How to choose pink salmon?

Pink salmon is one of the most popular types of fish due to its huge number of useful properties. It is sold whole or cut into pieces of different sizes. Sellers often use tricks to sell stale goods and reduce their losses. For example, several times frozen and thawed pink salmon can be mixed with chilled, and young with old. It is possible to distinguish a good fish only with some knowledge and after a thorough examination.

On the shelves of stores, pink salmon can be sold in the following forms:

• whole, not gutted;
• a whole gutted fish with a head;
• a whole gutted fish without a head;
• separate pieces;
• individual parts of pink salmon (tails, fins and other parts with a small amount of meat).

What kind of pink salmon should I buy

Choosing a good pink salmon is a difficult question. Determining the quality of gutted fish or its individual pieces is much easier than evaluating fresh gutted pink salmon. Different rules apply to each option.

• the standard weight of a whole pink salmon averages from 800 g to 1,5 kg;
• the amount of ice on frozen pink salmon should not exceed 5%;
• the belly of a good pink salmon is even in color, not swollen and rather flat (females with caviar are considered an exception);
• if the pink salmon is gutted, then it is necessary to determine the color inside its belly (it should be pink);
• the gills of pink salmon should be light red (their color is always bright and saturated);
• the scales of fresh pink salmon are clean, shiny and smooth;
• the skin of pink salmon should not have even the slightest damage;
• pink salmon fillet should be pinkish;
• when pressing on the fish, there should be no dents;
• the pink tint of the belly of pink salmon indicates the presence of caviar;
• the smell of fresh fish should not contain an ammonia tint;
• the skin of high-quality pink salmon adheres tightly to the meat.

If pink salmon is purchased in a package, then special attention should be paid to its safety. You cannot buy fish in damaged packages. Despite its acceptable appearance, it can be damaged.

Sometimes it is recommended to determine the freshness of the fish by its eyes.… Having cloudy eyes is not always a sign of spoiled pink salmon. Once frozen, they will not be transparent anyway.

The price of unpeeled pink salmon is much lower, but do not forget that after cutting, almost half of the weight will be waste. The savings in this case are not very significant.

It is believed that the meat of the male pink salmon is more juicy and fatty. This nuance can be determined by numerous criteria. For example, the female’s color is lighter, the male’s head is sharp and elongated, and the female’s is rounded. The hind fin is short in the male and elongated in the female.

Signs of pink salmon, which is better to refuse to buy

During fishing, pink salmon can be damaged. It is very difficult to visually identify “broken” fish if it is bought whole. When cutting or on pieces of pink salmon, real bruises and bruises can be seen. The taste of fish in the presence of such signs does not change, but during the cooking process, the broken places will not remain intact and will fall apart.

The purchase of pink salmon should be abandoned if the following factors are present:

• dark or green gills;
• mucus in the gills is not acceptable for high-quality pink salmon;
• yellow color of the inside of the abdomen;
• dry tail of pink salmon indicates that the fish has been thawed and frozen repeatedly;
• skin in the form of bubbles or not tightly attached to the meat indicates improper storage of the fish (or its age);
• the absence of a rich color of pink salmon fillet indicates that it was frozen over;
• distinct dents remaining after light pressure;
• numerous injuries to the skin, scales or individual parts of the fish.

If pink salmon is immersed in water, then a good fish will immediately drown.… A poor-quality or spoiled product will float belly up on the surface.

With a little trick, you can determine the age of the pink salmon. In this case, you just need to compare the date of fishing and the time of its implementation. For example, if in September you buy pink salmon caught in April, then it is extremely difficult to call it fresh. Old fish or food that has not been stored properly will taste bitter after cooking.