Salmon Salad with Cucumber, Feta and Mint

This salmon salad with cucumber, feta and mint is a healthy, easy, and light recipe for lunch using canned salmon! Serve with homemade baked tortilla chips

Some people call canned tomatoes their pantry staple. Or canned beans–that’s a biggie. But for me, it’s canned tuna or salmon. If I have that, I have a meal that can be ready in 15 minutes or less.

I could praise it all day long. There’s the convenience factor–no cooking, hallelujah–and the ease of those cute packaged versions. There’s also built-in portion-control, which can be your friend when you need it. And isn’t it kind of nice to pull a serving of fish from your cabinet whenever you want?

This salmon salad with cucumber, feta and mint is a healthy, easy, and light recipe for lunch using canned salmon! Serve with homemade baked tortilla chips

I have to say, though, more than any other reason…I just love the taste of it. Plain and simple. Maybe it’s because I grew up eating lots of canned tuna–with mayo for lunch or in a casserole for dinner–but I’d choose to eat it even if it weren’t so dang easy or good for me.

I’d still make my tuna burgers or a salmon salad or just whatever other thing I can dream up that may or may not make Sabrina want to move out of the apartment.

This salmon salad with cucumber, feta and mint is a healthy, easy, and light recipe for lunch using canned salmon! Serve with homemade baked tortilla chips

A few weeks ago, Chicken of the Sea sent me some of their new flavored salmon pouches: Lemon Pepper, Barbecue, and Sweet & Spicy, and asked if I’d like to create a recipe with one of them using only 5 ingredients. Uh, yes. Yes, I would. When I told Sabrina, she said, “This seems unfair because you already do things like this with tuna and salmon all the time.”

She IS a spoiler alert.

You get it. I was excited.

This salmon salad with cucumber, feta and mint is a healthy, easy, and light recipe for lunch using canned salmon! Serve with homemade baked tortilla chips

Chicken of the Sea makes wild-caught pink salmon pouches in plain, smoked salmon, and three new flavors: Lemon Pepper, Barbecue, and Sweet & Spicy. Each 2.5-ounce (or 3-ounce in the case of the smoked salmon) pouch is between 70 and 100 calories, and has around 13 grams of protein. The great thing about the pouches is that they add flavors on their own, which makes it easy to spice up a salad, sandwich…anything. For people who want to add more omega-3 fatty acids to their diet, but don’t love the taste of plain salmon, this could be a good option.

For my 5-ingredient recipe, I chose the Lemon Pepper salmon. It seemed light, fresh, and summery. I also knew that if I was going to be creating a recipe with so few ingredients (the salmon being one), it should be a something well-suited to make ahead and pack for lunch.

To stay with the season, I picked cucumber, tomatoes, mint, and feta for my additions. The cucumbers are crisp, the tomatoes are sweet, and the mint is bright and unexpected. It’s always amazing how a fresh herb can bump up the flavor and sophistication of a salad. (Do you pat yourself on the back when you think to add an herb? I do.) With the fresh lemon pepper flavor of the salmon, and the salty tang of the feta, you don’t even need a drop of dressing. Just stir it all together and let it sit for a little while to let the flavors blend and it’s a perfect healthy lunch.

If you want something to serve with the salad, try making quick tortilla chips:

how to make healthy baked tortilla chips

Cut a whole wheat tortilla into 8 triangles. Spray them with cooking oil, sprinkle generously with salt, pepper, oregano, and garlic powder, and bake at 450 until browned and crispy, 5 to 7 minutes. If you bake them on top of a wire cooling rack set on top of a baking sheet, they’ll come out even crisper, but mine wasn’t available. Still good! So easy, perfect for dipping, and only about 100 calories depending on the size and brand of tortilla.

how to make healthy baked tortilla chips

Salmon Salad with Cucumber, Feta, and Mint

The cucumbers are crisp, the tomatoes are sweet, and the mint is bright and unexpected. It’s always amazing how a fresh herb can bump up the flavor and sophistication of a salad. (Do you pat yourself on the back when you think to add an herb? I do.) With the fresh lemon pepper flavor of the salmon, and the salty tang of the feta, you don’t even need a drop of dressing.
Prep Time5 minutes
refrigerate30 minutes
Total Time5 minutes
Course: Salad
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cucumber feta salad, easy summer salad, feta salad, salmon salad with cucumber feta and mint
Servings: 1 Serving
Calories: 177kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 Chicken of the Sea Lemon Pepper Flavored Salmon Pouch
  • ½ cup chopped cucumber
  • ½ cup cherry or grape tomatoes halved
  • 1 ounce feta cheese crumbled
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper

Instructions

  • In a medium bowl, mix all ingredients. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to let flavors blend before serving.

Nutrition

Calories: 177kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 8g | Sugar: 4g

This post is sponsored by Chicken of the Sea.

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13 thoughts on “Salmon Salad with Cucumber, Feta and Mint

    1. Andie Mitchell Post author

      Thanks Jenna! Yeah, I fall into the trap of making my tuna and salmon salads in the same way all the time, so I loved trying something new with this recipe! Hope you like it :) xo

      Reply
  1. Katie @ Katie Wanders

    You had me at salmon! This looks like a perfect summer meal. New England Native living in Utah, allll I want allll the time is seafood!

    By the way, I just finished listening to your audio book. I LOVED it. Loved hearing about my New England hometown. I had been eating healthy all week and this morning I thought of your book where you are enjoying your bagel in Seattle and thats exactly what I did. I got a delicious bagel from my favorite spot with a cream cheese and coffee and savored it slowly with no regret. Love love your book and your writing!

    XO Katie @ Katie Wanders

    Reply
    1. Andie Mitchell Post author

      Oh my gosh I hear you! New England seafood is just a feeling of home, isn’t it. Even when I lived in Seattle — with amazing seafood — I still missed the northeast seafood.

      Thank you for your kindness about the book! And the fact that it had a real impact on you? Wow. THAT means so much more than I can say. Thank you :) xo

      Reply
  2. Nichole

    This looks so good! I ate a lot of canned tuna as a kid (and if it was on sale, the tuna salad KIT with crackers…was like a huge deal in our house), but I’ve never had salmon from the pouch. I need this in my life!

    Reply
  3. Phi @ The Sweetphi Blog

    I am totally loving this recipe! Simple recipes with few ingredients are my jam (or salmon) so to speak. On my way home for work I’m totally going to stop at the grocery store and find some of this salmon because it sounds so amazing!

    Reply
    1. Andie Mitchell Post author

      Thanks! I know, it’s suuuper simple, but truly sometimes you just want to make something as easy as possible, don’t you? Mint really makes you feel like you’ve made a recipe. And the lemon pepper flavor adds a dressing sort of effect, which is nice!

      Thanks again :)

      Reply
  4. Amy

    Yum! This sounds wonderful. The quick-and-easy factor is also very appealing. It sounds perfect for lunch on the go. Thank you for sharing!
    P.S. Just read your book last week and loved it! I appreciate your transparency and thoughtfulness about your entire journey. You truly inspire me. I cannot thank you enough.

    Reply
  5. Pingback: Cooking with Pantry Staples (Plus 15 Recipes!) - Andie Mitchell

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