Simple and Relatively Frugal Salmon Prepared in Advance

Over the years, especially as we're now empty-nesters, I've gotten out of the habit of daily cooking. Also, I'm frequently too busy, or out of the house when my husband needs to eat dinner. So, when I cook for Shabbat, I cook for the week. This week it's more complicated. It's the "Nine Days," when our tradition is to refrain from eating meat/poultry. That means that most of the leftover Shabbat food went to the freezer. We're on a limited budget, so frugal shopping and cooking are necessary, but fish isn't cheap. And cheeses aren't all that inexpensive, either. Also, I limit my carbohydrates. After trying the less expensive fish, I've discovered that buying a large fillet of salmon is most practical. Frugal salmon is not an oxymoron.

Generally, I don't cook it all at the same time. Honestly, I can't even put the whole piece of salmon fillet in the oven without cutting off a bit. When I want just a serving or two of salmon, I take it out to very slightly thaw. Then I cut off what I need with a heavy/sturdy knife. It ends up costing less than half of what I'd pay for a package of pre-cut salmon.

On Sunday I saw that the remaining salmon was about a week's worth. I sliced it into serving sized pieces, placed them on a large baking dish, seasoned and baked. Every night we've been having salmon, which we love, heated up with whatever side dishes.

I've also used these large salmon fillets for serving lots of guests, also cutting into serving size pieces in advance, then cooking/baking.