Whitefish is the delicate, mild, white-fleshed meat of freshwater whitefishes of the genus Coregonus — chiefly the lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) of North America's cold, deep lakes. A member of the salmon family (Salmonidae), it yields a moderately oily yet clean-tasting flesh that flakes large and white when cooked, long prized smoked, fried and pan-roasted across the Great Lakes and the cold lakes of northern Europe.