20 Best Salmon Recipes For Hearty Winter Dinners (2024)

Salmon is an excellent go-to weeknight protein, because it cooks quickly no matter how you prepare it and works beautifully with a wide range of flavors. Our favorite salmon recipes are hearty, rich-tasting, and easy to make. When it comes to this versatile, user-friendly fish, it's worth refreshing the recipes you have in your repertoire.

Pick a new recipe (or two or three) and poach, pan-fry, or roast your way to a better dinner (now with less fishy smell!). Believe it or not, it will take you the same amount of time to make these salmon recipes as it would have taken to boil and drain pasta. And while we're on the topic, make some pasta too and eat it with leftover fish tomorrow for an easy, filling lunch.

Here are 20 salmon recipes we can't stop making:

1. Joanna Gaines' Salmon With Baby New Potatoes

Break out your trusty sheet pan to get Joanna's simple salmon and potatoes on the table in no time, flat.

2. Slow-Roasted Ginger Scallion Salmon

Slow-cook this aromatic salmon for ideal succulence, and serve with short-grain or jasmine rice for a simple meal that pops.

Slow-Roasted Ginger Scallion Salmon (Samin Nosrat's Recipe)

3. Crispy Coconut Kale With Roasted Salmon

Coconut and kale are a natural flavor match. Perch simple roasted salmon on this delightful bed, and taste the harmony.

4.

Nutty buckwheat noodles set the scene for delicately flavored poached salmon with classic Asian flavors to shine on the plate.

Miso and Ginger Poached Salmon with Warm Soba Noodles

5. Salmon Fillet with Snap Peas

Salmon and lemon are a well-established pair. Freshen up this friendship with tangy crème fraîche (a quick trick to enliven any simple supper).

6. Mike's Hot Honey Glazed Salmon

Hot honey is well-established on our list of "condiment trends we stand by 100%" Treat your salmon to its zingy, sweet goodness, but save some for...well, everything and anything else!

Mike's Hot Honey-Glazed Salmon

7. Perfect Roast Salmon

Roasting fish with the skin on helps ensure an extra-flavorful finished product that's more forgiving to the kind of accidental overcooking we've all experienced.

Perfect Roast Salmon

8.

Fish sauce, peanuts, lime, and cilantro pack a ton of savory-tangy flavor into this fantastic, quick-to-prepare dinner.

9. Salmon Moqueca

This warm, nourishing Brazilian fish stew works perfectly with salmon instead of white fish and sweet potatoes instead of the traditional yams (which can be hard to find).

Salmon Moqueca

10. Salmon In Sorrel Sauce

This verdant fish-friendly sauce comes together in ten minutes or less, and spinach seamlessly subs for sorrel.

11. Grilled Salmon Tacos

Salmon takes to fish tacos like a fish to...tacos! You'll be very happy with these avocado-sauced grilled salmon tacos, is what we're getting at.

Grilled Salmon Tacos with Avocado Sauce

12. Sally Schneider's Slow-Roasted Fish

Master the art of "carryover heat" with this slow-roasting technique that laser-targets the perfect internal temperature for flawlessly flaky salmon.

Sally Schneider's Slow-Roasted Salmon (or Other Fish)

13. Spicy Garlic Lime Baked Salmon

This genius technique for infusing salmon with fresh jalapeño color and flavor includes a fail-safe measure for keeping intense heat at bay.

A Spicy Perspective's Garlic Lime Oven-Baked Salmon

14. Salmon with Kale and Sweet Potato

Think of this recipe more as a roadmap. Got salmon, kale, and sweet potatoes? Here's how to bring them together for a fast, filling meal any day of the week.

Åsa’s Salmon with Kale and Sweet Potato

15. Salmon Burgers With Avocado Aioli

If you love the combination of salmon and avocado as much as we do —sushi, tacos, toast, you name it — this extra-savory salmon burger will become a regular in your sea-faring repertoire.

Salmon Burgers with Avocado Aioli

16. Crisp-Skinned Salmon With Creamy Leeks

Silky creamed leeks add color and richness to simple crispy-skinned salmon for a meal that's as rib-sticking as it is elegant.

Russ Parsons's Crisp-Skinned Salmon (Plus Creamy Leeks and Cabbage)

17. Salmon with a Thai Curry Sauce

Poach salmon in an aromatic Thai curry to keep this recipe quick, infuse the fish with flavor from the get-go, and ensure it's cooked exactly to your liking. This is one of those dishes that's even better the next day, so make a big batch!

Salmon with a Thai Curry Sauce

18. Sesame Encrusted Salmon

Drizzle this reader-favorite salmon with a rich red wine sauce for a show-stopping effect. That's right, red wine with fish. Go ahead and let it sink in (the Pinot reduction, that is).

Sesame Encrusted Salmon with Pinot Noir Reduction

19. Roasted Salmon with a Cheat's Vietnamese Caramel Sauce

Savory Vietnamese caramel gets its complex, funky essence from fish sauce. Reduced into a savory-sweet glaze, it's the perfect complement to simple roasted salmon.

Roasted Salmon with a Cheat's Vietnamese Caramel Sauce

20. Seared Salmon with Cinnamon and Chile Powder

Warm spices amplify salmon's umami flavor and contribute a complex mounting heat. If you have 10 minutes and a craving for extra-flavorful fish, this recipe is your one-way ticket.

Seared Salmon with Cinnamon and Chile Powder

What's your favorite way to make salmon—on a weeknight or for a special occasion? (Or both?) Share a mini-recipe in the comments.

20 Best Salmon Recipes For Hearty Winter Dinners (2024)

FAQs

What is the tastiest way to cook salmon? ›

Salmon tastes great when baked, broiled, or tossed on the grill; smoked, poached, or cast into stews; fashioned into fish cakes and burgers, added to salads or whipped up into dips and spreads. This fish does it all.

What is the secret to best salmon? ›

A dry brine gives you firmer, juicier fish fillets with kettle-chip-crisp skin. Credit... Gentl and Hyers for The New York Times.

What pairs best with salmon? ›

20 Best Side Dishes for Salmon
  • 01 of 21. Simple Broccolini. ...
  • 02 of 21. Roasted Parmesan Rosemary Potatoes. ...
  • 03 of 21. Buttery Garlic Green Beans. ...
  • 04 of 21. Kale, Quinoa, and Avocado Salad with Lemon Dijon Vinaigrette. ...
  • 05 of 21. Easy Bok Choy. ...
  • 06 of 21. Sriracha Honey Brussels Sprouts. ...
  • 07 of 21. Lime Cilantro Rice. ...
  • 08 of 21.
Apr 29, 2021

What not to do when cooking salmon? ›

Here are five common mistakes that we all make when cooking salmon at home and how to avoid them.
  1. Not removing pin bones. Fact: Most salmon fillets have pin bones in them. ...
  2. Mistreating the skin. ...
  3. Using the wrong pan. ...
  4. Overcooking your fish. ...
  5. Reheating leftover salmon.
May 17, 2021

Is salmon better in the oven or frying pan? ›

For smaller, crispy, skin-on Salmon; a crispy pan sear is recommended. For bigger fillets, and succulent, skin-off King Salmon; the best method would be cooking in an oven.

Does salmon taste better in oven or pan? ›

If you enjoy a crispy exterior, then pan seared salmon is the way to go. Baking salmon is a great option for a larger piece of fish (try this Baked Salmon in Foil for an easy technique).

What brings out the flavor of salmon? ›

Marinating salmon can add additional flavor and help the fish stay moist during cooking. Most marinades include an acidic element like lemon or vinegar which add a pleasant tanginess to the fish. Salmon is considered by some to be a "fishy" tasting fish because it is firm and high in fat.

Why do you soak salmon in milk? ›

Apparently, the proteins present in milk can bind to the fatty acids that have been exposed to air and give salmon its fishy odor or taste and mitigate them to be more neutral. (Fishiness is caused by the oxidation of fatty acids.)

What do you soak salmon in before cooking? ›

Brown explains that wet-brining salmon—soaking it in water seasoned with salt—helps solidify the fat within the protein, so it doesn't leach out as quickly once the fish hits the heat, “keeping it nice and succulent.” In other words: less chance of drying out. The other option is dry-brining, or curing.

What does Gordon Ramsay serve with salmon? ›

Gordon Ramsay's Fit Food: Grilled Salmon, Garlic Mushrooms & Lentil Salad.

What's a good rice recipe to go with salmon? ›

Instructions
  1. Soak rice according to package directions and drain.
  2. Sauté garlic in oil for 1 minute.
  3. Add chicken broth and rice.
  4. Season with salt and pepper.
  5. Bring to a boil and cover, cook on low for 15 minutes.
  6. Fluff with a fork and stir in sesame seeds and chopped parsley.

What is the most delicious salmon in the world? ›

Hands down, as someone else said, King Salmon from the Copper River in alaska are by far the best in the world. These fish are highly prized by Chefs for their very high fat content. What many people don't realize is that with most fish and seafood, the higher the fat content the better.

How to cook salmon like a chef? ›

Heat the oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot and shimmering. Cook the salmon, skin side up, until golden and crisp, about 4 minutes. Resist the urge to fiddle with the fillets as they cook. Letting the fish sear untouched in hot oil creates a lovely, flavorful, and golden crust.

How does Gordon Ramsay cook salmon in the oven? ›

Flip the salmon over and top with the lemon slices, dill, and garlic. Pour the white wine into the skillet and transfer the skillet to the oven. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the salmon is cooked through and the internal temperature reaches 145°F (63°C). Serve the salmon hot with the pan juices spooned over the top.

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