Last night’s dinner was a landmark moment for me. I ate salmon and I liked it.
I don’t know why, but I’ve never liked salmon. Since it is so incredibly healthy, I had always hoped to like it. I continued to take bites from others plates to get tastes of it whenever I can. I’m a firm believer that sometimes it takes many tastes to grow to like a food, so I kept trying. Finally it happened, and it wasn’t random either. It’s all about the source!
Did you know I get my meat from a meat CSA (community supported agriculture)? I feel strongly about eating foods that are healthy, local, humanely raised, and sustainable, so I sought this out in my meat products. Although all the foods I eat do not fit in this category, I do my best be a thoughtful eater every day.
Recently my meat farmers provided an awesome opportunity to their customers. They paired up with a local company called Wild For Salmon and are offering free delivery of their products to us when our regular meat is delivered. Yes, delivered! All of my meat comes right to my door step. I’m so spoiled! 
This isn’t just any salmon; this is the salmon I’ve been waiting for: wild, sustainably fished, Alaskan salmon. Jackpot!
Did you know that wild salmon is actually healthier and tastier than farmed salmon?! When you consider the life the salmon lives, it’s not surprising.
Farmed salmon (sometimes called ocean-raised, but it’s the same thing) is packed in a pen with little swimming room. These tight quarters cause disease prone fish. They are then fed antibiotics to make sure they are a “safe” food source (gosh this is sounding familiar; I guess the word farm is really starting to mean the same thing on land and in water). In addition to antibiotics, they are fed crappy food pellets causing additional negative results. They don’t eat their natural food sources and use their muscles to provide the awesome omega-3’s for us later. They also miss out on their pretty pink color and excellent flavor and texture. Then they are then fed colorings to “fix” that problem and sold to consumers as a deceivingly healthy food. This is all besides the damage that salmon farming causes to the environment.
Fish is an important part of a healthy diet and many of us (including me) don’t get enough of it. In particular, we miss out on the fatty fish (like salmon), that provide anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids. In the typical American diet the balance of pro-inflammatory omega-6’s and anti-inflammatory omega-3’s is out of balance. Eating salmon, especially wild salmon (and grass fed beef!) is one way to tip the scales back in favor of omega-3’s.
Omega-3’s help to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke, aid in brain and eye development during pregnancy and infancy, reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and depression, and can improve symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, lupus erythematosus, asthma and psoriasis.
Seriously, you can’t go wrong. So I ordered Wild for Salmon feta dill salmon burgers to start. It seemed like a good thing to start with because it was pre-seasoned and easy to make. Let’s just say I’ll be ordering some more. Thank goodness I kept trying ‘til I got to the good stuff.
Do you try food over and over again? Or is one time enough?
