Red or white? And why is it actually customary to divide the fish into red and white? When did they begin to divide fish into two fundamentally different species? It is worthwhile to plunge into the topic in more detail to find facts and explanations that will shed light on these issues. But first things first.
Color as a sign of status
At the time of kings and princes, fish of rare breeds was considered a delicacy, and in some cases a currency. We got it in very complex ways and its representatives dwelt not everywhere, but in certain places where it was necessary to get a long time. It was from that time that they began to call the fish “red,” which was not related more to the color of its meat, but was perceived in the sense of indicating the special value and status of this product.
Today, by "red fish" we mean species of salmon, namely:
- Salmon;
- Trout;
- Pink salmon;
- Chum;
- Red salmon.
Visually, their meat really has a color from shades of red to pink-yellow. At the same time, some species of the same sturgeon and salmon may have milky white meat - this is whitefish and nelma. In ancient times, such species were called whitefish, and these varieties were valued no less than sea fish or the same red fish.
But there is another explanation, not only on the basis of the color of the flesh. If we turn to the "Explanatory Dictionary of the Living Great Russian Language", then we will find in addition to the "red" also "black" fish. This happened because of the class of fish, but there are bony and cartilaginous. The first class (bony) was considered the cheapest species, although this practically does not affect the taste sensations and the benefits of the product.
Due to the abundance of bones and the difficulties of eating, the noble and rich people did not like this fish, but considered it to be food for peasants and workers, that is, the “black people”. So there was another term “black fish”, which came to be understood as insufficient quality or status.
Let us return again to the origin of the term “red fish”. It is clear that she has few bones and the color of her meat is a pleasant shade of pink, but there is another explanation. Due to its peculiarity and difficulty of extraction, finding these varieties on the shelves of the fish store was considered a whole event.
Buyers in the big cities felt more relaxed, but even there they had to pay dearly for such delicacies. It was the color of the banknotes, according to one version, that they began to call red fish red, which indicated its high cost and deficit.
Scientific facts
There are many studies proved that the explainable and logical factors influence the color and quality of fish meat. These factors include:
- Habitat;
- Fish mobility;
- Features of the circulatory system;
- Conditions and diet.
To verify the correctness of these assumptions, many experiments were carried out. Different varieties of red and white fish were placed in artificial ponds, where they began to grow them not in a typical microclimate and feed them with other foods. Visually, the color, as well as the texture of the meat, began to change, which happened with some useful properties of this product.
We can conclude from these studies that not only traditions can give rise to concepts, but also facts quite explainable by science become the reason for the establishment of new traditions. Scientists realized that much depends on the characteristics of life, nutritional conditions and the rhythm of life.
A pigment called myoglobin is responsible for the peculiarities of the color of muscle tissue (meat) - it is a protein that binds oxygen. This ability of myoglobin is influenced by the elements that come into the body of the fish from the environment and together with food, the intensity of respiratory movements and so on.
If we take only the main thing from the foregoing, we can conclude that there are two approaches to determining why one fish is called red and the other is white. The first approach is historical, it has evolved over the centuries and is already very firmly a donkey in the understanding of man. The second is scientific, which proved that the distinction between “white” and “red” is relative, and it all depends on the impact of a combination of factors and conditions.
