Salmon Fillets

Of all the warring diet gurus these days, it's hard to know whose book to pick up. People looking to lose weight, or even those just wanting a healthier lifestyle, are confronted with a heap of contradictory information about what you should and shouldn't eat. No matter whose diet philosophy you go with, there's one food that gets a thumb's-up from most every nutritionist--salmon.

Salmon's health benefits are well documented. Like most fish, it is very high in protein--but does not accumulate methyl mercury as much as most other seafoods do. In addition, salmon contains very high levels of omega-3 fatty acids, which are an essential part of the human diet. Many experts theorize that early humans ate diets high in fish and seafood, and these foods contain nutrients that many modern people don't get enough of.

Cooking Salmon

Salmon is also a popular health food because it doesn't get boring--it can be prepared so many ways that you never have to eat the same salmon dish twice. The meatiest part of the salmon is along the flanks, and this is cut off into fillets for eating. The easiest way to cook salmon fillets is to broil or grill them. Salmon fillets rarely need much seasoning, as the meat has its own flavor that comes out with cooking.

More specialized salmon smokeries are able to create other recipes with salmon fillets. Depending on the heat and duration of the smoking, salmon fillets can be cooked into a chewy fish jerky, or baked into a hot and flaky dish. Salmon fillets can even be cold smoked into lox, a popular spread of uncooked fish.