I had to look that up all the salmon I have ever had was pink - red however I found out today that there is a chinook salmon that has white flesh. They say you learn something every day.

Cookie, It is probably the White/Ivory King Salmon. It is wonderful.

I buy it fresh when I see it in our fish markets.

~Ann

Salmon color can be different, depending on their diet.

dcarch

At one time the white was less expensive but now it sells at a premium. And where at one time it was thought that the white and the red salmon ate a different diet, that is not what is believed now. They come from the same waters and eat the same diet so the reason for the different colour is related to genetics.

~Ann

Here is a link that might be useful: White King Salmon

Ann, we are both correct:

From Wiki:

"The actual color of salmon flesh varies from almost white to deep pink, depending on their levels of the carotenoid astaxanthin due to how rich a diet of krill and shrimp the fish feeds on; salmon raised on fish farms are given artificial coloring in their food."

dcarch

Well, for $10 for a whole, wild caught fish I will keep my eye out for more, for sure.

DC, I was specifically talking about the White King Salmon.

~Ann

Jeez, I never knew that salmon were like pink flamingos and are turned pink by their diet?
Do the white varieties taste different than the pink?

I always preferred trout over salmon, probably because I was raised on fresh trout... literally

I was surprised the first time I had Ivory Salmon. It was delicious, very mild. It was served over a bed of grilled vegetables and topped with a dollop of dill butter.....superb!

I found Ivory Salmon recently at a shop nearby and picked up a piece. The pic above is my rendition of the recipe that was served at the restaurant, but I made it with regular salmon. I will use the piece I have in the freezer to make it again, only this time with the real thing!

Linda

I know in my part of the world that tinned red salmon costs more than pink salmon, both from Alaska or Canada. I don't know that there is any difference in taste but the red looks more attractive. There again that might be due to the suggestion that red is better because it sells at a premium!
We can buy locally farmed fresh Atlantic salmon, really good and fresh and worth every penny. It has a pink colour, not sure what they are fed on.
I can't see why white salmon should not taste equally good if properly cooked and with, say, a suitable sauce.
Perhaps you can tell a fib and say it is a new and unusual species which has just become available on the market and is related to the common salmon!
And most fish are preferably very white if in good condition.
I think the tongue should take preference over the eye in this case.
Apologies if that sounds pompous.

I used to help on a friends commercial trawler (WA coast) and very occasionally would find ourselves with a white King, maybe one or two a season. There is no reason I could see its diet would be different than any other salmon. It would usually be kept as the allowed personal catch of the day, would go home with us to be enjoyed.

They weren't worth as much at the fish market to sell, buyers paid less than premium for the white kings - they were not as attractive to consumers so better to keep and cook them :).

Ann & Linda, posting delicious pictures like you did can cause salmon to be on the endangered list. :-)
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I wonder how people would like tuna, if tuna had white flesh.

dcarch

This post was edited by dcarch on Sun, Apr 21, 13 at 12:41

This discussion reminds me of the old story (perhaps from an old Bennett Cerf collection) about the owner of a grocery store who ordered a case of canned salmon. When it arrived, he saw that the salmon was white, not pink--an unheard-of oddity at that place and time. He was sure that his customers would think the salmon was defective and wouldn't buy it. But then he had a flash of marketing genius. He stacked up the cans in a prominent display with a sign, reading: "Guaranteed not to turn pink in the can!"

Sue