Trout Amador

I don't really care for hatchery trout. It's not bad, just not something I look forward to. But my wife came up with something that turned my soft, rather tasteless Amador trout into something worthwhile.

She lays down a bed of greens (Chard, collard, kale, mustard, etc ...) with sliced onion and fennel (anise) bulb on a piece of foil. Stuffs the cavity with the fennel fronds and some more of the greens and onion, covers it with more, and squeezes fresh lemon over the whole she-bang. Then covers that with another sheet of foil, crimped to the first, to make a steamer and bakes at 375 for 40 minutes.

This is some yummy stuff, and pretty much a complete meal.

Amador trout is one species I enjoy dining on.

I hear ya... it always bums me out when I go to clean a trout, only to discover the meat is white and mushy.  Some fisheries are always one way or the other... and some are a mixed bag like Lake Trinity. 

Amador is definitely a mixed bag. The trout i caught at Amador a few weeks back was nice and orange..I planked that guy and it came out great.

Amador is definitely a mixed bag. The trout i caught at Amador a few weeks back was nice and orange..I planked that guy and it came out great.

Does anyone know the cause of trout flesh coloration?  I used to think is was a planter vs. native thing, or at least a fresh planter that hasn't got around to eating a lot of wild forage... but more recently even some fish that I know are fresh planters (like mill creek dams in ukiah) have been pinkish orange, so my theory is shot.  I still assume it has a lot to do with diet, but I don't know how to explain recent planters, unless the hatcheries have changed the diets of planters? 

I thought the color came from genetics. So each hatchery has a certain strain, hence white or pink?

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Looks delicious! Trout have always looked really good coming out of amador color and all their fins intact.


About color.

http://www.imhooked.com/cgi-bin/forumsyabb/YaBB.pl?num=1269565862

About color.

http://www.imhooked.com/cgi-bin/forumsyabb/YaBB.pl?num=1269565862

Yup, especially this:

Some private growers add these naturally occurring pigments to fish feed over the last few weeks before fish are stocked. Most hatchery fish feed has no color in the formula, so their flesh is white.

I'm not by any means a expert on fish color, but I have fished Edison Lake since I was 6 years old. That would be over 50 years, and I have noticed that the fish that I catch close to the head waters are pinker than those caught in the lake. I have heard it could be the cold water coming into the lake. Also the fish are eating eggs from the spawn. At Edison the Rambows spawn in the late spring, and the Browns spawn in the fall so they get a lot of feed from the spawn. I know planters are usually white meat. Another thing the fish I catch that are caught at the headwaters are the only trout I like to eat.

About color.

http://www.imhooked.com/cgi-bin/forumsyabb/YaBB.pl?num=1269565862

Yup, especially this:

Some private growers add these naturally occurring pigments to fish feed over the last few weeks before fish are stocked. Most hatchery fish feed has no color in the formula, so their flesh is white.

So, more or less I was right... Therefore I have to assume the fish at the mill creek ponds are getting something extra in their hatchery diet.  One thing is for certain to me... the fish with pink flesh at the very least have a better texture, and normally better flavor as well.

You are correct.

They all taste like trout, and I'm not to fond of that.