I’m always telling my clients to get more fish into their diet. There are a TON of reasons for that.

1) They’re full of omega-3 fatty acids, which work to reduce inflammation, promote fertility, balance hormone production, and support the immune system.

2) Fish contain plenty of minerals that are less plentiful in other food sources, such as selenium and iodine. These two minerals are particularly important for healthy thyroid production!

3) Of course, they’re also a fantastic source of protein, b-vitamins & vitamin A. These are all essential for optimizing energy production, absorbing other minerals (like iron!) and gut healing!

I know a lot of people are freaked out about the quality of fish these days and that is absolutely fair. Some of the farming practices for fish, just as for poultry & meat, are truly disgusting. For example, farmed salmon are fed red dye pellets in order to try to make their flesh appear more pink and healthy - but it’s really just introducing more toxic chemicals into your system.

My rule of thumb is to go with wild-caught whenever possible - don’t trust the farmed stuff!

Yes, the oceans are becoming more and more polluted and that is cause for concern. I tend to aim for Pacific or Alaskan sourced fish as those waters are going to be cleaner than the Atlantic. Unfortunately, it’s hard to find any fish that aren’t Atlantic, so just do your best.

I actually find some of the highest quality fish for the most affordable price is found in cans these days. When you go with quality cans by companies like Raincoast or Safe Catch, you can be sure you are getting wild-caught, pacific or alaskan salmon packed in healthy oils or water and BPA-free cans.

Safe Catch even tests all it’s fish for mercury levels before it will even use the fish!

That said, I’m not as freaked out about mercury as some nutritionists might be. That is because most fish are extremely high in selenium, which will bind with mercury! So, unless the fish contains more mercury than selenium, you’re unlikely to absorb most of that mercury anyways! Phew!

This Salmon Chowder is a nice go-to for getting salmon in without actually having to chew on a fillet, if fish just isn’t your thing. I recommend using a fillet here, but you could totally use the canned variety to reduce your cost!

CHOW DOWN ON THIS CHOWDER!

Salmon Chowder

TIME: 40 minutes

SERVINGS: 4

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsp coconut oil

1 bulb fennel (sliced)

2 cups celery root (peeled & cubed)

2 cups rutabaga (peeled & cubed)

2 cups chicken bone broth

12 oz salmon fillet

1 cup coconut milk

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 cup parsley (chopped for garnish)

DIRECTIONS

1) In a large soup pot, melt the coconut oil over medium-low heat. Add the sliced fennel, celery root, and rutabaga. Cover and let cook for about 15 minutes, or until tender.

2) Add the bone broth to small saucepan and place the salmon skin-side down into the broth. Bring to a simmer and poach the salmon for 5-10 minutes. Remove the salmon and set aside.

3) Add the chicken broth to the pot with the softened veggies and bring to a simmer. Let cook for 10 minutes, then use an immersion blender to blend about half the soup so the texture is still chunky.

4) Remove the skin from the salmon, and flake the fish into chunks. Add to the soup pot along with the coconut milk. Season to taste with sea salt.

5) To serve, divide between bowls and garnish with chopped parsley if desired. Enjoy!

If you try this recipe out & wanna let me know, feel free to tag me @realistic.holistic and/or use the hashtag #realisticholistic - I’d love to know how you like it!