Brook Trout – Nutritional Value, Health Benefits

Brook trout scientifically Salvelinus fontinalis is a freshwater fish species in the char genus Salvelinus of salmon family Salmonidae. It is inherent to Eastern North America in the United States and Canada but introduced elsewhere in North America as well as Europe, Iceland, and Asia. It is also called speckled trout, eastern brook trout, squaretail, brook charr and mud trout. Brook trout is the state fish of nine U.S. states: New Hampshire, Michigan, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Virginia, Vermont, Provincial Fish of Nova Scotia in Canada, and West Virginia.

Description

Brook trout are also known as speckled trout, a fish with yellow spots over the olive-green back. The spot in the back is stretched and is wormlike in shape. It has the color transitions from olive to orange or red having scattered spots adjoined by pale blue. Lower fins are red or orange with a black streak and white streak and its underside is milky white. Brook trout reaches from 9 to 10 inches in length and weighs 0.3 to 3 kg. A Male’s belly is red or orange when fish are spawning. Growth rates depend on season, water, age, and ambient air temperatures as well as growth rates.

Size

Adults measures from 10 inches and 26 inches (25 cm or 65 cm) long.

Weight

They generally weigh from 0.3 to 3 kg (11 to 112 ounces).

Body

Their elongate bodies are slightly compressed laterally.

Head

Trouts have large head with rounded snouts. Breeding males have hook at front of their lower jaw.

Color

It is green to brown with typical marbled pattern of light shades. The special pattern is called vermiculation which runs along flanks and back of the fish that extends to their dorsal fins and tail. It have small red spots circled by blue along their flanks. Reddish lower fins have white edges. They have reddish belly with that of males which turn a distinctive shade of red or orange at the time of spawning seasons.

Diet

Its diet includes insects and often preferring adult and nymph form of aquatic insects. It also eats ants, beetles and small fish.

Health Benefit of

• Trout are a member of the Salmonidae family and are closely related to salmon and char.
• Trout is the common name for various species, including rainbow trout, brown trout, and brook trout. Rainbow trout is commonly found in grocery stores.
• Trout are an excellent source of protein, niacin, vitamin B12, and omega 3 fatty acids.
  • Protein is the building blocks of our body. It is important in growth and development and assists in repairing damaged tissues.
  • Niacin is important in converting the food we eat into energy as well as assisting with digestive, skin, and nerve functions within the body.
  • Vitamin B12 is required to form red blood cells which deliver oxygen throughout the body. B12 is also essential in supporting brain health and in creating DNA that holds our genetic material.
  • Omega 3 fatty acids are necessary for brain function by aiding in memory, performance, and behavior as well as assisting with normal growth and development. Research has also shown that omega 3 fatty acids reduce inflammation and may help lower your risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and arthritis.
• Many people have concerns about mercury and fish. A trout is an excellent option when eating fish due to its high omega 3 fatty acid content and its low levels of mercury. If eating locally caught trout, contact your DNR to find specific eating recommendations. The Wisconsin DNR has a publication called Choose Wisely, a health guide for eating fish in Wisconsin.
• If you are interested in learning more about how to find sustainable and healthy fish to consume, check out seafoodwatch.org
• The USDA recommends eating 8 oz. of a variety of fish each week for optimum nutrition.
• Brook trout is low in calories; 3.5 oz fish hold just 110 calories in contrast to 119 and 179 of rainbow trout and salmons respectively.
• Brook trouts carry a good amount of protein. Their lean meat composes 21.2 g/3.5 oz (38% of RDI) of protein, being complete in all essential amino acids in healthy proportions.
• Studies suggest that consumption of seafood decreases the risk of heart attack, stroke, obesity, and hypertension. Seafood is low in saturated fat and higher in “heart healthful” polyunsaturated fat, including omega-3 fatty acids.
• American Heart Association recommends consumption of at least 2 servings of oily fish to fulfill requirements of essential fatty acids, protein, minerals, and fat-soluble vitamins.
• All species of trouts are a rich sources of vitamin-A, vitamin-D, and long-chain omega-3 fatty acids (PUFA).
• As in other oily-fish types, brook trout also is a rich source of omega-3 eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) fatty acids. Research studies suggest that these fatty acids, particularly DHA, play an important role in the development of the neural system, especially in infants and children.
• According to Cornell University and the New York Sea Grant Extension Program. 2012- these fatty acids can help lower blood pressure and heart rate and improve cardiovascular function. For example, research has shown that omega-3 fatty acids decrease the risk of arrhythmias (abnormal heartbeats) that can lead to sudden death. Omega-3 fatty acids also decrease triglyceride levels and slow the growth rate of atherosclerotic plaque.
• In adults, several large trials have evaluated the effect of fish or fish oils on heart disease. In the “GISSI Prevention Trial, heart attack survivors who took a 1-gram capsule of omega-3 fats every day for three years were less likely to have a repeat heart attack, stroke, or die of sudden death than those who took a placebo”.
• The essential vitamins in brook trout contain include niacin, vitamin B6, vitamin E, vitamin B12, thiamin, and riboflavin. In addition, being an oily fish, trout have generous amounts of vitamins-A and D.\
• It has small amounts of Vitamin-A (57 IU/100g) in comparison to salmon. vitamin-A and omega-3’s are essential for healthy mucosa and skin.
• Its flesh carries less vitamin D (155 IU/100g) than salmon’s (526 IU/100 g). Vitamin D plays an important role in calcium metabolism and offers protection from cancers.
• The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends that pregnant women eat at least 8 ounces and up to 12 ounces (340 grams) of a variety of seafood lower in mercury a week.
• Trouts are a naturally rich sources of minerals including calcium, zinc, potassium, phosphorus, and magnesium. It is also a rich dietary source of iodine.

Purchasing, Selecting, Storing, and Preparing

• When purchasing fresh trout, it should be refrigerated or displayed on a thick bed of ice.
• Trout should smell fresh and mild, avoid if it smells too fishy, sour, or ammonia-like.
• The flesh should be shiny, firm, and free from slime.
• Fillets should display no discoloration, darkening, or drying around the edges.
• If purchasing frozen trout, avoid packages that have been tampered with or those with ice crystals. Ice crystals signify a food has been thawed and refrozen.
• Soon after purchasing, store trout in the refrigerator if using within two days or in the freezer if not using right away.
• When thawing trout, place in the refrigerator overnight. If the trout needs to be thawed sooner, seal in a plastic bag and immerse in cold water.
• Seafood should be cooked to a temperature of 145°F. Insert a food thermometer to check the temperature. If you do not have a thermometer, fish should be flaky and separate easily with a fork.

Buying

You can buy brook trout fresh or frozen, whole, trimmed, fileted, and sometimes steaks. It is also available smoked, salt-cured, or in cans.

Buy good quality fish from authentic sellers. Buy a whole brook trout side or a fillet that is from the thickest cut of the fish. Wild-caught trouts will have pinker and brighter flesh than farmed ones. Wild trout are nutritionally rich and contain fewer toxins than farmed ones. There are some reported cases of artificial colorants/dye in farmed trouts to portray them as pink, wild trout.

In the markets, you can find products ready-to-cook pâté, kabobs, and marinated and peppered trout steaks and fillets, salted trout, and burgers.

Brook trout never smell fishy, amine odor, if so, avoid them. Also, avoid smoked trout with leaky and wet edges.

It spoils quickly as its flesh is fatty and attracts bacteria. Always store fillets/sections of fish in a deep freezer.

Preparation

Prepare trout as simply as possible so as not to mask its delicate flavor. Smoked brook trout is equally delicious.

The scales on the skin can be left on. The fillets are very easy to remove. The flesh close to the head of the trout is more delicate than the flesh nearer the tail. If you prefer to skin, just peel it inside out. Remove any bones before cooking.

Brook trout can be substituted in all recipes that call for char, salmon, and other trout members. It may be pan-roasted, shallow fried, broiled, foil baked and grilled in the preparation of a variety of mouth-watering menus. Just ensure it should be cooked until the meat is opaque and flakes off easily.

Here are some serving ideas:

• Brook trout is employed in the preparation of sandwiches, salads, omelets, pasta dishes, mousses, and quiches.
• Smoked brook is served with capers and cream cheese as an appetizer.
• Marinade whole brook trout with lemon slices and herbs (minced garlic, thyme, parsley, peppercorns, etc) for an hour. Then bake or grill and serve with lemon wedges.
• Canned brook trout is employed in mousse, soufflés, pâté and crepes. As a spread, it is used on sandwiches and canapés.
• In Japan, ikura is red caviar made from the roe of salmon, trout, or cod. It is employed in sushi, and rice dishes in Japan.

References