Carcass and meat quality of rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss Richardson, produced in the northwest of Chihuahua State

99 rainbow trouts of different weight and length were used to characterize their carcass and meat quality. Carcass yield was assessed by total dissection whereas the meat quality variables pH, color, water holding capacity, electric conductivity, protein, fat, ashes and moisture content, were measured in the filet. An asymptotic relationship between trout length and weight was found; trout's weighing 200 g or less had 85.5% carcass yield whereas 300 g or more trouts yielded over 88.0%. Filet yield increased with total weight with 53.14 and 55.25% of carcass weight, respectively. Protein content increased with carcass weight, but fat content remained low at all weights. Significant differences were found between low (128,79 g) and high (361.0 g) weight trouts in color (L* 48.41 vs. 41.21, b* 13.58 vs. 8.96) and electric conductivity (9.18 vs. 13.3 mu ). Water holding capacity was over 55.0% in trouts weighing 250 g or more. It was concluded that trouts weighing over 200 g have a higher carcass yield and meat quality than lighter trouts.