Salmon is actually very, very inexpensive during the production season (Fall, I think, after the spawn) -- around and just after that time they produce more than they can keep around, the rest of the year a great deal of their costs are in warehousing the stuff. With a shelf-life of a couple years, you could probably buy a few cases at half or less of the regular price, and crack into them throughout the year, and its no more or less fresh that what you'd pick up on the store shelf. You'd just have to have the funds to buy in bulk, and the space to store it.

Aside from fish, you can get all kinds of produce relatively cheaply -- a lot of western grociery chains are on the expensive side, but if you've got a local Asian market, produce is often much less. You can also pick up 50lb bags of rice for between 25 and 30 bucks. I buy rice like this 2-3 times a year, and probably go through about 6 cups (dry) per week. Beans are also cheap in bulk, and last forever.

For breakfast I eat: plain bran flakes, oats (old-fashioned, uncooked), about half a cup each, bulk granola, and some hippie-brand cinnamon toast crunch (about a quarter cup each), topped off with fresh fruit (banana's are cheap year-round, plus cheap seasonal fruit like strawberries or blueberries) and rice milk. Well under a dollar I'm sure, and very healthy. If you take milk on your cereal, give rice or coconut milk a try (I use the unflavored Dream brand) -- it's not disgusting like soy milk, and you don't need to refrigerate it until its opened, so you can save by buying it in bulk -- it's probably on par to cheap milk, but its not pumped full of hormones and doesn't go bad after a week.

[quote name='SteveDeFacto' timestamp='1330370083' post='4917100']
[quote name='Promit' timestamp='1330369226' post='4917093']
[quote name='SteveDeFacto' timestamp='1330328196' post='4916915']
I can't help but wonder why canned salmon and tuna are more than double the cost?

Basically, tuna is full of mercury. But mercury is very expensive, and the tuna companies don't want to just GIVE it to you without charging appropriately. In fact if it weren't for the heavy government food subsidies, they would probably throw away the tuna and just sell the mercury instead.
[/quote]

Mercury is not expensive. I'm pretty sure it has more to do with supply and demand. However, in light of much higher levels of mercury in tuna and salmon the high demand for these products is more confusing.
[/quote]
It's funny because you thought he was serious.
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I run in to so many illogical assumptions I can hardly tell when people are joking.

Speaking of canned fish, make sure to try this some day:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surstr%C3%B6mming

Also another vote for old-fashioned oats as best cheap healthy food. You can combine them with just about anything!

Rice and beans... Mackerel is cheap because it tastes like ass. I'd take tuna or salmon any day.

Smoked mackerel is pretty nice, but canned it's like the fish equivalent of spam.

[quote name='tstrimple' timestamp='1330329696' post='4916920']
Rice and beans... Mackerel is cheap because it tastes like ass. I'd take tuna or salmon any day.

Smoked mackerel is pretty nice, but canned it's like the fish equivalent of spam.
[/quote]
Quoted for truth. I am a smoked mackerel junky; when I found out they had it in cans I bought a bunch, attracted by the lower price, and the convenience of not having to clean them myself; biggest letdown ever. I used it as cat food.

Sardines are another tricky one. Sardine is a label slapped on a whole bunch of small bycatch; most of them not good for anything besides catfood either. But if you can find cans with Sardinus pilchardus on the label; thats the real deal. Best dinner 30 cents can buy, but in terms of taste and nutrition.

Smoked mackerel is pretty nice, but canned it's like the fish equivalent of spam.

I've actually never had canned mackerel. I was referring to sashimi.

[quote name='Wan' timestamp='1330379574' post='4917170']
Smoked mackerel is pretty nice, but canned it's like the fish equivalent of spam.

I've actually never had canned mackerel. I was referring to sashimi.
[/quote]
Thats complete ass relative to (reasonably fresh) smoked mackerel too.

I run in to so many illogical assumptions I can hardly tell when people are joking.

This fits the experience I had reading a recent thread... If you have ideas that are not in line with the official truths, you'd better present a convincing argument and/or supply overwhelming evidence.

I always thought that a can tuna was expensive because of the massive PR campaigning to cloud the exact percentage of dolphin meat it contains.

OT: here in viking country we eat lots of mackerel. Fresh, smoked mackerel is a classic food for lunch, but lots of canned mackerel in tomato sauce (top with mayo, salt, pepper.) is also had. Of course this has to be consumed on top of rye bread. And were talking filets here and not some kinda nigerian fishing spam, I mean I don't exactly go nuts about mackerel, or any fish in general, but to say that it tastes like ass, or call it catfood, one must either have undeveloped (young) tastebuds, or have sampled low quality factory scraps. Taste is funny.

Salmon and Tuna are predatory fish and eat mackerel to grow.

"farmed" salmon (almost the only thing you can get here now) is usually fed with lots of mackerel.

So it kind of makes sense its cheaper (and better for the environment) to just eat the mackerel

But probably even better to check out stormynatures' list

Wait, so Salmon eats Macarel and I eat Salmon... so technically I am eating the mackarel as well. So when I buy a salmon, a certain % of it is actually the mackarel the salmon ate.

Does anyone know what percentage of the salmon I buy is actually mackarel? And how much cheaper is mackarel-fed salmon than non-mackarel-fed salmon? If it's more than the inverse of the amount of mackarel in the mackarel-fed-salmon, I think we are getting shafted money wise.

Dang guys, I think I see another $4 million research study and a Yahoo headline coming up...

[quote name='SteveDeFacto' timestamp='1330328196' post='4916915']
I can't help but wonder why canned salmon and tuna are more than double the cost?

Basically, tuna is full of mercury. But mercury is very expensive, and the tuna companies don't want to just GIVE it to you without charging appropriately. In fact if it weren't for the heavy government food subsidies, they would probably throw away the tuna and just sell the mercury instead.
[/quote]

Weekend Pet Project Idea #483: Tuna Thermometer

mackerel in tomato sauce between 2 slices of toast is my favorite late night snack. It smells a bit funny at first but tastes great.