N-glycosylomic analysis provides new insight into the molecular mechanism of firmness of fish fillet

•Feeding grass carp with faba bean conferred them with “crisp” muscle texture.•“Crisp” grass carp muscle is characterized by substantial protein N-glycosylation.•N-glycosylated proteins participate in myogenesis, muscle function, & ECM formation.•N-glycosylation regulation is independent with phosphorylation regulation and protein expression.•These findings lay a foundation for optimizing fish fillet texture & quality.