Omega 3s and My Favorite Salmon Recipe

Omega 3s are essential for a healthy body. They reduce inflammation in our body and so far I have heard inflammation is a culprit for many of our health issues from heart to cancer to the brain.

The problem is that our bodies do not make Omega 3s -- we have to eat them.

Basically, there are three parts to this essential fat -- EPA, DHA, and ALA

You find most of the EPA and DHA in fish:

Anchovies           Bluefish          Herring          Sardines          Sturgeon          Lake Trout
Tuna                   Salmon (wild is best)            Mackeral (but this has higher levels of mercury)

The ALA is found in:

Walnuts               Canola Oil       Soybean Oil   Flaxseed and Flaxseed Oil

Some people I know take fish oil supplements, but then you may belch the supplement for the major part of the day. The more I learn about food vs. supplements, I am leaning toward getting the vitamin, mineral, fat, etc. from the source. Since I am doing this, I have come to love salmon -- actually crave it at times.

Wild is the best salmon you can get. Here, it is hard to come by (usually it is farm raised, which is not the best choice), but I have gone online and know that you can order it from Alaska and the company will freeze ship it to you after it has been flash frozen. So, even though I have not ordered this yet, I am after I get back from Alaska (which is coming soon). While there, I will eat all I can and pick up all sorts of recipes.

Preparing salmon is easy. Super easy. When you shop for a cut of salmon, choose the center cut because it has the most fat.

When you are preparing to cook the fish, heat the pan at 475 degrees by putting some butter in the bottom of the pan. While the pan is heating and the butter is melting, season the salmon on the flesh side with your favorite seasoning (dill, basil, tarragon, what you like). Then, when the pan is ready, place the salmon in the pan skin side up. Bake it for 4-5 minutes (salmon is only baked for 10 minutes per inch of thickness). Pull it out of the oven, and with a sharp knife, pull the skin from the flesh. If it does not come off easily, put the piece of salmon back in the oven for about 2 minutes and try again. Once the skin easily comes off, flip the piece over and season the other side. Bake it for another 3-4 minutes.

That's it. Salmon continues to bake after you pull it out of the oven, and it is best not to overbake it. You will know it is done when it is firm to the touch.



My favorite salmon recipe is:
I spray a pan with olive oil, then I do things a little different. I put the skin side down on a rack covered with tin foil. Using very little, I take a butter knife and very thinly spread Dijon mustard on the flesh part. After this, I even more sparingly spread sugar free syrup on top of the mustard. (Once I used too much syrup and I ruined the piece, so use sparingly.) Still use the 475 degrees for about 10 minutes. Keep an eye on it. It should look like the picture to the left, which is actually one of my favorite meals, salmon and green beans. The skin peels off once it is finished baking.


I cook salmon many different ways. I love garlic, so when using the above recipe with the favorite seasonings, you can bet I have added garlic to other seasonings.

On another note, Omega 6s are also essential to our body's health, and I will go into that next Monday. Here, Omega 6s  promote inflammation in our body and according to many researches, we have plenty of this fat in our diets already, so stay tuned for next Monday.

Until tomorrow...have a great day...