Salmon with Cucumber Chili Salad - Healthy Food Tip and Recipe

healthy food tip and recipe

Today's Recipe If you don't know what to serve for dinner tonight ...
Enjoy this refreshing salmon salad for lunch or dinner as part of your Healthiest Way of Eating. It is an excellent source of vitamin D and provides 105% of the Daily Value for omega-3 fatty acids. Enjoy!
Salmon with Cucumber Chili Salad
Prep and Cook Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:

• 1½ lb salmon fillet,deboned and skin removed cut into 4 pieces
• 3 cups thinly sliced washed cucumber, do not peel
• 2 tsp minced jalapeno pepper*, seeds and stem removed
• 1/2 cup chopped scallion
• 3 TBS chopped fresh cilantro
• 1½ TBS chopped fresh mint
• 
  
• Dressing
• 2 + 1 TBS fresh lemon juice
• 1 TBS tamari (soy sauce)
• 1 TBS extra virgin olive oil
• salt and cracked black pepper to taste
• *if you like food less spicy, use less jalapeno pepper

Directions:

1. To Quick Broil salmon, preheat broiler and place an all stainless steel skillet (be sure the handle is also stainless steel) or cast iron pan under the heat for about 10 minutes to get it very hot. The pan should be 5 to 7 inches from the heat source.
2. Rub salmon with 2 tsp fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper. (You can Quick Broil with the skin on; it just takes a minute or two longer. The skin will peel right off after cooking.)
3. While pan is heating, prepare the remaining five ingredients.
4. Using a hot pad, pull pan away from heat and place salmon on hot pan, skin side down. Return to broiler. Keep in mind that it is cooking rapidly on both sides so it will be done very quickly, usually in 7 minutes depending on thickness. Test with a fork for doneness. It will flake easily when it is cooked. Salmon is best when it is still pink inside.
5. While salmon is cooking, whisk together lemon juice, tamari, olive oil, salt and pepper. When ready to serve toss with cucumber mixture. Do not toss ahead as it will dilute the flavor.
6. Place cucumber salad on a platter and place salmon on top. Garnish with a sprig of cilantro and serve.

Serves 4 Printer Friendly Version of Salmon with Cucumber Chili Salad
In-Depth Nutritional Profile for Salmon with Cucumber Chili Salad
Healthy Food Tip

The Latest News About Salmon

With exceptional nutritional value due to their rich concentration of omega-3 fatty acids, salmon is a favorite among fish lovers and enjoyed even by those who are not always fond of fish. Salmon are incredible fish sometimes traveling thousands of miles throughout their life cycle and within two to five years returning to the very location where they were born to spawn and die. The specific characteristics and life cycles of salmon vary with each species. (For example, king salmon has a life cycle of approximately 4-6 years, sockeye, 4-6 years, and silver 3-4 years.)
A good portion of salmon can be classified either as Pacific (Oncorhynchus genus) or Atlantic (Salmo genus) salmon, according to the ocean in which they are found. There is just one native species of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), while there are many species of Pacific salmon including chinook (or king), sockeye (or red), coho (or silver), pink, and chum. Norwegian salmon, a popular type of salmon often offered on restaurant menus, is actually Atlantic salmon that is farm-raised in Norway. The flesh of salmon ranges in color from pink to red to orange with some varieties richer in important omega-3 fatty acids than others. For example, chinook and sockeye are fattier fish than pink and chum and contain great amounts of healthy omega-3 fatty acids.
The native habitats of Atlantic and Pacific salmon as described above no longer characterize most of salmon consumed in the United States or in many other countries. Because farmed salmon now accounts for about 80% of all salmon consumed worldwide, it is becoming harder and harder to find wild-caught salmon that live in their native habitat.

What's New and Beneficial About Salmon

• With so much focus on the amazing omega-3 benefits of salmon, other unique health benefits from salmon may have been inadvertently overlooked. One fascinating new area of health benefits involves the protein and amino acid content of salmon. Several recent studies have found that salmon contains small bioactive protein molecules (called bioactive peptides) that may provide special support for joint cartilage, insulin effectiveness, and control of inflammation in the digestive tract. One particular bioactive peptide called calcitonin (sCT) has been of special interest in these studies. The reason is because a human form of calcitonin is made by the thyroid gland, and we know that it is a key hormone for helping regulate and stabilize the balance of collagen and minerals in the bone and surrounding tissue. As researchers learn more and more about salmon peptidesâ€"including sCTâ€"we expect to see more and more potential health benefits discovered related to in flammation, including inflammation of the joints.
• Even though contamination with mercury, pesticides, and persistent organic pollutants (POPS) has become a widespread problem in salmon habitats and with the quality of salmon itself, there are still salmon runs that pose relatively low risk in terms of contaminants. Leading this low-risk category for wild-caught salmon are Alaskan salmon. Southeast Alaskan chum, sockeye, coho, pink, and chinook salmon, together with Kodiak coho, pink, and chum salmon have all been evaluated for contaminant consumption risk involving many POPs (including dioxins, dioxin-like compounds, or DLCs, and polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs) and have been found to be the lowest risk category of wild-caught salmon for regular consumption. This lower contamination risk amongst all wild-caught salmon is one of the reasons we recommend selection of wild-caught Alaskan salmon as a salmon of choice. (While some salmon runs from British Columbia and the U .S. West Coast also stand out as lower risk in terms of contaminants, we do not feel enthusiastic about recommending them for consumption due to the more precarious sustainability of these salmon runs.)
• Along with lower risk of contamination from wild-caught Alaskan salmon, we like what experts are saying about the greater sustainability of Alaskan salmon runs. For example, the Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey, California has recently determined Alaskan salmon to be the only low-risk salmon in terms of four sustainability criteria: the inherent vulnerability of the fish, the effects of fishing on the overall habitat, the status of wild stocks, and the nature of the by-catch (the other types of fish that are caught unintentionally during salmon fishing).
• Changes may soon be coming to rules about organic certification of salmon. During the week of April 25-29, 2010, the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) is taking public comment on various aspects of organic regulation, including proposed rules involving aquaculture and organic certification of salmon. The NOSB seems to be leaning toward a certification process that will only allow for organic labeling of farmed salmon. This limitation of organic certification to farmed salmon appears related to the NOSB's desire for certainty about compliance of salmon production with organic regulations as well as its belief that verification of compliance for wild-caught salmon would simply not be possible. Expected to be at issue in the NOSB public comment is the apparent intention of the NOSB to allow up to 25% of wild-caught fish feed to be used in the farming of organic salmon. Since organic regulations prohibit the use of animal by-products in the feeding of land animals (like cows or chickens), this area of certification for farmed fish is controversial and somewhat confusing since many types of fish are included in the natural diet of adult salmon when they migrate out to sea. Until these issues involving organic certification of farmed salmon have been resolved, and given the desirability of a life for salmon that takes place in their natural habitat, we recommend consumption of wild-caught salmon, and more specifically, wild-caught Alaskan salmon.
• While salmon have long been identified as a uniquely concentrated source of omega-3 fats, recent studies have now determined the actual bioavailability of these omega-3 fats from relatively small changes in diet. In fascinating research from a team of scientists at the Lipid and Diabetes Research Center at Saint Luke's MidAmerica Heart Institute in Kansas City, MO, only two servings of salmon per week (Norwegian Atlantic-farmed salmon and approximately 6 ounces per serving) were determined to sig nificantly increase the presence of omega-3 fats in the membranes of red blood cells (RBCs). Only 4 months were required to raise the RBC omega-3 levels from 4% to 6%. This finding made it clear that the omega-3 fats from salmonâ€"including its heart-supportive combination of EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid)â€"effectively make their way into our body and directly support the function of our cells. Equally interesting in this study was a comparison of dietary salmon intake to fish oil capsules containing purified salmon oil. Salmon oil capsules were also able to raise the percentage of omega-3s in the RBC membranes form 4% to 6%. However, intake of the fish oil capsules over this 4-month period also produced a small increase in some of the blood fats (in particular, triglycerides) of the participants. Since increased blood triglyceride levels can be a risk factor for cardiovascular problems, and since dietary salmon did not produce a si milar rise in blood triglycerides for participants in this study, dietary intake of salmon appears to be a best bet for supporting cell function and simultaneously avoiding some unwanted increases in other blood fats.

WHFoods Recommendations

The best ways to cook salmon is by using methods that will keep it moist and tender. Salmon can be easily overcooked and become dry, so be sure to watch your cooking times.
One of our favorite ways to prepare salmon is using our "Quick Broil" method. Preheat the broiler on high and place an all stainless steel skillet (be sure the handle is also stainless steel) or cast iron pan under the heat for about 10 minutes to get it very hot. Place salmon on hot pan and broil for 7-10 minutes, depending on thickness. You do not need to turn the salmon. (See our Quick Broiled Salmon with Ginger Mint Salsa recipe for details on how to prepare "Quick Broiled" salmon.) While grilled salmon tastes great, make sure it does not burn. It is best to grill salmon on an area without a direct flame. Extra care should be taken when grilling, as burning can damage nutrients and create free radicals that can be harmful to your health. For more see Are there health risks with char-broiling and gas grilling foods?

Health Benefits

Salmon provides numerous potential health benefits including:

• Supports heart health
• Enhances mood and cognition
• Promotes joint protection
• Supports eye health
• Potential cancer protective properties

For more details on salmon's health benefits, see this section of our salmon write-up.

Nutritional Profile

The unique protein and amino acid composition of salmon is often overlooked in its nutritional profile. Salmon contains short protein molecules called peptides that have been shown to be bioactive and may have important anti-inflammatory properties. Salmon also provides important amounts of the antioxidant amino acid taurine. Salmon is an excellent source of anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin D as well as immune-supportive selenium. It is also a very good source of muscle-building protein and heart-healthy niacin and vitamin B12. Additionally, it is a good source of energy-producing phosphorus as well as heart-healthy magnesium and vitamin B6.
For more on this nutrient-rich food, including references related to this Latest News, see our write-up on salmon.