Affordable, sustainable, and simply delicious: Canned salmon for budget-conscious cooks

eere’s a stellar pantry staple I don’t write about often enough, so let’s dive into some canned salmon.

There’s no doubt that salmon is among the healthiest of foods. Yet fresh salmon is expensive, seasonal and sometimes hard to find, particularly salmon that’s wild caught rather than farmed. So, while we wait for fresh salmon to go on sale, canned salmon is an affordable choice for the frugal and fabulous pantry.

It’s crucial to scrutinize salmon labels for quality. Farmed salmon, raised in crowded pens with antibiotics and toxins, poses health risks. Avoid Atlantic salmon, which is farmed due to overfishing. lpt instead for wild-caught Alaskan pink salmon, sustainably harvested in well-managed fisheries. Not only is it ethically sound, but also budget-friendly.

If you’ve never tried canned salmon, here’s what you should know. Canned salmon comes in two varieties: with the skin and bones (less expensive) and without (more expensive).

If you buy salmon with the skin and bones, there’s a tiny little drawback. Namely, skin and bones. You’re getting a section of the whole fish (scales and organs removed) then pressure cooked right in the can. The bones are soft and completely edible, in fact, they’re highly nutritious. You can choose to eat everything in the can, or you can pick out the skin and bones, leaving only the fillets.

If you or your family feel squeamish about the bones, I suggest you remove the obvious bits and add a handful of slivered almonds to any recipe using canned salmon to completely camouflage any remaining bones.

Canned salmon is so versatile; you can make sandwiches, salads, chowders, pasta and more. But a family favorite is salmon patties -- crisp on the outside, tender on the inside and bursting with flavor. This adaptable recipe also makes awesome burgers or little appetizer cakes.

SALMON PATTIES Yield: 4 to 6 servings Total Time: 1 hour

1 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup green onion, minced, divided 1 teaspoon lemon zest

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

P/4 teaspoon lld Bay seafood seasoning 1/2 teaspoon low sodium soy sauce 1/2 cup celery, finely minced

2 eggs

1 (14.75 ounce) can pink salmon 1 tablespoon slivered almonds, optional 1 P/4 cups panko breadcrumbs, divided 1 tablespoon everything bagel seasoning 2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil, for frying

In a mixing bowl, combine mayonnaise, half (1/4 cup) of the green onions, lemon zest and juice, lld Bay and soy sauce. oeserve about 1/2 cup of this mixture to use as a dipping sauce or spread later. Into the remaining mayo mixture add celery, remaining green onion, beaten eggs and salmon. For this purpose, I remove the skin and bones, but it’s your choice. Add the almonds, if desired. Stir to combine. Thoroughly fold 1 cup of panko breadcrumbs into this mix. oefrigerate for at least 20 minutes. Meanwhile, in a shallow bowl, combine the remaining panko and everything bagel seasoning.

When you’re ready to cook your patties, place a skillet on medium-low heat and add 1 tablespoon of oil.

Divide the mixture and form 4 or 6 patties. Press each patty into the panko mix, covering all sides. The patties are sticky until they’re coated, then they’re much easier to work with. Place into the heated skillet in batches. Cook on the first side for 4 minutes before carefully flipping over until fully cooked. oepeat with remaining patties, adding oil as needed. Serve with the reserved dipping sauce or as a burger with the usual accompaniments.

So, next time you’re stocking your pantry, I hope a few cans of salmon find their way back upstream to your shelf.

*** iifestyle expert Patti Diamond is the penny-pinching, partyplanning, recipe developer and content creator of the website Divas ln A Dime -- Where Frugal, Meets Fabulous! Visit Patti at www.divasonadime.com and join the conversation on Facebook at DivaslnADimeDotCom. Email Patti at divapatti@ divasonadime.com