Simply Healthful
I love simplicity, not just for its beauty, but because its the key to survival. I like to watch TV cooking shows but in the end, the food seems way too complicated for real people. Alice Waters, known for using seasonal and local food in her famed Chez Panisse restaurant, based two recent books on the “art of simple food.” It’s in the titles.
When the Beautiful Wife and I sit down to a meal that’s simple, appealing, and healthful, we feel like we’re finally starting to get it. I had promised to share a recipe for blackened salmon, so here it is.
Skip’s Blackened Salmon
It’s terrible that I call this “Skip’s” because I didn’t invent any part of it. I guess it’s just a way of saying I endorse it. I prefer “wild” salmon, but we mostly buy the farmed salmon at Costco. The package is 2 to 2-½ lbs. and I divide it into five or six portions, wrap them in freezer paper and a plastic zip-loc bag and slip them into the freezer. Our goal is to eat fish twice/week so we’ll have salmon for one meal and perhaps a shrimp or crab salad the other meal.
We’ve tried several ways of cooking salmon—boiling, baking, and frying—and frying is our current favorite. Thaw the salmon, coat it with a blackened seasoning (we use Cajun’s choice), and put it in a frying pan with a little olive oil and butter over medium heat. You want to hear a little sizzle. The exposed edge of the fillet is the sign of “doneness.” Depending on thickness, it may take 10 minutes for the first side and 6 minutes for the second side. Any man can do this.
For a salad the Beautiful Wife is using Costco’s Sweet Kale Mix, which claims “7 super foods." We like the convenience and think it a good example of minimal food processing.
The oven-roasted potato wedges are simply cut with the peel on, tossed in a little olive oil with black and red pepper and salt, and then placed in a 400 degree oven. It takes about 20 minutes for the first side and 15 min. more after turning over. You can set the table and organize the rest of the meal while the first side is roasting.
This is one of our favorite meals—it’s simple, healthful, can be prepared in 40 minutes (the potatoes take longest), and a good value—two can eat for under $6 total. Oh, the lemons come from our tree so they're free.
Please comment: Do you have a favorite meal that’s simply healthful? Please share. We ought to collect these in a book of menus complete with recipes. It could be called "Simply Healthfyl Word of Wisdom Meals." A good project for 2014.
Monday, November 4, 2013 at 3:15PM | by Skip Hellewell | 10 Comments | 7 References | Share Article | Email Article
Reader Comments (10)
We also eat salmon once a week. I just grill it on my George Foreman with a little seasoning salt and sometimes garlic. I serve it with some boiled asparagus, to which I add just a touch of butter. I also add a fruit for another side dish. It takes all of 10 minutes to prepare this meal, and it is delicious.
Salmon is one of my healthy meals too...I like to just season it and wrap it in foil and put it on the same baking tray as potatoes and whatever veggie I have on hand. 400 for 25 minutes and dinner is done.
on another note...I love the weekly challenges, but to be honest, I can't keep them all in my head. I know it's a lot to ask, but maybe there is a way to create an infographic showing all the things( and the amounts) you should eat each week. it would be so helpful when planning my weekly menu to go through a checklist of sorts and see how my meal plan stacks up with your recommendations. just a thought! i really love each and every one of your posts!
Emily, your suggestion of an infographic to help remember the food to include in a weekly menu is a great idea. We've struggled with this for a time, there has to be a way. Time for some inspiration. .
We eat pretty simply -- mostly to keep costs down and nutrition up. When we eat out, the best meal I've ever felt good about was Yakitori Chicken Skewers, Rice, Miso Soup, Cucumber Salad (Sunomono) and a Japanese Slaw. This was my go-to meal while I was pregnant, if I couldn't cook that night ;)
Simple is sometimes all that's needed.
Our family favorite is salmon cakes. I got the recipe from Cooks Illustrated (look for Easy Salmon Cakes). My husband isn't much for fish, but he does like these and our daughter LOVES them. I serve them with quinoa and salad. Yum yum!
I have to first say thank you, Skip. Thus blog always gets me back on track when I find myself wandering back into my old ways. It is truly motivational.
One of our favorite meals is lentil soup. I have several variations for red lentils, brown lentils etc. Since lentils do not require a long cook time, they are often a go-to meal, served with a quick salad and whole grain bread. They also pack a lot of nutrition so I feel good feeding them to my family.
Skip,
Do you worry about cooking with olive oil? My current opinion (which has changed recently) is that olive oil should only to pour over, not cook. Reasoning is two-fold:
1) Cooking at high heat with olive oil kills much of the good about it and in fact creates carcinogens since it has a low smoke index.
2) Olive oil is expensive so use the cheaper canola or coconut oils, which hold up better at high heat. The flavor profile of coconut with salmon seems to work really well for me.
There seems to be so much conflicting information....that is what I came up with for now...
By the way, just picked up a six pack of CA Olive Ranch limited Reserve, ill forward you the email for 20% off if you want...it made it a VERY good deal at about $17 per bottle, including shipping.
http://shop.californiaoliveranch.com/Limited-Reserve-Extra-Virgin-Olive-Oil--PREORDER-ONLY/p/COR-101008&c=CaliforniaOliveRanch@Gifts
Love the blog, keep up the good work!
I second the infographic suggestion! I have just started reading your blog and have started compiling a list of all the challenges myself, but it would be incredibly helpful to have a ready made list to reference.
Thank you so much for all your hard work!!! This blog is invaluable and I have already been telling my friends and family about how helpful and enlightening your blog is.
Thank you!
Hi Skip, you are probably aware of this, but I just wanted to point out that salmon can be an excellent source of calcium, but it is better if you steam it rather than fry it. I know sometimes we make trade-offs for taste and pleasure, but if you want to get the maximum calcium content from your salmon, it is best to buy wild rather than farm-raised and to steam rather than fry.
I agree with Becca. I find myself back to your blog when I need inspiration and motivation; it's truly valuable information that doesn't overwhelm me. I've made you my homepage and wanted to get my father your blog printed for Christmas! The recipe book sounds lovely! Please, please, do!