The discovery of a 100 year-old canning machine in a friend’s attic filled chef Charlotte Langley with excitement, but also lots of questions. Why hadn’t domestically tinned fish moved beyond the typical “tuna packed in water” variety we so often encounter in the grocery store?
Why isn’t anyone in North America following the European model of impeccable sourcing? Could she flex her chef muscles with something so simple as canned trout? After a few months of experimenting, she landed on a winning formula: combine the highest quality domestically sourced seafood with restaurant-quality sauces and seasonings, and preserve the whole shebang in an easy-peasy pull top can.
The results are some of our favorite tins: tuna in an herby garden pesto, mussels in a fragrant smoked paprika sauce, and lucious lobster swimming in butter. Sourced entirely from North American waters, all of Scout’s seafood is MSC certified, and sustainability is part of the company’s DNA. Through their 1% for the Planet initiative, they aim to become a global leader in developing blue-carbon projects, and are on track to achieve their mission of planting 1 million sea trees in coastal ecosystems in 2021. And there’s more delicious fish coming your way; Scout has plans to expand their offerings this year to include things like shrimp and crab, while at the same time developing a line of tinned “trash fish” to further offset the ecological impact of commercial overfishing.
All of this makes Scout’s offerings an easy pleasure to incorporate into our daily routine. Pop a can of trout to add to a quick salad, serve mussels alongside crackers and pickled veg for a “seacuterie” spread, and up your glamping game by warming a tin of lobster over the fire before stuffing into hot dog buns for a rustic take on a lobster roll. Tasty, healthy, and quick: a few of our favorite things, made even easier with Scout.
Rainbow Trout with Dill
Scout’s Rainbow Trout is packed with herbaceous dill and a touch of sea salt, perfect for snacking on right out of the can or alongside crackers.
Atlantic Lobster in Butter
Scout’s lobster is MSC-certified and caught by hand in the waters around Prince Edward Island. Knuckle and claw meat are then packed simply in butter with a touch of salt, making for a luxurious snack.
Mussels with
Smoked Paprika
Certified organic, Scout’s mussels are hand-harvested from the cold waters around Prince Edward Island before being shucked by hand and packed in a smokey, savory broth of paprika, fennel and tomato.
Wild Albacore in Pesto
Hook and line caught in the Pacific Northwest, this wild albacore is packed in a fresh Garden Pesto of basil, parsley, lemon juice, and garlic. It’s ready to eat, and makes for a quick and easy snack at home or on the go.
Our friends at Baird Family Orchards grow the best peaches in Oregon, but nothing good lasts forever. Peach season is almost over and you’ve got two more weeks of juicy deliciousness, so order soon.
Now is the time for tomatoes, and the Astianas from Ayers Creek Farm are perfect for canning, freezing, drying, or making into sauce. They’re also very good just sliced with olive oil and salt. Called canestrinos or little baskets in Italy (where Carol Boutard dug the seeds out of a dumpster), Astianas are the tomato of choice for Portland’s best chefs. Get them while you can because our inevitable wet weather is right around the corner, and as we overheard one farmer say to another at our recent Tomato Fest, “Four straight days of rain and the tomatoes are done.”
