Can You Eat Canned Salmon Straight Out Of The Tin?

Sure, fresh fish is great. However, it's typically not practical to keep delicious fresh seafood around the house all the time. That's where canned varieties come in. While most folks are familiar with canned tuna, canned salmon is also a tasty, versatile, and long-lasting option for home cooks. The best part? It's fully cooked.

This means your can of salmon is ready to eat right out of the tin. This convenient benefit is a result of the typical canning process. After being fileted, packed in cans, and sealed, producers send the cans into pressure cookers, a process designed primarily to preserve the contents for the long term. 

How, exactly, does the fish get cooked? The intense heat used by the pressure cookers also cooks the salmon inside. This is true for all canned salmon brands, whether you're shopping affordable tins at the grocery store or splurging on premium fish. Even varieties that include the skin and bones can be consumed straight from the tin for maximum nutritional benefit.

To be sure, just because you can eat salmon right out of the can doesn't mean you can't easily enhance this underrated pantry staple. Canned salmon salad is a delicious, quick option that mixes a tangy, yogurt-based dressing with crunchy celery and red onion. The fish can also work in dips, croquettes, casseroles, soups, and many other dishes.

Alongside this convenient versatility, canned salmon is also often a great choice to substitute for canned tuna, as it has lower mercury levels. It's frequently suggested as an alternative for pregnant or breastfeeding women, as well as kids under age 12. Those enjoying salmon straight from the tin also won't have to sacrifice much nutritionally compared to fresh. Canned fish is quite similar to fresh when it comes to nutrient content, with the small but important tweak of higher sodium levels for preservative and flavor-enhancing reasons. However, it also offers higher calcium levels from edible pieces of bone.

So, take it from us: Stop turning up your nose at canned salmon and start chowing down straight out of the tin, if you'd like.