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They\u2019re both packed with a rich, buttery taste and loads of nutrition, but there are plenty of differences between Pacific and Atlantic salmon. They come from different places, vary in price and availability, and have distinct flavor profiles.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cPacific salmon is often considered healthier than Atlantic salmon due to its lower fat content, better fatty acid profile, and lower risk of contaminants,\u201d says Michael Handal, chef at the Institute of Culinary Education\u2019s New York City campus. \u201cBut both varieties of salmon provide good levels of vitamins and protein.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n \u201cAtlantic salmon is generally all farmed, while Pacific salmon is most likely wild,\u201d says Hannah Heimbuch, a third-generation Alaska commercial salmon fisherman who has harvested a wide range of wild seafood from regions across Alaska, and specializes in sustainable fishing practices. \u201cIn the U.S., 99% of the wild salmon comes from Alaskan waters, where the state constitution mandates that all fish be harvested sustainably.\u201d\n<\/p>\n Wild-caught fish are caught in the ocean using lines, nets, or traps. Farmed salmon live in tanks or floating pens. Wild-caught fish eat what they find in their environment, while farmed fish are given pelleted feed. About 75% of the salmon we eat is farm-raised, according to the United Nations.\n<\/p>\n Atlantic salmon is listed as \u201cnear threatened\u201d on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of endangered species with their population continuing to drop. The Gulf of Maine distinct population of Atlantic salmon is classified as \u201cendangered\u201d under the Endangered Species Act.\n<\/p>\n There\u2019s just one type of Atlantic salmon, while there are primarily five species\u2014known by various names\u2014that live in the Pacific Ocean in the U.S. and Canada: coho (silver), sockeye (red), keta (chum), king (chinook), and pink (humpback).\n<\/p>\n Simply Recipes \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n <\/span> <\/p>\n Pacific salmon tends to be leaner with a richer flavor. Atlantic salmon is usually milder. \u201cDepending on species variations, Pacific salmon will range in taste from buttery, delicate and sweet, to robust, minerally, and oily,\u201d says Handal. \u201cAtlantic salmon has mild flavor due to being fed pelletized food which contains corn and soy. It is generally considered to be less flavorful than wild-caught species of salmon.\u201d\n<\/p>\n Heimbuch agrees. \u201cPacific (wild) salmon tends to be leaner than Atlantic, with a more complex flavor, driven by the natural variables of a wild diet,\u201d she says.\n<\/p>\n You can usually clearly tell the difference between Atlantic vs. Pacific salmon when you\u2019re looking at fillets in the grocery store.\n<\/p>\n \u201cWild salmon is often deep red or orange due to their natural diets of crustaceans filled with carotenoids, a pigment found in plants, while farmed salmon may be duller in color or artificially colored pink to look like salmon,\u201d Heimbuch says. \u201cWild salmon is more lean and often has less visible white fat than farmed salmon, so there will be more visible white lines on a farmed salmon fillet.\u201d\u00a0\n<\/p>\n There are real concerns about the environmental impact of salmon farms that have been raised by reputable sources, such as the\u00a0World Wildlife Fund. These concerns include contamination of natural habitats, disease, escaped farmed fish, and waste pollution.<\/p>\n For more information, see our article about Wild vs. Farmed Salmon.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/p>\n Because Atlantic salmon is farm raised, it\u2019s available year round. Pacific salmon is generally harvested from early summer to fall, so that\u2019s when you can find it fresh in stores.\n<\/p>\n \u201cBut much of our catch is frozen right after it comes out of the water to lock in quality and preserve freshness,\u201d says Heimbuch. \u201cSo if the seafood counter doesn\u2019t have what you\u2019re looking for, you can always check the freezer case and you\u2019ll still be getting the same wild, sustainable, high-quality guarantee.\u201d\n<\/p>\n Atlantic salmon is generally less expensive than Pacific salmon. Handal says Atlantic salmon is usually around $10-$15 per pound while Pacific salmon can range from $15-$25 per pound.\n<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Both types of salmon can be used with pretty much any type of cooking technique, says Handal. He points out that most fish is fully cooked when the internal temperature reaches 140\u00b0F, so he targets a range of 120 to 125\u00b0F when cooking salmon. \u201cThis will yield a moist, tender, and slightly pink in the center portion of fish.\u201d\n<\/p>\n Although Heimbuch says that all salmon works well in every situation, she does have some individual Pacific salmon preferences, based on cooking methods. \u201cAlaska\u2019s sockeye salmon, also known as red salmon, is known for its beautiful deep red color. It has a rich salmon flavor and is fantastic prepared simply with some herbs on the grill or roasted in the oven,\u201d she says.\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n #Pacific #Atlantic #Salmon #Experts #Explain #Difference<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" They\u2019re both packed with a rich, buttery taste and loads of nutrition, but there are plenty of differences between Pacific and Atlantic salmon. They come from different places, vary in price and availability, and have distinct flavor profiles. \u201cPacific salmon is often considered healthier than Atlantic salmon due to its lower fat content, better fatty […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":753,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[669,348,53,347,668,389],"class_list":["post-752","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dinner","tag-atlantic","tag-difference","tag-experts","tag-explain","tag-pacific","tag-salmon"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/artoz.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/752","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/artoz.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/artoz.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artoz.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artoz.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=752"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/artoz.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/752\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artoz.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/753"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/artoz.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=752"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artoz.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=752"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artoz.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=752"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}} Farmed Salmon vs. Wild-Caught <\/span> <\/h2>\n
\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Taste and Appearance <\/span> <\/h2>\n
\nSustainability<\/h3>\n
\n Availability and Price <\/span> <\/h2>\n
When to Choose Pacific vs. Atlantic Salmon <\/span> <\/h2>\n