Flavoured cottage cheese was a ‘thing’ when Emily was growing up. All kinds of things ended up in it in supermarket cottage cheese flavours – most of them awful! (Please, no peach, mandarin, pineapple or smoked ham & onion cottage cheese…). But one flavour was a big hit – at least with Emily: salmon & cucumber cottage cheese.
You can’t find it in supermarkets any more – and there may be a reason for that! But trust us on this one, it’s a good – and very healthy & well-balanced – combination. Estella is a firm convert to it, and we particularly like it on oatcakes. They’re a great match, and add fibre too. Seeded oatcakes would make the dish even healthier, but today we had nice thin plain ones in our store cupboard, so we used those.
It’s a very easy dish to make, and a lovely, healthy, light lunch or supper. We like to have some oatcakes with the salmon & cucumber cottage cheese on them, and some with just salmon & cucumber on for contrast. It’s such a quick, tasty and balanced light meal.
We use red salmon, but you could use pink, which is cheaper but less flavourful. Today we used full fat cottage cheese, but we often use reduced or 0% fat to make the dish even lighter. We top with a few chives for extra flavour & colour. But dill is also a nice alternative, if you like it.
Drain the salmon in a small sieve or colander – we use one medium tin for two people. All parts of tinned salmon can be eaten, straight from the tin, even the skin & bones. But we prefer to remove at least the skin (and usually remove some bones too). We’re not big fans of fish skin personally, even though it is healthy to eat, and the dark colour also makes the salmon look ‘muddy’ and less appetising when mashed. But leave it on if you prefer – it does contain healthy omega fats & vitamins. We use a fork to tease away any skin and bones we don’t want.
Jake sticks his nose in
We do remove the skin, but often leave in some of the smaller bones. They are high-temperature cooked with the salmon in the tin, so have a very crumbly texture. They will completely disappear when you mash the salmon, and are a good source of calcium too.
Now place the salmon in a bowl, and mash well with a fork. Add a little black pepper to taste. We don’t tend to add salt, but you can if you wish, bearing in mind that both the salmon & cottage cheese will likely already contain salt. Salmon, like most tinned fish, needs a little acid we find – it enhances the flavour and cuts through any oiliness. Today we used white wine vinegar, about a capful, but you could use any vinegar, or lemon juice. Don’t add too much however or the acid will ‘fight’ with the cottage cheese. Add just enough to brighten the flavour of the salmon.
Now chop some cucumber, we used about half a medium one. If serving the salmon two ways, also reserve some cucumber to slice. Chop the cucumber into fairly small cubes so it is easy to incorporate into the salmon & cottage cheese. We sliced, then cut each slice three times each way crossways, to form 9 small cubes, as below.
Now slice some more cucumber, quite finely. This is to top your plain salmon oatcakes, if serving. Also separate out some of the mashed salmon for this into a separate bowl. Your preparation is done.
To make the salmon & cucumber cottage cheese, first mix the diced cucumber with the salmon.
Now fold in the cottage cheese. We find it marginally easier to add the salmon mixture to the cottage cheese, rather than add the cheese to the salmon. Either way, mix well so the two are well incorporated.
You salmon cottage cheese is done. You can now be keep it, chilled, until you are ready to serve.
Just before serving, top with some snipped chives.
We like the salmon & cucumber cottage cheese served with some oatcakes. We top some with the cottage cheese, and some with the plain mashed salmon. Also top the plain one with a slice of cucumber. We normally use seeded oatcakes to add even more health benefits & plants, but today we had some lovely thin plain ones to hand, so used those.
We hope you like our simple reinvention of a lost healthy 80s classic!
Salmon & cucumber cottage cheese is so tasty, easy & quick to make, and a great example of a high-protein, high-fibre meal that doesn’t need to be complicated – with the added benefit of calcium & marine omega-3, plus plant omega-3 if using seeded oatcakes. And should you need even more encouragement to try it, here’s a summary of all the health benefits – what makes it particularly good is the balance:
- Protein: salmon & cottage cheese
- Healthy fats: salmon & seeds
- Fibre: oats & cucumber
- Calcium: cottage cheese & possibly salmon bones
- Omega-3: salmon & seeds
- Slow-release carbohydrate: oatcakes
- Plant variety: 3 different plants – cucumber, chives & oats – more if using seeds
Enjoy!
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