High in fat and loaded with nutrients, salmon is an easy fish to love with this collection of the best salmon recipes. It tastes great grilled, baked, pan-seared, or air fried. With a sauce, or a simple garlic butter drizzle. It doesn’t need much to become your favorite weeknight dinner, and here are 25+ healthy salmon recipes to prove it.
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Tips for Buying Salmon
The fish aisle can be overwhelming with all the salmon options available–each variety has its own nutrients, flavor profile, and texture. Here are the facts so you can decide which is best for you. Psst–we always buy wild-caught, frozen, king, or sockeye salmon.
- Wild vs. Farmed: Farmed salmon has a high level of contaminants due to toxins found in fish farms–wild caught is a much cleaner option.
- Fishy vs. Mild: Sockeye and king salmon have a strong fish flavor, while coho is mild and a great option for people who don’t love fish.
- Frozen vs. Fresh: Believe it or not, frozen salmon is typically the freshest option, as it’s frozen immediately after being caught!
- Skin on vs. Skinless: Salmon skin is full of nutrients, and adds loads of flavor when seared or broiled (although it has a funky texture when baked).
How do you get the fishy taste out of salmon?
OK, so you want to like salmon, but you’re not fully there yet? No problem, there are ways around this (I was you once!).
- Opt for coho salmon, it has the mildest flavor.
- Sauce is your friend: Strong, flavor packed sauces are a great way to mask the fishy taste.
- Add some sugar and acid: According to America’s Test Kitchen (more here), sugar and acid cut through the fishiness.
- Use canned salmon, this enables you to mix in other flavors. Think salmon burgers, patties, or cakes. Even a canned salmon salad with a mayonnaise base.
Always Moist Baked Salmon Recipes
Baked salmon is an easy (and my favorite) way to get tender flakey salmon filets and crispy skin. The trick is to cover your salmon in parchment paper, foil, or even a heavy sauce to trap the moisture inside of your filet. Let your oven do the heavy lifting with these delicious baked salmon recipes:
- Crab stuffed salmon: Cream cheese, mozzarella, and crab meat with a sprinkle of panko make this dish perfect for special occasions.
- Salmon bruschetta: As gorgeous as it is tasty, what makes this baked salmon recipe stand out is the balsamic glaze drizzle.
- Parmesan crusted salmon: This foolproof salmon is coated in parmesan, garlic, lemon, and parsley for a tender filet that’s packed with flavor.
- Pesto salmon: One of the best salmon recipes, this sheet pan meal cooks up alongside veggies and a delicious sauce.
- Lemon pepper salmon: This seasoning mix can do so much. All you need is a bit of butter and lemon juice, and you’ve got an incredible flavor-packed meal. My recipe nestles salmon next to carrots and broccoli for a one pan dish.
- Pistachio crusted salmon: After your pistachio crusted salmon bakes, it’s doused in a mustard and thyme cream sauce.
- Dijon salmon: Dijon is all you need to lock moisture and flavor into this easy salmon recipe.
- Sheetpan asparagus and salmon comes together on one pan. Guaranteed not to dry out, as it’s covered in lemon garlic butter, and tented in foil.
- Curry salmon: brush your salmon with curry paste, and bake in the oven until tender–all while simmering a coconut curry sauce that’s finger-licking good.
- Jerk salmon is all about the seasoning, oh, and the pineapple salsa, rice, and beans. We love this dish!
- Bourbon glazed salmon: a sweet and sticky sauce made of reduced bourbon, brown sugar, and spices gets drizzled over flakey salmon for a quick and easy sheet pan dinner.
Seared and Grilled Salmon Recipes
With the right technique, seared or grilled salmon is another great cooking method for keeping your fish succulently tender. Whip up a pan sauce, or soak it in a marinade for the perfect lunch or dinner.
- Pan seared salmon: This basic salmon recipe is a great one to master. It’s loaded with tips and tricks to help you lock in liquid while keeping the skin gorgeously crisp.
- Salmon salad: Cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, and olives get tossed in a lemon vinaigrette for a light and refreshing salad, fit for lunch or dinner.
- Salmon piccata: Just as great as the chicken version; this salmon is coated in a sauce of capers, butter, shallots, lemon, and parsley.
- Sesame crusted salmon: The sesame seeds crisp up to form a tasty crust. Dip your seared salmon in wasabi crema and serve it with a side of sauteed bok choy.
- Stuffed salmon is filled with a cream cheese, onion, and spinach combination, then pan seared to perfection. Option to douse it in a cream sauce for extra points.
- This Tuscan salmon recipe was inspired by Olive Garden’s Tuscan chicken–it’s pan seared salmon covered in cream sauce, with spinach and sun dried tomatoes, and it’s amazing
Canned Salmon Recipes
Canned salmon is easy to find, and great to have stashed in the pantry for meals in a pinch. You can use it as you would canned tuna or chicken. Here are some of my favorite canned salmon recipes:
- Keto salmon patties: Not eating keto? You won’t even know these are low carb. Serve with a dollop of tartar and some greens for a complete meal.
- Canned salmon salad is the easiest way to get salmon on the table in a matter of minutes. Mix in some capers, dill, and mayo (or your favorite sub). Tons of tips, tricks, and swaps in the article.
Smoked Salmon Recipes
Take a shortcut with smoked salmon; it’s already cooked for you(!), never dry, and has the most divine texture. Use it on a bagel, or get creative with one of these smoked salmon recipes:
- Smoked salmon roll ups: Think of this as low carb, easy to make, and beautiful to serve sushi. Stuff your favorite filling inside and dig in.
- Smoked salmon salad: Smoked salmon, soft boiled eggs, onions, and avocado are doused in a lemon, dill, and caper dressing for a lunchtime treat.
Salmon Marinade Recipes
Infuse even more flavor into your healthy salmon recipes with a marinade. Salmon really benefits from a combination of sweet and salty, plus an acid. Here are the two best salmon marinade recipes:
- Salmon marinade: A basic marinade that works with almost any cuisine; this is my go-to salmon marinade, which calls for a combination of soy sauce, lemon juice, and maple syrup.
- Asian salmon marinade: Sriracha, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger. Serve this with rice and your favorite stir-fried veggies.
- Salmon seasoning: my go to recipe when I’m short on time; simply mix up these spices and sprinkle them over salmon. The best and the easiest!
Salmon and Eggs
Class up your breakfast routine by simply adding salmon! Salmon and eggs are a match made in heaven, here are a few of my favorite ways to eat this delicious combo:
- Smoked salmon deviled eggs: Chop up your salmon, and mix it into deviled eggs with some red onions, and fresh herbs. A fancy upgrade to the classic.
- Salmon frittata: Mix smoked salmon in with fresh dill and capers for my favorite frittata recipe.
Air Fryer Salmon Recipes
Everyone’s new favorite kitchen appliance can make salmon too–and it’s incredibly popular for a reason. The air fryer keeps the filet tender while keeping the outside beautifully crisp. All you have to do is season your air fryer salmon in your favorite spice mix!
More Seafood Recipes You’ll Love
- Shrimp Marinade
- Seared Ahi Tuna
- Blackened Tilapia
- Grilled Shrimp
- Creamy Garlic Shrimp
- Parmesan Crusted Tilapia
- Shrimp Stir Fry
- Shrimp Curry
25+ Salmon Recipes
Print Recipe Pin RecipeIngredients
Salad:
- 2 Eggs
- 4 Ounces Mixed Greens
- 1/4 Red Onion sliced
- 3 Persian Cucumbers sliced
- 8 Ounces Smoked Salmon thinly sliced
- 1 Avocado sliced
Dressing:
- 1/4 Teaspoon Sugar or Confectioners erythritol
- 5 Teaspoons Dijon Mustard
- 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
- 1 Tablespoon Shallot minced
- 1 Tablespoon Capers drained + chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried dill
- 1/4 Cup Olive Oil
Instructions
- Start by soft boiling the eggs (2). I do this by bringing a small pot of water to a boil. Drop the eggs in and secure the lid. While boiling, prep an ice bath in a medium sized bowl. After 6 minutes, immediately drop the eggs in the ice bath. Once cool enough to handle, peel and slice in half.
- Meanwhile, make the dressing by whisking together sugar or erythritol (1/4 teaspoon), dijon (5 teaspoons), and lemon juice (1 tablespoon). Add the shallot (1 tablespoon), capers (1 tablespoon), and dill (1 teaspoon). Whisk dressing while drizzling olive oil (1/4 cup) in, so that it slowly incorporates.
- In a large bowl, add the greens (4 ounces), onion (1/4), and cucumber (3). Drizzle the dressing on top and toss to combine.
- Divide salad into 4 bowls, and top with smoked salmon (8 ounces), eggs and avocado (1). Enjoy!
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