Golden Perch

When Caught

Golden perch: caught from December through August, with peak supply during autumn and winter. The New South Wales fishery is closed from September through November and there are plans to close it completely.

Murray cod: caught mostly in winter. The New So

Important Features

Wild/Farmed: mostly farmed
Habitat: Freshwater, Caught in rivers and lakes
Recovery Rate: Fillets: at least 35% from most whole freshwater finfish (gilled and gutted); up to 50% from whole silver perch

Golden Perch Research

FRDC provides a comprehensive search of the latest research papers and images on Golden Perch

Remarks

Most wild freshwater fisheries have declined in recent decades. Live Murray cod and silver perch are supplied to restaurants (mainly Chinese) nationwide via aquaculture. Golden perch is hard to feed in captivity and the availability of this species may decrease.

Imports

nil

Common Size

35-50cm

Overseas Names

USA: golden perch

Grading

Not usually graded although whole silver perch are sometimes graded as presented below

Plate-size Murray cod usually weigh about 0.5 kg and those for Chinese banquets about 1.5 kg.

Golden Perch (Macquaria ambigua)

Photograph by CSIRO

Nutrition Facts

per 100g of raw product

Kilojoules	na
Cholesterol	60mg
Sodium	na
Total fat (oil)	601g
Saturated fat	31% of total fat
Monounsaturated fat	55% of total fat
Polyunsaturated fat	14% of total fat
Omega-3, EPA	79mg
Omega-3, DHA	197mg
Omega-6, AA	19mg

Cooking Ideas

Bake	Boil	Deep Fry
Grill/barbecue	Poach	Raw
Roe	Roe & Milk	Salted
Shallow Fry	Smoke	Steam/microwave

Note: Cooking Ideas identified by dark bold text are relevant to this species

Ideal as fillets or whole, and well suited to baking, shallow frying, grilling, barbecuing and poaching. The fillets, which are meaty, sturdy and retain their shape when cooked, are well suited to stir-fries, soups, risottos and pasta dishes.

Golden perch is particularly good steamed and marries well with the Asian flavours of chilli, coriander, soy, ginger and garlic. It is prized in Chinese cuisine for presentation as a steamed finfish.

Stuffing a whole Murray cod with wild rice and lemon zest, then baking it wrapped in foil, seals in the flavours, keeps it moist and also presents wonderfully.

Silver perch flesh can be relatively moist when fresh but is otherwise dry. It is best prepared with a medium-flavoured sauce. Wolfgang Schmelcher formerly from the Renaissance Hotel in Sydney uses a citrus crust to accentuate its flavour. It is often used by caterers as it holds together well, even when poached.

Flavour: Mild, light and delicate
Oiliness: Low to high, Silver perch very high; others generally low, although can be higher when in good condition
Moisture: Dry, medium or moist, Golden perch, Murray cod: moist
Texture: Medium
Flesh Colour: White
Thickness: Medium to thick fillets
Bones: Pin bones, which are easily removed
Price: medium-priced finfish

Suggested Wines

The golden perch lends itself to delicate riesling styles for most cooking suggestions, in particular poaching and baking. The stronger flavours of the Murray cod and silver perch are best complemented by the dry white wine styles with more robust characters, such as chardonnay.

In this Section