For years, we have been eating salmon because it was yummy and very healthy. It was loaded with protein, vitamin D and the two blockbuster omega 3s — DHA and EPA — that make us happy, smart, healthy and pain-free. Since the body can’t make omega-3 fatty acids, the best way to obtain them is through the food we eat. Therefore, salmon seemed like a great choice. Right? Well, like all things nothing is that simple. Wild salmon, like all free roaming critters, eat what is best for their bodies to remain healthy and strong. Thus, eating them provides all of us carnivores the benefits of their healthy diets. However, farmed salmon now outnumbers wild salmon by 85 to one. Most farmed salmon are not fed the same diet they would find in the wild. Fish farmers often feed their salmon soya- and corn-based food, which isn’t all that nutritious and can result in lower amounts of omega 3 with an increased amount of omega-6 for the consumer. Soya and corn are also heavily genetically modified and laden with pesticides that can affect the fish. To avoid the issues that come with overcrowding, fungicides are also used to treat the water the fish live in. Their flesh ends up being pale and grey not the beautiful orange that we picture when we think of salmon. Therefore, it’s common for salmon farms to use fish food added with canthaxanthin to make the farmed pale fish flesh orange, the way wild salmon would look naturally. The dye is added to fish food and is transferred into the flesh. Canthaxanthin is sold in Canada as a nonprescription “tanning pill” but it’s not approved for human use in the USA. What does that tell you about canthaxanthin? Gives you pause, doesn’t it?
Of course, there are different ways to farm salmon. Salmon farmed in open net pens are highly vulnerable to infection from diseases, or parasites such as sea lice, and as a result require treatment with antibiotics and pesticides. The use of antibiotics in salmon farms increases the risk of antibiotic resistance in human diseases. And there is currently a high concern regarding the use of antibiotics by the animal industry that are listed as critically or highly important to human health by the World Health Organization.
Of course, there is the impact of escaping farmed salmon on wild salmon populations. The result is loss of genetic fitness of wild salmon populations due to interbreeding, along with direct competition and predation, and sea lice spreading to wild salmon and sea trout populations. YUCK!
So what can a consumer do? Talk to your friendly fishmonger. Ask where your fish comes from and how it is raised. Your best bet is to consume wild or organically farmed fish to avoid any additional pesticides, fungicides and excessive omega-6 consumption (which leads to inflammation) found in conventionally farmed fish. The Monterey Bay Aquarium has put together helpful guidelines: check out Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch for Salmon. In a nutshell, the Monterey Bay Aquarium has recently deemed Atlantic salmon farmed in recirculating aquaculture systems to be a “best choice” for consumers. All other farmed salmon, from Norway, Scotland, Canada or Chile, is rated as “avoid.”
We enjoy eating salmon, but in the past year wild salmon has not been as available as it has in the past. So, I have been exploring other healthy salmon options. Luckily, we have found organic farm raised salmon. Recently, I made a salmon from a recipe my sister-in-law shared with me. It is super easy, fast and delicious; what more can anyone ask from a recipe? Well have someone else could cook it but hey…..
Quick Salmon for 2
¾ lb Salmon (center cuts or steaks)
2 tbsp mango chutney
2 tbsp honey mustard
2 tbsp peanut oil
Use a pan that can be use on stovetop and be put in broiler; cast iron and Calphalon are good options.
Very simple, all you need is 3 ingredients.
Mix mango chutney and mustard. Heat frying pan (large enough to hold both pieces of salmon) over medium high heat. Pour peanut oil in the bottom of the pan & spread around so the salmon does not stick. Put the salmon into the heated pan and cook over medium high heat for 5 -7 minutes, depending how thick they are. As you cook you will notice the bottom turning whitish. When ¾ of the salmon is noticeably cooked, takeoff if off the stovetop. While cooking, spread the chutney/mustard mixture on top of the salmon, covering it rather thickly.
After salmon is ¾ cooked, put the frying pan under the broiler, and broil about 5 inches away from the heat for another 5 minutes. The top of the chutney/mustard glaze should be bubbling and browning but not burning.
After five minutes the salmon should be done, unless it is very thick. If you have thick steaks, they may take another 5 minutes, but move them further away from the broiler so that the top doesn’t burn. That’s it!
YUM!
It’s so delicious and easy – who could want for more!
Enjoy!