nothing wrong with the meat.
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The color of trout meat is a result of their diet both of your fish are hatchery fish and spent most of their lives eating pellets. The large fish is most likely a brood stock fish that spent its life in the hatchery and reached the end of it productivity. The fish and game stock these large old fish in community ponds to give kids a chance to catch trophy fish. Wild fish and hatchery hold over fish that have diets high in carnitine in the wild will have darker flesh ranging from pink to dark red.
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Thanks, I was wondering about that.
I actually cooked up both fish, and the smaller fish had a much different taste than the larger fish. The larger fish was much more flavorful, and was very delicious. The small fish was delicious, but not as flavorful.
It was interesting that they both had different taste.
Thanks for the explanation. I appreciate it.
By the way, I love your profile name!
Jared
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I actually was reading an article on the color of trout meat just the other day in Salmon, Trout, Stealheader magazine. It also said that it's been long believed that diet is the cause of the meat to be different. However after some scientists looked into it more they found that fish with light meat vs those with darker or red meat were actually genetically different. Essentially the lighter ones either don't produce, or produce less of the pigmentation that gives it the color. As for the texture/flavor of the fish different conditions can affect it. Some of it may be the genetics that also affect the colors where as temperature also does affect it. That's why mid summer trout a lot of people complain that they are mushy and taste like moss. If I remember correctly it basically absorbs more water into the cells in the warm weather thereby making it mushy and imparting the taste of what is in the water, like moss. I'll have to see if I can find a link to the story so it's more clear.
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