White meat salmon!

[Barleydog]

OK Folks,
Who here has ever caught a "white salmon"  A fresh salmon, (let me clarify) DIME BRIGHT fish, that has flat white flesh!  I had been told these fish are extremely rare, but never laid eyes on such a fluke, until this last weekend.   I've cleaned at least a thousand salmon, and never, have I seen such a interesting sight!  The fish in the photo below is compaired to an average salmon caught on the same day.  This fish was not a spawned out old stinky fish, but rather an ocean going strong fish with sea lice around the vent.
The fish in question had very firm flesh!  Being told it was the best fillets around, I made one on the grill.  Can't say it was any different?  Still a neat anomaly!


White salmon fillet


Regular salmon fillet

[bigredfishing]

BD, if i remember correctly, the lack of red in the flesh is due to a genetic defect...very rare indeed.  Nice cohos!

[AD]

Yeah I think Bigred is right,     used to see them in the pinks we were spawning up there in AK occasionally, probably 1 for over every thousand or two fish, its a rare find.     

[Kodiak Commando]

White fleshed king salmon are the greatest!!!! They have a lot firmer and much sweeter flesh than regular kings.

[Barleydog]

Thought you guys would get a charge out of them....  Funny thing is, they taste pretty much the same.  I was told years ago by Washington F&G that these fish are in fact genetic freaks.   I think you guys are right on the one in a thousand....

[AD]

Thought you guys would get a charge out of them....  Funny thing is, they taste pretty much the same.  I was told years ago by Washington F&G that these fish are in fact genetic freaks.   I think you guys are right on the one in a thousand....

Pretty cool pictures, you got my mouth watering too, thats for sure.   

[Mackdaddy21]

I have never caught a salmon like that. I'm sure its a genetic defect. Around here, some trout are red orange meated and some are white. To get red orange meat, the trout need a regular diet or either crayfish or freshwater shrimp. The white meated varieties are either freshly stocked or live in high mountain streams where insects are the only forage for them. Baitfish eating trout usually have yellowish meat. I don't keep the trout with white or yellow flesh, only orange. It has an almost bacon like flavor.

[PGKris]

White fleshed king salmon are the greatest!!!! They have a lot firmer and much sweeter flesh than regular kings.

Yeah I agree. What kind of salmon is that? We catch white chinooks all the time in the Cranberry and Nass River systems....not a genetic defect here....  The white ones taste better than the reds for sure
KRIS

[bigdave1018]

yo mack how can you tell what color the flesh is? id rather eat a 10 inch panfish anyday then any salmonoid fresh run or not. just my 2 cents.

[bigdave1018]

i do eat salmonoids but very rarely. they eat ok but i still would rather eat panfish. i scallop size all my fish b4 frying or baking and do the same with salmon. i cube them but the pannies still taste better but then again maybe its just me,lol.

[August West]

It's called an Ivory Salmon, they are a King Salmon. I was a chef in the Puget Sound in WA state, and my Fish Monger would ask me when he was taking my order for the Resort, if I would buy them when he came across them. They are not as uncommon as you would think. I would sometimes get up to 6, 18-22 lbers a week. They swim in the same schools as the regular kings, and you can't tell the difference at first glance until you look under the gills. Scientists don't have an explanation for the phenomenon. They do have a slightly different taste. They cost the same per pound, but I could market them higher on the plate because Ivory Salmon sounds fancy. All in all a really cool fish.

[Barleydog]

AW,  What restraunt in the Puget Sound area?  Lived there for 8 years....

[August West]

I was the Executive Chef at Rosario Resort and Spa, on Orcas Island. I lived out there for 2 years. What a magical part of the world. My favorite place in the world.

[Barleydog]

Your right!  Beautiful place

[August West]

Where did you live in the sound?