About Canned Salmon…
The 14oz. can of salmon I bought was $3.99 and when you consider the fact that wild caught fresh salmon will probably be at least double that per pound, I think it’s a pretty great deal! It wasn’t too pretty when I first opened the can and it wasn’t exactly pink, but once I broke it up into pieces and removed the skin, it was visually on par with canned tuna. Nothing to look at, but still quite delicious. My particular salmon came “with skin and bones”, so I just scraped off the skin (but you can eat it if you want) and removed any large bones. Most of the bones were hair thin and quite soft (probably gelatinized by the canning process) and were therefor quite edible. Full of dietary calcium, even!Can I Substitute the Kale?
Yes, you can make this salad with Romaine or even spinach, if you’d like, just keep in mind that neither will hold up to refrigeration as well as the kale.What Kind of Dressing Should I Use?
I used a creamy Caesar dressing for this salad (Girard’s to be exact). You can use a non-creamy caesar dressing, if you prefer, but I find that a creamy version pairs better with this salad.Can I Use a Different Pasta Shape?
Yes, you can use any small or short-shaped pasta, like orzo, penne, or orecchiette. Or, you can skip the pasta and add homemade croutons in its place.
Kale & Salmon Caesar Salad
Kale & Salmon Caesar Salad is a fast, filling, and delicious way to use budget friendly canned salmon.
Servings 4Ingredients
- 8 oz bowtie pasta ($0.75)
- 6 oz chopped kale* ($1.50)
- 14 oz can wild caught salmon ($3.99)
- 2 large hard boiled eggs (optional) ($0.54)
- 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan ($0.96)
- 1/2 cup (or to taste) creamy Caesar dressing ($1.16)
Instructions
- Cook the bowtie pasta according to the package directions, then drain in a colander.
- Meanwhile, roughly chop the kale into small pieces, removing any large pieces of stem. Place the chopped kale in a bowl. Once the pasta is drained, add it to the kale and stir to let the residual heat slightly wilt the kale.
- Drain the canned salmon and remove the skin and bones (if included), breaking the meat into bite-sized chunks as you go. Peel and dice the hard boiled eggs.
- Add the salmon chunks, diced hard boiled eggs, and shredded Parmesan to the kale and pasta. Drizzle with Caesar dressing, then toss to coat everything in the dressing. Divide into four portions for meal-sized salads, or six smaller side-salad servings.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
*I used pre-washed and chopped kale that came in a bag, then chopped it further into smaller pieces.
Nutrition
Serving: 1ServingCalories: 609.08kcalCarbohydrates: 49.3gProtein: 36.23gFat: 28.88gSodium: 1034.83mgFiber: 3.5g
Read our full nutrition disclaimer here.
How to Make Kale and Salmon Caesar Salad – Step by Step Photos
Start by cooking 8oz. bowtie pasta according to the package directions. While the pasta is cooking, prepare the kale. I bought a 12oz. bag of kale today because the whole bunches were a little on the expensive side and this one bag for $2.99 is roughly the same as one and half bunches, plus it’s already chopped and stems removed! :D I used half of this bag, or about 6 ounces.
Because I was leaving my kale raw, I wanted even smaller pieces to make it easy to chew and digest. So, I chopped it up a bit more and pulled out any random pieces of stems that got left behind.
Once the pasta is drained, add it to a large bowl with the chopped kale. Stir it up and allow the residual heat from the pasta to soften the kale just a touch.
Peel and dice two hard boiled eggs.
This is the canned salmon that I used. I was happy to be able to find wild caught canned salmon. Honestly, it wasn’t pretty when I opened the can and you should be thankful I didn’t take a photo of that part…
But once I scraped off the dark skin, removed any large bones, and broke it into chunks, it pretty much just looked like tuna. Not very pink, but it still tasted great! This 14oz. can of salmon actually yielded quite a bit of meat, so next time I might go for the smaller can and use one more egg to make the salad even less expensive. Gotta tweak those ratios sometimes.
I really wanted shredded Parmesan for this salad instead of grated, although grated will work if that’s what you have. I find the shredded to be a bit more potent in flavor and it makes a striking visual presence on the salad. Finding shredded Parm with the bagged cheese was a great because it was about half the price of the shredded Parmesan at the cheese counter. So, be sure to check both places.
Now it’s time to build the salad. If you’re doing it all in one large bowl, just add the diced eggs, salmon pieces, and 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan to the pasta and kale.
Finally, add some creamy Caesar dressing (I used about 1/2 cup for the entire salad) and stir to coat in the dressing.
Now EAT! And be happy.
Kale & Salmon Caesar Salad – FANCY!
I substituted chicken for salmon and used your lime crema, and this was absolutely to die for!
The kale and salmon Caesar salad was delicious. I didn’t think that I liked kale, but it’s really good in this salad! I made it for dinner as the main dish. There are only two of us and my husband couldn’t eat all of his. I think we could make half the recipe. We are retired and older just don’t eat as much any more.
Is there any way we can see the caloric info for these besides calculating them manually?
I’m sorry, I do not have the nutritional information.
There are different kinds of salmon, generally “pink” (keta) is the least costly.
I eat the skin and bones except for the small round, spine bones, which can be really hard sometimes. You can substitute canned salmon for canned tuna in any recipe you like. My favorites are salmon salad sandwiches (mayo, onions and pickles) and salmon with pasta, mushrooms, onions, alfredo sauce, and peas or broccoli.
I made this a couple of weeks ago and it was great! I plan to make it again this week!
I made my own dressing from this recipe: https://laughingspatula.com/3-minute-skinny-caesar-dressing/
It was really easy, tasty, and low cal. Can’t beat that.
Thanks for sharing that recipe! I’ll have to try it. :)
I did this recipe again today, but instead of salmon, I used some frozen shrimp, and added croutons, so delicious.
I grew up with oil and vinegar and lighter types of vinagarettes, and I don’t really like heavy/creamy/white salad dressings. Do you recommend any kind of substitute here? Maybe a little olive oil and/or lemon juice?
A simple lemon vinaigrette might be good. Or even a “sensation salad dressing”. I’m sure you can find several recipes for both types with Google. (Sensation salad dressing is really popular here in Louisiana, but I’ve never made it at home.)
I had never heard of sensation dressing before, but I tried it and it is SO GOOD.
Thanks for the recommendation!
I “eat” a recipe with my eyes & this looks great After I make it, maybe I’ll give it 5 stars.
This would be a good use for leftover fresh salmon too. My favorite use for canned salmon is o are a pot of creamy son chowder . Crispy salmon croquettes are delicious . Along with instant dry potatoes or leftover mashed you can whip up some tasty potato patties.
Hey Beth! What brand of Caesar dressing is your favorite?
I really like Girards! It’s the one in those weird triangular bottles. :P
This was enjoyed by all my family except one who refused to try salmon. Some were sceptable but found it too good not to eat more. Will be made again.
Have cooked this one a few times. Family favourite now. Tinned salmon is great on a sandwich, in a salad or for making fish cakes.
How would one go about storing this for leftovers? I worry that the noodles will suck up all of the dressing and make it dry or worse that the kale will go slimy and soggy sitting with the rest of the ingredients. I don’t know if kale even does that. I want to be able to make it for dinner and then take it in a cooler for lunch for a road trip the next day. I just don’t want to end up in the middle of the desert with inedible food. :/
Kale holds up really well without getting slimy because it’s so thick. :) My dressing did absorb the dressing, so I just added an extra small drizzle before eating the leftovers. You can always just combine everything except the dressing and add it to the individual servings as you go.
Reporting back that this was tasty and NOT dry the next day for lunch on the road. :)
Check out the Splendid Table’s salmon cakes. They were my recent first foray into canned salmon and my husband is still talking about them! I was kind of grossed out when I opened the can, but the cakes were with it. I’ll have to see if this salad is, too! (Your recipes generally don’t disappoint!)
We just had this for dinner–it was delicious! Thanks for the great recipe. We will use it again.