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Green-Living Recipes from the Earth and Sea

Wild Salmon vs. Farmed Salmon

Original Post: Updated: By 31 Comments

Wild salmon vs. farmed salmon– Which should you buy?  Does one taste better?  Is the other healthier?  This guide will help you choose!

Sustainably sourced salmon. 

Fresh salmon. 

Canned salmon. 

Frozen salmon.  

Wild salmon vs. farmed salmon.

Is your head spinning?  Are you confused?

I’m here to help!

Wild salmon vs. Farmed Salmon: Which Should I Buy? 

Which is the Best?  The answer is– it depends.

There are six types of salmon that you might find in an American supermarket or fish market. 

Atlantic salmon is always farmed.  The other 5 types of salmon are (almost) always wild.

Wild salmon vs. Farmed Salmon: When to Buy Farmed Salmon

Why might you choose farmed salmon over wild?

  • Cost. Farmed salmon is almost always less expensive than wild salmon.
  • Flavor. Farmed salmon is milder than most wild salmon, so if you’re worried about a “fishy” flavor, farmed salmon might be a good option.
  • Is it Sustainable?: Maybe.  Look for a “Best Aquaculture Practices” (BAP) label.
  • Fresh or Frozen?  Either! Look for “Fresh Never Frozen” labels if you prefer fresh, so that you can make sure it hasn’t been previously frozen and then later thawed at the seafood counter.
  • Cons: Color is added chemically through feed (wild salmon gets its signature color from the food it eats).  Farmed salmon isn’t always farmed well, and the fish are sometimes fed antibiotics to keep them healthy in dirty conditions.
  • Watch for: Avoid being tricked by salmon labels that mark the salmon “Norwegian“– this is simply Atlantic salmon.
  • Try it: This easy seared salmon recipe works perfectly with farmed salmon.
Seared Paprika Salmon with Rosemary Grapes
This Seared Salmon with Rosemary Grapes is ready in about 10 minutes, and is perfect for weeknight dinners, date nights, or as the seafood centerpiece at a dinner party.
Make It
The easy Seared Paprika Salmon with Grapes is ready in about 10 minutes, and is perfect for weeknight dinners, date nights, or as the seafood centerpiece at a dinner party.

Wild salmon vs. Farmed Salmon: When to Buy Wild Salmon

Personally, I usually buy wild salmon.  But wild salmon can be extremely confusing to shop for!

Keep in mind that, unless you live in the Pacific northwest, you should look for wild salmon with the frozen seafood at the grocery store.

You should also know that wild salmon are almost always sustainably caught— making them a good choice for the environment!

Here are the five types of wild Pacific salmon to look for, plus tips on how to cook them!

Sockeye Salmon

  • Pros: Easy to find, High-quality fish, Naturally brilliant-red flesh, Some consider “the best salmon”
  • Cons: Can be expensive
  • Watch for: My favorite sockeye salmon comes directly from Bristol Bay, Alaska.
  • Learn More: Sockeye Salmon Recipes
Grilled Salmon with Pineapple
This Grilled Salmon with Pineapple, uses a whole side of sockeye salmon, and is perfect way to make fish the main meal at your spring and summer cookouts!  
Make It
This Grilled Chili Lime Salmon with Pineapple is perfect way to make fish the main meal at your spring and summer cookouts!

Pink Salmon

  • Pros: Easy to Find, Inexpensive
  • Cons: Less oily and decadent than other salmon species
  • Watch for: Pink salmon is also easy to find canned.
  • Learn More: Pink Salmon Recipes
  • Try it: Seared pink salmon works beautifully in this salmon caesar salad
Salmon Caesar Salad
This Salmon Caesar Salad is a healthy and delicious take on a classic Caesar.  It features easy, homemade dressing, freshly baked croutons, and pan-seared salmon.
Make It
Salmon Caesar Salad in a serving bowl

Wild Pacific King Salmon (or Chinook Salmon)

A King Salmon Recipe: Grilled Salmon with Plum Sauce
Love luscious King salmon? This King Salmon recipe uses grilled King salmon and Plum Sauce for a rich and decadent meal.
Make It
This luscious Grilled King Salmon with Plum Sauce is made with rich and meaty King salmon fillets and fresh plum sauce!

Wild Pacific Coho Salmon (or Silver Salmon)

  • Flavor Profile: Mild, Pairs well with citrus or mustard
  • Pros: High-quality fish, Excellent raw or smoked
  • Cons: Less oily and decadent than other salmon species, Can be very hard to find
  • Try it: Coho salmon makes delicious lox (aka– the best part of bagels + lox!)  Learn how to make lox, and learn about lox vs. smoked salmon!
Bagels and Lox
This Bagels and Lox breakfast spread is quick and easy, and perfect for both busy mornings and brunch with friends and family.
Make It
This Bagels and Lox breakfast spread is quick and easy, and perfect for both busy mornings and brunch with friends and family.

Wild Pacific Chum Salmon (or Keta Salmon / Dog Salmon)

  • Flavor Profile: Mild, Very versatile
  • Pros: High-quality fish
  • Cons: Less oily and decadent than other salmon species, Can be very hard to find
  • Try it: Keta Salmon Sushi Stacks from Diversivore

↓ Salmon Cheat Sheet ↓

salmon infographic

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Whoa! Thanks so much for the low down on all the types of salmon!! I do really enjoy it, but I don’t like ‘strong’ salmon flavours and I like it more on the fatty side. And what a round up of recipes! Consulting this one next time I prepare it. Everything looks so good, especially that pecan bourbon recipe of yours 🙂

    Reply

  2. Another great posts with lots of great information and details.Your photography is absolutely gorgeous and Oh my those dishes look amazing! The savory cheesecake with salmon roe is calling my name and I want it now!!!!! So many great options, Thank you!

    Reply

  3. Holy moly did you put a lot of work and research into this post! I looooove Sockeye salmon season. I always have to google salmon cooking times because I never want to over cook it. This is super helpful!

    Reply

  5. What a great, informative post! I really needed all the explanations about the differences, since it’s Loreto the one that buys and cooks salmon. We like it a lot and usually buy it fresh from trusted sources. The recipes are also superb, thank you so much!

    Reply

  7. I have to confess that I’ve have never been much of a salmon lover, but your post changed all that! There is so much good information and I can’t wait to try some of your delicious looking recipes. I’m bookmarking your page to use as a reference Thank you so much for taking time to pull together all of this information!

    Reply

    • Aw that’s the best compliment ever Sharon!! Thank you! Let me know if you need help when you try cooking it! ????

      Reply

  9. I love the tips on the salmon! We love it and actually served a full fillet for Thanksgiving, grilled with Montreal seasoning and a little brown sugar, fantastic! We are non-traditional meal type house when it comes to holidays. Thanks for sharing! Pinning for later reference on my seafood board.

    Reply

  10. This is an absolutely amazing resource! So much very very very useful information and so expertly laid out. I am definitely going to be coming back to this article many times. Also – salmon wrapped scotch eggs from Diversivore? Oh, yum!!! And thanks for including my smoked salmon recipes 🙂

    Reply

  12. That’s a really useful post about salmon. I had no idea that there are different types of salmon. Here around they call a local fish, commonly found in the Indian ocean, as Indian salmon. people say this white flesh fish was a salmon. Turns out the name was given wrongly at some point in time by some people and it was of course not a salmon.
    After reading about king salmon etc I feel I still need to learn a lot about this fish and I wish I could taste some of the different fish, side by side to compare better. Thanks to your explanation it’s easy to see what salmon variety should be used for what and when.

    Reply

  16. This is such a great, well-compiled guide! Salmon is such a good at home fish option and I learned something new – I’ve never heard of hot smoked salmon before!

    Reply

  17. I love this ultimate guide! We buy salmon a lot, but with all of the different varieties, I’m sometimes overwhelmed at the market! Bookmarking this so I can get to it quickly on my phone. I also now have a craving for every recipe featured in the post. Am going to have to start at the top and cook my way to the bottom! 🙂

    Reply

  19. Woah! I’m sending this to my mom. Thank you so much for taking the time to write such a comprehensive guide! Especially the salt-cured salmon section. I thought they were all the same…

    Reply

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