Review and Giveaway: Raincoast Trading

This giveaway is now closed.

Here at Can I get the Recipe? we post a new review and giveaway every Wednesday and anyone who is a Can I get the Recipe? subscriber has a chance to enter and win.

The winner of last week's review and giveaway: Cheryl Kinkaid! Cheryl has won a copy of The New Best of Better Baking.com by Marcy Goldman. Congratulations Cheryl!

This Week's Review and Giveaway: Six Cans of Wild Salmon and Wild Tuna from Raincoast Trading

From their site:

Mike Wick, founder of Raincoast Trading and fourth generation member in the fishing family business, learned from a young age that environnmental stewardship and responsibility is something to be embraced. Since 1978, Raincoast Trading has been providing consumers with premium quality, sustainable harvested gourmet canned seafood. Packed in natural fish oils which results in a rich, dense flavour loaded with extra nutrition, Raincoast Trading adheres to the highest of sustainability standards when catching, processing and packaging their seafood. Raincoast Trading is also the first Canadian seafood packaging company to be endored by the Oceanwise conservation program as an environmentally friendly seafood choice for retail grocers and environmental concerned consumers throughout the world.

I've never been a fan of farmed salmon or any other type of farmed fish for that matter. There are a lot of reasons why it just doesn't sit right to me. Maybe it's because I live on the west coast of Canada, where fresh, wild fish and seafood is in abundance. Or maybe it's just the word "farmed" attached to the word "fish" that doesn't quite work. Knowing that diseases and parasites from farmed salmon can be passed on to wild salmon through the netcages sounds pretty disgusing as does the fact that farmed fish get fed pellets of feed that sit and rot on the ocean floor if not eaten. Whatever it is, I was pretty happy to receive products from Raincoast Trading to review as I upon reading more about them on their website, I appreciate their commitment to the environment, to the sustainability of the species of fish that they fish and to quality of the products that they produce.

We all know the positive benefits of getting enough fish and seafood in our diets. Omega 3's help positively develop brain tissue, fish is high in protein but low in fat, and eating fish once a week reduces the risk of diseases such as cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes and depression.

So, first thing I needed to do was decide on what to make with my recently acquired seafood. Raincoast provides a variety of great recipes on their site but the ones that caught my eye (and tempted my stomach) were a wild sockeye salmon dip, the curried pasta with wild albacore tuna, the wild sockeye salmon & broccoli chowder, and the apple, cheddar cheese & wild tuna melt.

First up, the wild sockeye salmon dip. If there is any way you can get your kids to eat salmon, this is it. Both my boys enjoyed dipping their cut veggies into this creamy and delicious bowl of yum. I didn't add the cajun spice because of the kids, but I coud imagine how it would add a little zing to an already fabulous dip. The salmon was incredibly flavorful and their was no "tinned" taste to it. I admit to halving the dip recipe, not because I wanted to half it intentionally, but because I kept eating tiny bits from the can as I prepped the dip and ended up eating half the can on it's own.

Next, we tried the curried pasta with wild albacore tuna Again, I halved the curry in the recipe for the kids' sake but in the end I realized I probably didn't need too. I think the yogurt made the curry so mild it was barely detectible and both kids enjoyed having cranberries to fish out. (Sorry, pun intended!) The tuna itself was by far the best canned tuna I have ever eaten and after reading more about it on the Raincoast Trading site, I believe it's because of the method in which they can their tuna. It is kept frozen during prep and cooked only once, not twice like most others, before it is sealed with it's own natural juices and oils in the can.

It's been quite chilly around these parts lately and the wild salmon & broccoli chowder was the perfect, hearty, and delicious main course for my family one night. I can honestly say that I've made chowders before with fresh salmon that were not as flavorful as this one. I think the added natural oils and juices used in canning process aided it's lovely flavour and I really appreciated the healthier use of milk in the recipe, not cream.

And finally, I have never in my life made an apple, cheddar & wild tuna melt until now and I really don't know why. It was delicious! I made mini ones for the kids (loved them!) and I would even consider making these for dinner for us one night with some fresh crunchy veggies on the side. Again, the tuna was so delicious and flavorful and not dried out like a lot of other tinned tuna I have tried. Combined with the tartness of the apple and the sharpness of the cheese, this recipe was a home run.


Overall, as you can most likely tell, I was very impressed with Raincoast Trading and their products. Add in their commitment to the environment and sustainable fishing practices and I will definitely be using their products and their recipes in the future.

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Want to buy it?
For more information about Raincoast Trading and their products, practices and recipes, visit their website at http://www.raincoasttrading.com/. Raincoast Trading products are currently available at Spud.ca and Spud.com where you can receive 10% off the purchase price when buying two cans or more of Raincoast Trading products.

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Want to win it?
One lucky Can I get the Recipe? CANADIAN subscriber (sorry, not open to US residents) will receive 3 cans of wild salmon and 3 cans of wild tuna from Raincoast Trading. (Prize Value: $36) Maximize your chances of winning. Leave a seperate comment for each entry. Only valid after completing the mandatory entry.

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How To Enter: (Mandatory Entry):
Please visit the Can I get the Recipe? site here and follow the entry guidelines.

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Giveaway Rules
You must be a subscriber of Can I get the Recipe? in order to win. (Use "Subscribe" box at top left corner of this site to subscribe).

Contest will close at 8:00pm PST on March 26, 2010. Any entries after this time will not be considered.

Name of winner to be chosen at random using http://www.random.org/ at the end of the giveaway date and contacted by email. The winner then has 48 hours to respond in order to claim their prize. The winner's name will be posted on the next giveaway.

Contest open to Canadian residents only who HAVE NOT won a Can I get the Recipe? giveaway in the past three months.

I received products from Raincoast Trading to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed in this post are 100% mine. Please read the disclaimer posted here for more information.